The Leo Triplet, 23 March 2012, Rother Valley Campsite

[The Thing]

Yeeha! Now I'm cookin' on gazzzz .

30x300s @ iso800.  LX90 8" UHTC, Baader Alan Gee II Telecompressor (f5.2), Canon 1000Da (no CLS-CCD filter), APT, PHD, QHY5 on Finderscope, Skycharts.

This is as full size as it gets as I always have problems getting a finished viewable file out of IRIS. This is a screen shot! There are some very strange dark squidges along the bottom of the image, any ideas what could have caused it? I have cropped most of it out.
[rubbish image removed]

[Mike]

Very nice detail Duncan but your colour balance is off. The image has a green cast to me.

[Rocket Pooch]

Greeny yellow I'd say, looks like if you can get the colour balance right it will be good.

[The Thing]

Better? This started out so greeny yellow it looked ill.

Full Size (IRIS was OK saving a JPG but not a PNG)

[MarkS]

Looks good Duncan.

You've processed it well to show some good detail and excellent colouring in the galaxies.

Your focal reducer is working well and your collimation looks spot on - the distortions are well under control and are very symmetrical.

Nice one!

Mark

[Mike]

Colour much better on the reprocess. Excellent detail. Probably your best image yet.

[Carole]

Really like the reprocess Duncan, nice colour.

Carole

[The Thing]

Thanks everyone. I'm going to try it with Mark's magic IRIS script when I get a chance to see if I can get more out of the subs.

[JohnP]

Detail in galaxies is looking very good Dunc. Have to say your black point is VERY clipped but I suspect you did this to hide those weird gradients at the bottom of image... Nice one,  John.

[The Thing]

Thanks John.

If anyone can make a suggestion as to the nature of the weird gradients...

[JohnP]

Well it looks pretty severe - is it on all frames? What about light leakage somewhere - do you have laptop nearby? Have you got the viewfinder on your camera covered....what about darks did you do any?  John

[The Thing]

10 darks from library at correct CCD temp, good flats, camera ep covered.

[Fay]

Lovely Duncan, great triplet!!

[The Thing]

Thanks Fay!

[JohnP]

Well if it happens next time you image I would suggest doing a single dark to eliminate light leakage then I would suggest culprit is either reflections somewhere or perhaps CCD icing up...

[julian]

very nice image Duncan

julian

[RobertM]

Looking excellent Duncan and the stars seem pretty good to the edge.  I would say in this LT the background looks blacker that a black thing painted black - but probably not much you can do about that without some gradient removal tool ? I didn't get to see the orginal but the colours look ok on this one.

Robert

[mickw]

Looks really good Duncan, nice detail and colours.

I can just make out the gradients or whatever, looks like a couple of arcs across the bottom of the image.  It looks like you could be picking up a reflection from somewhere.  Were the Taj Mahal lights on ?  I thought your tube and dewshield were flocked though.
Is it possible that dew could be collecting on the inside of the dewshield at the open end ?

[The Thing]

Thanks everyone, yes I made the background very black to hide the gradients/artefacts. It could easily be reflections, I probably should flock inside the t-mount as well.

I don't think it was the Taj Mahal lights Mick, I need to examine the flats, I think there may have been light leakage when I took them. The funny thing is it looks like the effect you get when the back of a film camera isn't sealed properly or you don't put the lid on the film processing tank properly before you put the lights on. Weird.