Some updates

Haven't posted in a while... but I'm still out taking pictures. Figured I should put a few of em up here. Let's start with an updated shot of the Flame and Horsehead nebulae. I've gotten a new lens, and upgraded my photo processing to Corel Paintshop Pro... I think the results are pretty self explanatory.

Then, there's the Pleiades.

I'm working on a few more items, I'll update with those later. But goodbye for now, and clear skies!!!

Cassiopeia and the milky way

Cassiopeia is one of the most important constellations, as it is one of the fastest ways to find Polaris. Basically, you find both Cassiopeia and Ursa Major (aka The Big Dipper), and draw intersecting lines between them, and then you can easily spot Polaris and Ursa Minor. However, tonight it was apparent that Cassiopeia also has another wonderful feature: it is on one end of the milky way galaxy.
In this picture, Cassiopeia was honestly rather overshadowed by the mix of colors and shapes in the milky way.
Cassiopeia is on the bottom left.

Enjoy!

Flame and Horsehead Nebulae

The Flame Nebula is just to the left of Orion's belt (those two bright stars are the leftmost stars in Orion's belt). However, what I didn't know until I took the picture was that the Horsehead Nebula is just below it. It was a nice treat to find a "hidden" nebula. My goal is to get another, better picture of both sometime in the next week or so (let's hope for clear skies!)
I haven't been able to get out for another shoot recently; it has been quite stormy in my area, which on the one hand, I'm grateful for the moisture, but on the other... I miss my stars!!

Orion Nebula 4/2/2016

Orion Nebula - 5x30 second stacked exposures, 300mm ISO 800 f 5.6

One of the most incredible things about the Orion Nebula is that it is obscured from human vision almost entirely, even in a extremely dark area; but even with a really short exposure, the shape appears, add a longer exposure and the colors begin to show.