I've been going over this Eta Carinae data over the past 2 weeks of rainy days, and think I've finally evened out the color balance etc for a successful Ha Ha+R G B blend...
I have become aware of something however, I do need to be more careful when inserting the CCD into the focuser, to make sure it is completely square.. The stars on the right hand side of the image are much sharper than those on the left. Showing I still have human error to contend with before getting stuck into technical glitches and gripes..
In any case, I think the resulting image after this round of processing shows a marked improvement over the previous result.
Nope, this was taken with the Megrez 102 refractor, and the diffraction spikes are real.. They were made possible thanks to a hint from another forum member "JohnG" regarding how to make a diffraction spike mask.
got a square piece of marine ply, 135mm*135mm. Cut a hole in it, the same size as the outside diameter of my dewshield, Put a screw in each corner, and ran a piece of fishing line from top left screw to bottom right screw, and another from the top right screw to the bottom left screw. Sit that over the dewshield while imaging, and hey presto!! Diffraction spikes on refractor images!
Sneaky, But I feel some targets just aren't the same without diffraction spikes... M45 for example, without diffraction spikes, just lacks impact.
Jase - Yeah.. I know... They are not everyones cup of tea... I figure, if the big boys of the game have diffraction spikes with their RC setups.. I want them Suppose I should have bought a 5/6" imaging newtonian, would have cost a lot less, had no false color, and diffraction spikes come standard! I definitely dont use the mask all the time, But I find for some images I just feel.. Why not..
Jase - Yeah.. I know... They are not everyones cup of tea... I figure, if the big boys of the game have diffraction spikes with their RC setups.. I want them Suppose I should have bought a 5/6" imaging newtonian, would have cost a lot less, had no false color, and diffraction spikes come standard! I definitely dont use the mask all the time, But I find for some images I just feel.. Why not..
Yep, done it a few times myself with the 80ED, can look quite nice.... although I've never quite been able to bring myself to do the string thing with the Starfire
they make all the difference and all those hours processing much more satisfying in the end.
Very nice pic Alex
