First Light First Pic M42

ReaPerMan (Paul) · #1 08-02-2011, 03:20 PM

I originally posted this in Deep space but I think this was a more appropriate forum to get feedback and share my experiences with other beginners

I wrote

I Recently bought an Explore Scientific ED 80 from one of the members on Ice in Space and I have finally managed to get to taking some pictures. This is my first ever pic with my DSLR. Until now I have been using a webcam or my Gstar EX and I have now embarked on the journey taking Guided pictures ( with a lot of Help from Brendan and Graham.. Brendan wielding a Hacksaw in the dark to improve back focus on my finder guider is a sight to behold.) Finally I have taken some pictures and I have just finished processing the first.
This is 5 X 10 Minute subs ISO 200, stacked with deepsky stacker, then processed in Photoshop CS4.
Equipment Explore Scientific ED80 Triplet APO, Canon 1000D, Starshoot Autoguider using PHD.
BTW did i mention that it was gusting >40 kph at times during the shoot.

Desler (Darren) was kind enough to answer with

Great first light Paul, You could proably take a bit of the red/magenta out of the background and make it really Pop!
Still, you've got to be happy with what you've achieved.
Darren

So I have gone back into CS4 and reduced the red channel to improved the overall colour and to add 'drama' I have also adjusted the vibrance and saturation settings. The addition of some noise reduction with noise ninja also seems to help.

I know that there may be a few comments about the colour but I really like it.

all the best

Paul

Screwdriverone (Chris) · #2 08-02-2011, 03:49 PM

VERY nice Paul for a first light.

Brendan (Macgyver) is very adept with the tools, surprised he didnt grind you up a new FPL51 objective from some bottle tops and mars bar wrappers while he was at it....

Seems to me to be what looks like noise (even at ISO 200) in the black areas, possibly cleanable with a dark/flat frame....

You are right about the second pic, pop is the word I would use. Lots of details and a very nice bit of framing. Ooooh was the exclamation when I clicked on it.

Very nice work from what seems to be a ripper of a set up. I dont have enough experience to offer you any semi-pro suggestions other than that.

Well done

Cheers

Chris

irwjager (Ivo) · #3 08-02-2011, 03:50 PM

That's a wicked first light - you should be well chuffed with that! You even largely managed to keep the core from overexposing, which really requires you to hit the sweet spot with your exposure time.

I'm wondering whether the reddish tint in your 1st image was the result of light pollution, rather than an incorrect color balance? What's your sky like?

Regardless, excellent work and I, for one, hope to see more posts!

mswhin63 (Malcolm) · #4 08-02-2011, 04:00 PM

Hi Paul,

Brilliant detail on the core and great focus well done.

I have jest learnt recently from Atalas website correcting colour bias, a very simple site which I believe will improve your colours, give it a try - http://atalas.businesscatalyst.com/C...Photoshop.html

I managed to use this tutorial with GIMP as well.

ReaPerMan (Paul) · #5 08-02-2011, 05:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Screwdriverone

Brendan (Macgyver) is very adept with the tools, surprised he didnt grind you up a new FPL51 objective from some bottle tops and mars bar wrappers while he was at it....

Yes he is very adept and MacGyver does come to mind

Quote:

Originally Posted by irwjager

That's a wicked first light - you should be well chuffed with that! You even largely managed to keep the core from overexposing, which really requires you to hit the sweet spot with your exposure time.

The idea was to take a set of 2 minute subs to get the core detail but a very large tree at the end of the imaging run put a stop to that!! The tech that i have used is a bit of a photoshop fudge. Firstly i reprocessed the RAW files in Photoshop to alter the exposure thereby taking away the burn from the core. This was then stacked and added to the other stretched picture as a layer mask. Then by using the layer mask/hide all you can paint into the picture with a brush by selecting the colour from White to Black you can vary the amount of detail from the original to the new. this lets you blend in the colour in a natural fasion giving you all the detail that you want.

I'm wondering whether the reddish tint in your 1st image was the result of light pollution, rather than an incorrect color balance? What's your sky like?

Its not to bad but to the north of our location in Rockingham is the Kwinana industrial strip so for longer northern exposures it can suck a bit!

Regardless, excellent work and I, for one, hope to see more posts!

Thanks

Quote:

Originally Posted by mswhin63

Hi Paul,

Brilliant detail on the core and great focus well done.

Focus was achieved with a Bahtnov mask and many 10 sec exposures. I thought it was right many times until a clip around the ear from Brendan told me to keep going!!!

I have jest learnt recently from Atalas website correcting colour bias, a very simple site which I believe will improve your colours, give it a try - http://atalas.businesscatalyst.com/Correcting_Color_Bias_for_Photoshop .html

I managed to use this tutorial with GIMP as well.

Thanks for that I will check it out!

Thanks for for your comments,

all the best

Paul

cybereye (Mario) · #6 08-02-2011, 08:21 PM

Paul,

Using the lower ISO has certainly given you good dynamic range!! Fantastic effort and it's given me some things to try the next time I see clear sky... 2015 maybe??!!

Cheers,
Mario

ReaPerMan (Paul) · #7 08-02-2011, 11:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cybereye

Paul,

Using the lower ISO has certainly given you good dynamic range!! Fantastic effort and it's given me some things to try the next time I see clear sky... 2015 maybe??!!

Cheers,
Mario

Thanks Mario,

I hope it works for you

all the best

Paul

rcheshire (Rowland) · #8 09-02-2011, 05:27 AM

Very nice Paul. Good to see it being put to good use.

ReaPerMan (Paul) · #9 09-02-2011, 12:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rcheshire

Very nice Paul. Good to see it being put to good use.

Thanks Rowland,

I'm just in love with this little scope. The build quality of the scope, Colour and clarity of the images puts some of the synta scopes to shame. I really appreciate the fanastic deal that you gave me on this little ripper.

all the best

Paul