An incredible object to image! This one was the second object I started mass imaging after discovering how to automate most of my imaging sessions, which really opened the door to being able to work with multiple nights of data as well as full nights of sleep. This image was definitely fun to process, I have been looking forward to finding a "messy" image full of background nebulosity - I probably stretched this one a little too far in the dim areas to try and bring this out. I am certainly becoming comfortable with PixInsight after this process. My only gripe is many of the stars were slightly discolored. The AT72ED has some great optics for a low cost scope, but even so some of the yellow stars had blue and purple hues around some of their edges, and the edges of some yellow stars were going a little red.

Stacking in PI:

- BPP to combine Master Dark and Flats for each night + Lights Calibration

- Subframe Selector to eliminate bad frames

- Local Normalization

- Image Integration, Drizzle Integration

Processing in PI:

- DBE to remove orange / yellow sky-glow

- Color Calibration using Background Preview Aggregator

- Deconvolution using Dynamic PSF and StarMask for Local Support Deringing (had to combine multiple Star Masks to capture all star sizes using PixelMath)

- SCNR - Green to remove color cast

- Ran the John Rista Noise Reduction method first using Multiscale Linear Transform for high frequency noise reduction (for Chrominence, then Luminence noise)

- Partially stretched image using Histogram Transformation

- Ran ACDNR for Chrominence and normal noise reduction per Rista's method

- Finished image stretched using Screen Transfer Function + Histogram Transformation

- Created Luminence clone of image

- HDR Multiscale Transform to slightly sharpen nebula (used Star Mask, Luminence image clones, and Pixel Math to create Nebulosity Mask)

- Multiscale Linear Transform for more NR using inverted clone masks to target lighter and darker image areas

- Combined L clone back into RGB image

- Used Morphological Transformation to reduce stars

- Multiple Curves & Saturation Tweaks using Curves Transformation

- SCNR Red using dim mask to avoid discoloring yellow stars

- Color Saturation to enhance blue tones

- Exported as 16-bit .TIFF for Photoshop

Processing in PSCS6 (Carboni's Astronomy Tools)

- Ran multiple layers of increased saturation and slight blurring blended as color to both increase and even out star color (my optics aren't perfect)

- Color Blotch Reduction with Background Mask to remove more Chrominance noise

- More Saturation increases and decreases with varying inverted masks to control star color and keep true background relatively monochromatic

- Carboni's Local Cont. Enhancement with a Starless Nebula Mask to enhance surrounding nebula

- Multiple layers of Color Balance tweaks to keep background nebula neutral

- Ran Space NR and Deep Space NR using a copy of the image as a mask (and inverting for Deep Space NR to mostly affect background)

- Once more into PixInsight for a pass of Star Reduction using Morphological Transformation and resampling the image by 50%

- Ported back over to Photoshop to add signature and a final tweak to Color Balance