I wanted to share some 'lessons learned' here. I planned on doing a total of 3 hrs 15 min of exposure with 300 sec exposures x 39, doing three sets of 13 exposures each so I could manually refocus between sets (since I don't have an auto-focuser and the temp was dropping).
The first set went fine, then I refocused -- but apparently caused the telescope to shift slightly and (HERE'S THE LESSON) never bothered to recheck my RA/DEC coordinates to be sure the target was still centered! 🙄 I don't have a Goto mount and should have plate-solved after my refocus to see if anything shifted. As a result, I couldn't really use my 2nd and 3rd data sets (an additional 1:10 of exposure time) since the nebula was mostly out of frame.
Anyway...since I only have 1:13 of data (using the first two 4-minute exposures as well), there was a bit of noise and so I had to soften the image more than I would have liked to minimize the noise...all because I didn't recheck my RA/DEC! I thought it might be instructive if anyone is doing something similar, so I wanted to share the experience.
AT60ED w/ field flattener
ASI2600MC Pro (OSC camera)
SkyGuider Pro with guiding via ASIAir Plus using an ASI120mm mini and a 30mm F4 guide scope
Optolong L-Extreme dual-band filter (H-alpha, O-III)
240 second exposures x 2; 300 second exposures x 13: [Total exposure time: 1:13]; with dark, flat, and dark-flat frames
Stacked in Siril (as an RGB image, not as narrowband) and post-processed in Photoshop
I wanted to share some 'lessons learned' here. I planned on doing a total of 3 hrs 15 min of exposure with 300 sec exposures x 39, doing three sets of 13 exposures each so I could manually refocus between sets (since I don't have an auto-focuser and the temp was dropping).
The first set went fine, then I refocused -- but apparently caused the telescope to shift slightly and (HERE'S THE LESSON) never bothered to recheck my RA/DEC coordinates to be sure the target was still centered! 🙄 I don't have a Goto mount and should have plate-solved after my refocus to see if anything shifted. As a result, I couldn't really use my 2nd and 3rd data sets (an additional 1:10 of exposure time) since the nebula was mostly out of frame.
Anyway...since I only have 1:13 of data (using the first two 4-minute exposures as well), there was a bit of noise and so I had to soften the image more than I would have liked to minimize the noise...all because I didn't recheck my RA/DEC! I thought it might be instructive if anyone is doing something similar, so I wanted to share the experience.
AT60ED w/ field flattener
ASI2600MC Pro (OSC camera)
SkyGuider Pro with guiding via ASIAir Plus using an ASI120mm mini and a 30mm F4 guide scope
Optolong L-Extreme dual-band filter (H-alpha, O-III)
240 second exposures x 2; 300 second exposures x 13: [Total exposure time: 1:13]; with dark, flat, and dark-flat frames
Stacked in Siril (as an RGB image, not as narrowband) and post-processed in Photoshop
Greg, great image, lots of detail and interesting colors. It's a great image for any amount of exposure.
Terri
Greg, great image, lots of detail and interesting colors. It's a great image for any amount of exposure.
Terri
Thanks, Terri. I was a little 'down' about the lost 2 hours of imaging time, so I appreciate the kind words!
Greg
Hi Greg, Super lovely image! Would you mind if it goes on our VAS Facebook page?
Maura
Hi Greg, Super lovely image! Would you mind if it goes on our VAS Facebook page?
Maura
I wouldn't mind at all, Maura! I'd be thrilled to have it on the Facebook page. I actually made a 'toned-down' and reoriented version of this a few days after I posted the original. I included it below in case you'd rather use that one. Your choice. Thanks!!
Greg
@greg-erianne Your first image really looks like what I would image a heart to look like. I particularly like the colors, better than a lot I've seen online. Thanks so much!
Great capture Greg! Lots of detail and contrast! Heck of a job! Congrats!!!
Great capture Greg! Lots of detail and contrast! Heck of a job! Congrats!!!
Thanks so much, Rick! I appreciate that. 😀