New Orion Nebula IR: My canon T2i has been converted to an IR Filter. This is the first test shot with the the Filter and a Canon 400mm Lens. It was shot in the city so there is a fair...

CraigFair Loc: Santa Maria, CA.

My canon T2i has been converted to an IR Filter. This is the first test shot with the the Filter and a Canon 400mm Lens. It was shot in the city so there is a fair amount of glow. This weekend I'll be up at a Mountain, 4200 ft, so I should get some good shots through my Meade 8" telescope.
400mm, f/5.6, ISO 800, 30 sec, Auto WB,
Processed in Topaz Detail3 and Lightroom.
Craig

Original

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1st Processing IR only

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2nd Processing WB corrections

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JimH123 Loc: Morgan Hill, CA

CraigFair wrote:

My canon T2i has been converted to an IR Filter. This is the first test shot with the the Filter and a Canon 400mm Lens. It was shot in the city so there is a fair amount of glow. This weekend I'll be up at a Mountain, 4200 ft, so I should get some good shots through my Meade 8" telescope.
400mm, f/5.6, ISO 800, 30 sec, Auto WB,
Processed in Topaz Detail3 and Lightroom.
Craig

I love the color. The focus still needs some work. Need to get the stars down to pin points. At the very center of the nebula are 4 tightly grouped stars called the Trapezium Cluster. See if you can focus sharp enough to expose these 4 stars. Probably can't with the 400mm but with the 8" scope, you should be able to do it.

There are acually more than 4, but only 4 are easy to see. There are two more that are a bit dimmer, and can be seen in a larger scope. And most likely the others are out of reach of amateur equipment.

CraigFair Loc: Santa Maria, CA.

JimH123 wrote:

I love the color. The focus still needs some work. Need to get the stars down to pin points. At the very center of the nebula are 4 tightly grouped stars called the Trapezium Cluster. See if you can focus sharp enough to expose these 4 stars. Probably can't with the 400mm but with the 8" scope, you should be able to do it.

Thank you Jim for looking in and the Help. It is always welcome. Do you have any ideas what I can do to get prime results with the H-Alpha Filter.
The 400mm lens we used did the best it could on a tripod. I do as you say expect much better results on a guided 8" scope. I'll post next week.
Craig

JimH123 Loc: Morgan Hill, CA

CraigFair wrote:

Thank you Jim for looking in and the Help. It is always welcome. Do you have any ideas what I can do to get prime results with the H-Alpha Filter.
The 400mm lens we used did the best it could on a tripod. I do as you say expect much better results on a guided 8" scope. I'll post next week.
Craig

Craig

You can practice some more with the 400mm. Find out how much exposure it can tolerate without saturation. And also work on the focus. It is real critical. Use live view with focus magnifier. And very critically focus. If you encounter vibration, let it dampen out and make your assessment.

If using a modified full spectrum camera, you need a filter that passes the H-alpha at 656.3 nm. The only one that meets that is the 590nm IR filter. With 590, most light polution is gone.

CraigFair Loc: Santa Maria, CA.

JimH123 wrote:

Craig br br You can practice some more with the ... (show quote)

I will hopefully get clear enough skies tomorrow to get some practice time before I head to the mountain this weekend.
Craig

gwong1 Loc: Tampa, FL

Craig, Still in hiding! I love your shots, looking forward to your mountain shots this weekend. Hoping for clear weather for you. Gary

CraigFair wrote:

My canon T2i has been converted to an IR Filter. This is the first test shot with the the Filter and a Canon 400mm Lens. It was shot in the city so there is a fair amount of glow. This weekend I'll be up at a Mountain, 4200 ft, so I should get some good shots through my Meade 8" telescope.
400mm, f/5.6, ISO 800, 30 sec, Auto WB,
Processed in Topaz Detail3 and Lightroom.
Craig

CraigFair Loc: Santa Maria, CA.

gwong1 wrote:

Craig, Still in hiding! I love your shots, looking forward to your mountain shots this weekend. Hoping for clear weather for you. Gary

Thank you Gary.
Craig

guts Loc: texas.

They look great Craig you did good.

CraigFair Loc: Santa Maria, CA.

guts wrote:

They look great Craig you did good.

Thank you very much Bill. Did you get the links to the Red Dot???
Craig

guts Loc: texas.

CraigFair wrote:

Thank you very much Bill. Did you get the links to the Red Dot???
Craig

Yes they no longer carry them,The adapter that is.

northcoast42 Loc: Puget Sound, Washington

Very nice shots Craig. :thumbup:
Looking forward to seeing what you can do with your Meade.

CraigFair Loc: Santa Maria, CA.

northcoast42 wrote:

Very nice shots Craig. :thumbup:
Looking forward to seeing what you can do with your Meade.

Thank you NorthCoast, will give it my best effort.
Craig