Posts Made By: Larry Citro

hi,

i like the image a lot. The green of the nebula shows well in the central portions and the Halpha in the outer portions. It's sharp and not overly processed.

clear skies,

Larry Citro

Hi Ivan

That depends on what your goals are. To be satisfied with " your first " images assumes the question is beging asked from a beginners viewpoint ( some of the best imagers in the world are never satisfied )

I would think this question is the same as asking how long does it take to learn the basics of imaging processing which include

image reduction ...using calibrated bias, flat and dark frames on the raw images

learning the basics of aligning and stacking images to get better S/N ratio ( this implies you know how long each is optimal for your system)

if you live in a light polluted are .. then learning the basics of gradient removal

learning the basics of nonlinear stretching of the images such as gamma stretch, log and DDP

learning the basics of noise removal

learning the basics of sharpening the image using deconvolution techniques and unsharpmasking

THIS ASSUMES MONOCHROME IMAGING, FOR COLOR ADD

learning the basics of background normalization
gradient removal in color images is much more difficult
learning basic lrbg combine procedures
learning color balancing techniques

So how long ... about 1 year at a minimum


How long for camera control ...

this impilies you have your mount optimized for imaging ... including good polar alignment, good balance, good pec training

for unguided exposures the camera techniques can be learned in a few months
if you want to autoguide for longer exposures then add several more months.

This is based on my experience. To get to higher levels of processing using mor complicated progams such as PhotoShop well add a few more years.


clear skies,

Larry Citro

hi Floyd,

Great looking scope and it will be great to look through also.

I'd be very excired also.

clear skies,

Larry Citro

hi,

Beautiful image.

Larry Citro

hi,

" A work in progress - Comments-tips-insults welcome....

No tips or insults or comments needed. The image speaks for itself. Just Great !

clear skies,

Larry Citro

hi,

18" of aperture, good seeing and great imaging processing skills combine here to produce an image with outstanding resolution and interest.

clear skies,

Larry Citro

hi,

Real nice Jose, just as it is. Be sure and post your final.

clear skies,

Larry Citro

hi,

It's got very strong red tones so I rebalanced the colors in PaitshopPro. Result below.

clear skeis,

Larry Citro

hi,

I think in the case of your images, the extraoridnary is becoming the oridnary, all of them seem to elicit a WOW !


clear skies,

Larry Citro

Hi,

Either would do well, the 10 having a higher QE and the 11000 a larger chip. If interested in wide FOV imaging I'd get the 11000, it's lower QE will not be a problem with a f5 system.

I don't know if the np127 has a completely flat field to cover a 35mm frame .. a CCD will show the slightest amount of aberations if there are any.

clear skeis,

Larry Citro