This image is a close up view of the Eagle Nebula (Messier 16) in Ha cropped from another widefield image of the Eagle Nebular Region in narrowband also posted on this site [Please see the image entitled, "Messier 16 Eagle Nebular Region in Narrowband (Ha)" captured on 07/26/2016]. Also, please refer to the detailed description that accompanies that latter image for more details on the Eagle Nebula and its associated clusters of stars and dark nebulae.
Given the orientation of this image, this nebula really does resemble an eagle with wings outstretched and with the head clearly visible at the top. Also visible in this image are the so called "Pillars of Creation" where new star formation is taking place from within the core of the nebula - such pillars being made famous by the Hubble Space Telescope's iconic close-up image of that same feature - Note: Please see:
http://hubblesite.org/newscenter/archive/releases/2015/01/image/a/format/web_print/ (cut and paste link into your browser). Hubble first imaged this area within M16 in 1995 and revisited the site in 2014 for an even more spectacular view.
With a total integration time of only 0.4 hour for this Ha image, I was surprised that these pillars actually could be resolved by my Takahashi E-130D 5.1 inch telescope at f/3.3 to show up in the processed image. I do plan to capture some additional images of this feature using my 152mm f/4.8 Maksutov-Newtonian, as it has a more narrow field of view than the Takahashi E-130D - and I hope to post the resultant image here at a future date.
Note: Diffraction spikes associated with the brightest stars in this image have been enhanced slightly using Star Spikes by ProDigital Software making for a dramatic effect.
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