Finally got autoguiding cracked...

That is just an amazing pic M. Well done again. :shock:

Beautiful pic Michael, how large was the original image if you scaled this down?

Would be interesting to combine it with some shorter exposure images to capture the detail in the centre section. Use that nice HDR function in Photoshop...

Well done,

Dave P

As i didnt know what HDR was i found theese sites that may be interesting for others too.

www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/photoshop-cs2-hdr-32bit.html

www.luminous-landscape.com/tutorials/hdr.shtml

powerretouche.com/Dynamic_Range_introduction.htm (plugin)

I used the hdr function in november on M42, it works very well, a very nifty function to have

OK, here's Version 1 of the image processed. Processed with Maxim dl, Photoshop CS2 and Neat Image Pro. I've spent a while looking at this image while processing it so hopefully I haven't over-cooked it. Any technical comments good or bad on processing would be welcome.

Michael - apart from the barely perceptible star elongations, that image is spot on. I like the colour and it looks very natural overall - there's no hint of any overprocessing.

Having imaged M42 on one or two occasions I like the way you've kept the inner stars visible whilst not grossly overexposing the core. Tha's a nice touch.

Well done - you're certainly reaping the benefits of all your new kit and the obsevatory.

Dave