From: Alan Friedman <alan@greatarrow.com>

Date: November 3, 2008 11:02:07 AM MST

To: Astro_IIDC@yahoogroups.com

Subject: Re: [Astro_IIDC] Saturday's Sun

Hi Jim,

Thanks! Yes, this was taken with my 90mm solarmax filter on the A-P f5 Stowaway (92mm). There is a link below the image to a picture of the set-up from my backyard. Note the power lines at the back of the yard - the sun is headed down thataway!

I use a Baader FFC with extension to increase the focal length to approx. 1.7 meters.

I too was out watching the Sun on Saturday and testing my new Lunt
60mm Solarscope for the first time. I don't have enough in focus
travel to include a filter wheel...

Not sure why you would want to use a filter wheel with an H-alpha filter? You've already eliminated all but a tiny slice of red light? I think everyone who is colorizing their images is working with the monochrome data in a program like Photoshop. I'm usually happy with the B&W aesthetic, but I did colorize this time. There are some good primers on how to do this - Greg Piepol and Paul Hyndman's websites come to mind.

...because the diagonal is an integral
part of the Ha filter system so I had to combine a color frame onto
the much more detailed mono frame. I think the Lunt is rated at about
0.7A so you do see some surface granulation but nothing like the
beautiful detail in Alan's image.

My 90mm solarmax is also .7 Angstrom. Surface detail is hugely seeing dependent. The filaments yesterday was quite contrasty but the surface structures were very difficult to see. I increased the gamma setting during capture to almost maximum. I wouldn't normally recommend this, but if the contrast is very low the software has nothing to "hold onto" for alignment. The DMK camera is able to still capture a decent image at high gamma settings and the extra contrast can make the difference in processing between a successful stack or no stack at all!

Just wanted to post something here since it's been so long and we want
Milton to know he still has a loyal following!

here here! ... and nice work capturing the faint prominences.

cheers,

Alan