Luminous Landscape Forum

Equipment & Techniques => Landscape & Nature Photography => Topic started by: sdwilsonsct on January 14, 2016, 09:15:59 pm

Title: Orion
Post by: sdwilsonsct on January 14, 2016, 09:15:59 pm

I am amazed at what a humble DSLR and 400 mm lens can do.

Each image is a composite of 16 exposures, 30 s each, f 5.6, ISO 3200, stacked in Photoshop and processed in Aperture. For M42 I layered a single 4-s exposure on top of the stack in order to show detail in the centre.

The camera was on an equatorial mount. I used a remote to avoid camera shake.

For comparison, the first image of M42 was a 51-minute exposure taken with an 11-inch aperture in 1880.

Title: Re: Orion
Post by: Walt Roycraft on January 14, 2016, 09:18:19 pm

Really nice!

Title: Re: Orion
Post by: Chairman Bill on January 15, 2016, 01:41:18 am

I'm impressed

Title: Re: Orion
Post by: Paulo Bizarro on January 15, 2016, 04:01:46 am

Excellent.

Title: Re: Orion
Post by: polaris-14 on January 15, 2016, 01:18:49 pm

This is beautiful!

Title: Re: Orion
Post by: churly on January 15, 2016, 02:08:19 pm

Nice shots indeed!  Also nice to have an equatorial mount to work with  :) - Enjoy.
Chuck

Title: Re: Orion
Post by: sdwilsonsct on January 16, 2016, 03:33:26 am

Quote from: churly on January 15, 2016, 02:08:19 pm

Also nice to have an equatorial mount to work with  :) - Enjoy.

Well you have to do something during the prairie winter.

Thanks to all for the feedback.

Title: Re: Orion
Post by: Bob_B on January 16, 2016, 09:10:22 am

Superb! I have a decent Celestron reflector, and have never seen M42 look so good thru it. Also, thanks for explaining how you captured and processed your photos.

PS: Is that faint dashed horizontal line at the bottom due to the passage of a solid rocket booster across the field or a plane?

Title: Re: Orion
Post by: sdwilsonsct on January 16, 2016, 04:12:36 pm

Quote from: Bob_B on January 16, 2016, 09:10:22 am

Is that faint dashed horizontal line at the bottom due to the passage of a solid rocket booster across the field or a plane?

I think it's a geostationary satellite, Bob. The scope is following the stars, so they appear as points. There is one streak on each exposure because the satellite does not move. The gaps between streaks on the combined image are the pauses between exposures.

So, even after getting to dark skies and setting up in a corner away from the nearest gazillion-watt yard light a mile away, the hand of man still intrudes.