Andromeda Galaxy
by dunzel

Comment by dunzel:
I missed the requirement that it needed to be taken after the challenge was issued. I took the shot shortly before. That's okay. I got what I wanted out of it, which was feedback. Thanks for weighing in. Hopefully my breakdown of how it was done will help others that are interested, and encourage them to try this type of photography. That should be the main goal of any photography site that hosts contests like this.

Message edited by author 2012-01-05 14:43:15.

Andromeda Galaxy
by dunzel

Comment by HarveyG:
Pity about the DQ. Don't let it dishearten you and hope to see more astro images from you.

Andromeda Galaxy
by dunzel

Comment by dunzel:
Thanks HarveyG and everyone who commented. I'm not sure most people realize what it takes to get a shot like that. But then again, that's photography! I was challenged by the council to prove the shot was taken by me and I sent in the original, so I guess that's kind of a vote in itself. If people can't believe you really took the shot, then that's kind of cool too!

Andromeda Galaxy
by dunzel

Comment by HarveyG:
Thank you and definitely unappreciated by voters. Commentators gave you an 8.4 average. That generally is good enough an indication for me. A solid 8. More if 800px by 800px :)

Andromeda Galaxy
by dunzel

Comment by Sheryll:
Wow! Just wow. That is impressive.

Andromeda Galaxy
by dunzel

Comment by tome:
So beautiful and under-appreciated. This is the real thing. Thank you for sharing!
I've been through lots of amateur astrophotographic images (and assisted in making a few) and this one IMHO is very, very good. The details on the spiral arms and especially the clearly visible shape of the little M110 galaxy are amazing!

Andromeda Galaxy
by dunzel

Comment by dunzel:
Several members asked how this was done. Here's the break down:

This image was taken by attaching my Canon EOS 1000D "piggy-back" style on my telescope optical tube. It was necessary to counter the earth's rotation using the telescope's computerized mount. The shot was NOT taken through the telescope, but just through my Canon 250mm EF-S zoom lens. I took multiple dark, bias, and light frames. The dark and bias frames were used to cancel out hot pixels in the image, as well as any stray dust particles that may cast shadows. I used software to measure polar alignment via the drift method to cancel out star drift. I then took multiple exposures of 120 seconds each at F5.6 1600 ISO. After collecting the images, I processed them using photo stacking software called Deep Sky Stacker to increase the signal to noise ratio and bring out detail. After that I processed the single stacked shot in Photoshop using multiple actions to enhance and sharpen the image. Thanks for the votes and comments!

Message edited by author 2011-12-28 17:41:44.

Andromeda Galaxy
by dunzel

Comment by ladyhawk22:
Wow!

Andromeda Galaxy
by dunzel

Comment by jmritz:
Nice.

Andromeda Galaxy
by dunzel

Comment by HarveyG:
That's just technically very difficult and scientific to do. Well done on the patience and technique. Hope you give a bit of a rundown at rollover.