Bigger field and size: 2799x1936
DATE
March 27th, 2009
PHOTO
Exposure time:
L: 9x10' (bin 1x1)
RGB: 4x5' each (bin 2x2)
Total: 2 1/2 hours
Focal: 530mm, f/5
EQUIPMENT
Imaging scope: Takahashi FSQ 106 EDX
Camera: STL11000
Guiding camera: StarShoot Autoguider
Mount: Takahashi EM400
SITE & CONDITIONS
Henry Coe State Park, Morgan Hill, California
Seeing: Ok
Transparency: Average
SOFTWARE
Stacking: MaximDL
Processing: PixInsight & Photoshop
COMMENTS
Short session and even shorter time processing the image. I was trying to put in the same field of view both, the Whale galaxy with its classic companion galaxies, as well as the tiny Mice galaxies despite the mice would end up with about the same size as a bright star. If you cannot find the mice, they're around the top-left corner of the large image ;-)
Don't look for it in the image above, as it's a crop of the entire feld of view, focusing on the Whale (NGC 4631) and Hockey Stick (NGC 4627) galaxies
This by the way is probably the last time I bin 2x2 for the RGBs. IMO, it's not worth it. Also, despite I spent processing the image not much longer than one hour, I think I over processed the main galaxies a bit more, and left the background a bit too dark.
