The Swan - In Hydrogen Alpha

[Colorado CJ]

With the days getting longer and it not getting dark until after 8 pm, I don't have much time during the week to shoot astrophotos. But, when it is clear out, I still set up for at least and hour of imaging.

Last night I shot the Seagull with my mono camera and a hydrogen alpha filter. I need to buy an OIII and SII filter so that I can make hubble palatte images, but for now, I will have to settle for B&W. Narrow band imaging sure works great in light pollution, and even with a bright near full moon.

This is 17, 5 minute exposures.

 

[JimFox]

That’s amazing work Andrew, and to be able to shoot with a full moon and still get that detail is mind blowing!

 

[Colorado CJ]

That’s amazing work Andrew, and to be able to shoot with a full moon and still get that detail is mind blowing!

Thanks Jim!

Yes, that is what is great about narrow band imaging. The band is so narrow, 6 nm in this case, that it cuts out all light pollution. There is a great astrophotographer that lives right in Denver. He shoots mostly narrow band images. The images he produces look like they came from the Hubble! It amazes me that he can get those images in the huge light pollution Denver has.

Here is one he recently finished, just to show you what narrow band imaging in heavy light pollution can do. This is taken with my same camera, but he is using all three narrow band filters to get these colors. I still need to buy two of the filters, but they run around $200.00 a piece for just a 1.25" filter.

Click on the photo for the larger image

 

[Jameel Hyder]

Amazing stuff.

 

[AlanLichty]

Your shot had me going Wow - you can do this with a bright moon? Then I clicked on your image link for the guy in Denver. Whoa. I did not realize mere mortals could do things like this from the ground.

 

[Mike Lewis]

Andrew,

You are seeing one of the very biggest benefits of a mono camera - being able to image in narrowband to combat light pollution. I will warn you that the other 2 filters are not usually producing the same dramatic results as you are seeing with your H-a filter. For many if not most objects, the amount of signal at OIII and especially SII wavelengths cannot compete with the H-a signal. You generally have to boost those signals more, either through more data collection or via other artificial means. Additionally, the OIII filter is more susceptible to moonlight than either of the other 2 filters are. That being said, they are both very worth purchasing in my opinion. If you want to spread out the 'economic pain' a little bit, I would say get the OIII filter next, as there are lots of nice bicolor objects like the North America Nebula that look great with just those 2 filters. Then eventually spring for the SII filter as well. Unfortunately some of the objects richest in all 3 emission wavelengths are Planetary Nebulae, which tend to be smaller objects that do require a larger focal length to capture with decent detail.

Another great image - nice to see you getting some good stuff off of your new setup. I am going to guess you are not going back to DSLR imaging for at least deep sky objects like this one anytime soon

ML

 

[Jim Dockery]

Cool. Thanks for sharing these.