One of my
earliest astro photos (taken this time last year) captured M27--the Dumbbell or Apple Core. Because my vantage point does not offer many other individual targets that benefit from wide-field imaging this time of year, I decided to take another crack at it.
Optically, the rig is the same as last year, but I've replaced my Evolution Alt-Az mount with an AVX EQ mount, added a couple Optoplong filters, and become a bit more proficient in image processing.
This image is my first attempt at blending broadband and narrowband data. I started with one evening of broadband data (230 x 60s) (Revisions A and B) and collected an evening of narrowband data (90 x 120s) a week or so later. In the most recent version (Revision E), the nebula reflects close to 7 hours of combined broadband and narrowband data, while the stars are all from the first night's broadband effort.
During Galaxy Season, I became accustomed to (addicted to?) broadband stars, so I intend to use this technique whenever I have sufficient ambition to overcome the inconvenience.
(Captured: C6, AVX, Hyperstar, ASI183MC Pro, Optolong L-Pro and L-Enhance filters. Processed: AstroPixelProcessor, PixInsight, StarXterminator, NoiseXterminator)
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