From: Milton Aupperle <milton@outcastsoft.com>

Date: August 11, 2009 10:41:59 AM MDT

To: Astro_IIDC@yahoogroups.com

Subject: Re: [Astro_IIDC] Terry`s image...

Hi Terrence;

That's why there isn't really a workflow that says do step A to to Step F to get Result X. There are more variables than rules when processing Astronomy images. If one could pigeon hole all the variables, then we'd all produce images like Alan's and would not need imaging seminars where we learn from the great imagers. Of course that isn't the case and is why we have such a diversity of quality of  images taken by different people using different equipment and under variable circumstances.

The biggest variable is turbulence  / seeing (mirror, internal tube, local turbulence, high altitude turbulence), followed by mechanical / optical issues (poor tracking, poor collimation, dirty optics), followed choice of focal length (too long for seeing conditions, too short for image scale resolution), followed by exposure setting (too dark, too bright, too much Gain / Brightness = too much noise), followed by processing choices which change depending on what the other choices were.

If you read through pages 30 to 48 of the Astro IIDC manual, I do go into a fair bit of depth on what they do and how to use the various Stacking options in Astro IIDC.

Hope some of this helps..

Milton Aupperle

On 11-Aug-09, at 9:47 AM, Terrence Redding wrote:

Mark, you guys are ahead of me.  I am busy teaching a five and seven year old to do their numbers this morning and you guys have been processing video and producing images.  I have yet to do that.  So I am still clearly following you guys and learning from you and Milton.  But I know when I process my first video, if I follow a good workflow chances are better that my product will have benefitted from the structured approach.

I have been looking at the file outputs that have been published so far today in the group and reading Milton's comments.  It appears he os also saying that certain things needed to be done, while other things did not need to be done.  Again, it appears a workflow would have aided in the effort.

I hope you get good weather.  I hope to take a few hours today to produce my first processed image.