The story behind this picture is more or less dishonorable: We had so much clear skies that I didn't know what to capture next... so I just picked the closest neighbor of my last target (M106)
The object got more and more interesting during the processing and subsequent research for this description. The processing was tough because the galaxy's core is really bright and overexposed with the slightest stretch. The outer ring on the other hand is very faint and hard to highlight. I tried a bunch of techniques and somehow managed to partially combine multiple stretches in the end
To be completely honest: I don't really like the image. I enjoyed the processing and I am glad that i learned something. But the final outcome is somewhat not satisfying. But this is most likely because 1000mm doesn't give the necessary detail you need for this astonishing galaxy.
During the research part of this "project" I learned that M94 has two Rings. The clearly visible inner "Starburst Ring" (that comes to light even without an Ha-session) and the outer "Spiral ring". Both rings appear to be at resonated distances within the disk. Especially the inner ring, combined with bright bulge and a yellowish disk justifies the name "Cat's Eye Galaxy" over "Croc's Eye Galaxy" ... but this is just my opinion
Note, that I am still in a very early stage of setting up my equipment and processing skills. With each session, I am trying to come one step closer to my ambitious goals. As next step, I want to learn how to improve my stars (burned out; color; spikes) with my OSC. Therefore, I want to learn techniques of combining different exposure subframes. I think I will use this object for testing
Let me know if you have any tips.
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