put down the mouse and step away from the color...

Darn clear skies back home and I am trapped on travel. So here is M17 again.

This is about the sixth time I re-did the color balance from scratch, each time rationalizing something "better." The original image can be seen here:

http://www.fortlewis.edu/observatory/image_detail.asp?ID=194

I started calculating better extinction vs. elevation angles, realizing that M17 is pretty low in the sky, which means lots more blue. But! What about when Utah sends a good fraction of it's topsoil over Colorado? Even more blue needed and nothing to do with Rayleigh. (note to self - have a list of "white" stars handy for calibration) I realize this is not even the "correct" filter set for post card pictures, but I think the same arguments about scaling vs. wavelength should apply.

So... What, if anything, do you do to change the color balance vs. elevation, if you are only wanting the picture to "look" right. Calculate adjustments to scale factors? Just hit auto-white? Adjust balance to please the cat? Nothing?

And finally, how does this new balance look on a different monitor than mine?

Thanks for looking,
Charlie

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