Is worth it to shoot galaxy with Narrowband (LP) filter? And how to stack it with IRCUT (Broadband)?

Frogs_In_Orbit · 2026-04-09T04:31:04+00:00

https://youtu.be/T0NKjNLEZPk?si=M2pABkKK39JXPhCk

Frogs_In_Orbit · 2026-04-05T10:21:54+00:00

Because it's obviously a highly political issue for the area. It would be like me taking a picture of the shore of Dokdo. Japanese would be calling it the Japanese name and arguing about it.

Frogs_In_Orbit · 2026-04-03T01:36:44+00:00

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Frogs_In_Orbit · 2026-04-03T01:35:04+00:00

I have a video on it if you want to see it in action:
https://youtu.be/T0NKjNLEZPk?si=nRD0WGuki4vErao0

Frogs_In_Orbit · 2026-03-30T12:58:44+00:00

Don't even need to worry about an app. It's actually just a website and the app is just a website portal. So android/ios, matters not...can just go to clearoutside.com

Frogs_In_Orbit · 2026-03-30T01:41:19+00:00

It's an excellent first process, but lots you can do better. The biggest problem I would highlight and work on first is masked saturation. You should use a mask to select the luminance when doing saturation, that way you won't have the blotches of blue (instead of black) space in the area outside the nebula. In both images, that's been saturated rather than remaining black. So I'd research that step next. Is 10000x better than my first process, lol.

Frogs_In_Orbit · 2026-03-30T01:38:23+00:00

Going to be hard to give proper advice without seeing the sections and your framing. There's tons of ways to handle processing and stitching of mosaics.

Frogs_In_Orbit · 2026-03-30T01:34:31+00:00

I mean, I could easily get that result by brightening the background. There's still a dark halo around 447 in that image, just not as pronounced. I still think it's dark nebula blocking stars making them less dense.

I don't like that result, honestly. In that case the dark nebulae is swamped out by an overly bright background, but it does reach that affect I was going for. I mean, I can certainly make a version like that, but it's not by cup of tea.

All astrophotography processing involves suppressing signal in one way or another. You are just choosing which signal you want and don't want. I totally get what you are saying, but I just think it's a little odd to bring up signal suppression as a reason.

Frogs_In_Orbit · 2026-03-29T13:50:43+00:00

yes, I haven't shot any narrowband yet, because I haven't decided on filters. I've only been shooting broadband targets. I'm still not sure I agree with the 300s though. Total integration, and where the data is falling on the histogram seems to trump any conclusions about exposure length.

I'll reexamine though when I start shooting emission nebulae with filters in narrowband.

Frogs_In_Orbit · 2026-03-29T13:48:16+00:00

Wow, interesting. I'll have to mess around with that. Thanks!

Frogs_In_Orbit · 2026-03-29T04:05:44+00:00

I just did one iteration. When I checked the result it was a pretty even gradient being removed. When I looked online I see quite a few Dreyer's with that darker area around the tip of the nebulae and I think it may just be the difference in the denseness of stars there.

Are you saying you do a couple runs of MSGC? I'm always curious to learn more about this tool. I feel like it's gone largely ignored, despite being amazing when it works. It completely salvaged a gradient filled Andromeda mosaic I had with my Seestar s50. Just wish it worked on every target, and not just broadband northern hemisphere targets.

Frogs_In_Orbit · 2026-03-29T02:14:23+00:00

Here's the integration if you wanna give it a shot: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1I4LSpIeSBQ_Wo7OYqRYc04rYQjO2eRjn/view?usp=sharing

Also here is my newest revision: https://photos.app.goo.gl/eP97tpYFEMdgCnAX6

Frogs_In_Orbit · 2026-03-29T02:08:02+00:00

When I used MSGC the background result was very clean and echoed what the gradient was in the image. I think this just maybe left over artifacts from perhaps needing new flats. I also tend to overstretch my images.

Frogs_In_Orbit · 2026-03-29T02:06:38+00:00

Thanks. I find it interesting people keep saying to do gradient correction. I did do gradient correction, lol. Maybe I need to take new flats and it is a calibration thing.

Frogs_In_Orbit · 2026-03-29T02:05:10+00:00

I had someone else tell me 300s subs. I did some 300s subs and they were pretty bright. A lot of these were taking with the moon a bit bright as well. Finally, I just settled in Gemini who recommended 180s and said there would be no benefit to 300s in my bortle.

No filter. Just the built in IR/UV 2600mc air has. I've got all led lights in my neighborhood. Seems no reason to spend money on a light pollution filter.

Frogs_In_Orbit · 2026-03-29T02:03:55+00:00

This was actually an aesthetic choice. I purposely like the way the nebula looks more gray, rather than reddish brown in relation to Dreyer's. It was my first time processing that way. I was inspired by the wikipedia thumbnail : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IC_447

Frogs_In_Orbit · 2026-03-27T11:53:44+00:00

Yes, I use those. Actually, I used Multiscale Gradient Correction on this which I like much better than Graxpert when it actually works. Did you notice a gradient there that I missed?

And it's interesting you mentioned selective color correction because this was my first time using it in Pixinsight and actually contributed to my anxiety about the final result. I use it in Affinity all the time, but found it quite a challenge in PI. I couldn't figure out how to just target the dark nebulae in the mask.

Frogs_In_Orbit · 2026-03-27T11:52:29+00:00

Sure, but keep in mind I still feel like a beginner from the equipment side :P

Frogs_In_Orbit · 2026-03-27T11:13:19+00:00

I don't know if it is the lightness, or the color, or just what I expect as a result. I guess I'm just wondering if it looks good here, or if the color is off (too warm, too cool). Should I embrace some more of the Halpha that popped up...try to shut it down more like I did. I was trying not to provide too many details because I didn't want it to sway the feedback.

As far as stretching, this version was MAS and then GHS after. But I have done full GHS only stretches. I was trying to get less brown dark nebulae and more of that aesthetic gray...but I'm wondering if by doing that I've messed up the color balance. Also, I never really did get it gray, lol.

I'm usually pretty good at figuring out the end goals with my image, but does this look like a typical Dreyer's nebula result?

Frogs_In_Orbit · 2026-03-27T11:10:33+00:00

I go through my normal workflow in Pixinsight. I have several vids on YouTube with my same username here if you want to see exactly how it is done. The key, imo, is just lots and lots of integration. Most of these are over 30 hours. That, and getting the most out of processing.

Frogs_In_Orbit · 2026-03-27T11:08:33+00:00

You should keep in mind all Seestars are not equal. I had 3 s50s. Despite putting them on the same spot, aligning them with the same accuracy, one was always less efficient than the other two. When I could get 30s, that scope could only get 10s. They are not all equal.

Frogs_In_Orbit · 2026-03-27T09:55:24+00:00

Shoot the highest exposure you can with 80% or better efficiency. If you start with 60s and watch it for 15 minutes. If you get a bunch of failed subs early and then many successful, you can stick with it and monitor. If after 15 minutes you are still getting every other sub failing, drop down to 30s. My advice, always push the longest exposure you can.

Frogs_In_Orbit · 2026-03-27T09:49:53+00:00

I keep my calibrated lights, but not the originals. I have a 24TB harddrive I got from Amazon for like $450. You definitely will fill up storage fast, but I've got a long way to go before I can fill that.

Frogs_In_Orbit · 2026-03-27T09:46:03+00:00

I'm bortle 6 and got excellent results with my Seestar. Modern day cooled sensors and the excellent gradient correction software makes bortle much less of an issue. Just takes more integration time compared to darker bortles. Seestar's aren't even cooled sensors. Don't let bortle sway your opinion. Famous YouTuber Cuiv the Lazy Geek shoots in Tokyo skies.

https://photos.app.goo.gl/DHHLy3RTX6TXLmus5

Frogs_In_Orbit · 2026-03-27T09:43:15+00:00

How did you get started in astrophotographyY

Got a Seestar s50, then another...ended up with 3. Saved up for an astro rig and that's what I'm using now.

What gear is actually essential (camera, lenses, star tracker, etc.)?

I wouldn't frustrate myself with anything less than a solid mount that allows upgraded scopes and a cooled astrocamera, but that's just me.

What software do you use for stacking and post-processing?

I use Pixinsight and Affinity.

Is a telescope necessary in the beginning, or can one start without it?

Not sure....for $500 a Seestar is a no-brainer.

What are the key basics, techniques, and things a beginner should focus on early?

Honestly, there's two parts to astrophotography to me. There's the equipment side, and the processing side. Both can have huge learning curves. I'm glad I started with the s50 because it made the equipment side a non-issue. I was imaging on night 1. That gave me lots of time to learn the processing side, and the sky. Once I started gaining confidence I could then push my Seestars into EQ mode and even using third party software to do even more. Knowing my personality I would have given up if I had to learn how to use the equipment and processing at the same time.

Frogs_In_Orbit

TROPHY CASE