Stacking images

[markie]

Hi All

The question I have, has probably been asked many times so, apologies,  how do you use registax, or any other stacking software , which would you recommend and finally, I don't have any tracking gear, however I can keep a planet in the middle of the eyepiece for quite a few minutes,  would this be any good?

Thanks in advance.

[geoflewis]

That's quite a wide open question, not knowing what gear you want to use, but I'll try to help....

Tracking helps a lot, but is not essential for lunar and planetary imaging, IF you can keep the target on screen for a couple of minutes. I used to use Registax for stacking, but find that AS3! or AS2! is better, though I do still use Registax 6 wavelets for sharpening after grading and stacking in AS3!.

Using AS3! or Registax requires you to capture lots of images, typically as video (AVI or SER) using a webcam, or nowadays more likely a planetary video camera such as sold by Altair Astro, or ZWO (ASI), etc. However, it is possible to use video from DSLR, or fairly fast streamed .BMP images off a DSLR, but these will be lower resolution compressed images with poorer final results - see attached which was one of my first ever planetary images captured with a Nikon D90 DSLR through my 10" Meade LX200 using (if IIRC) x3 TV balow back in Nov 2012.

Certainly nothing to write home about, but maybe will give you an idea what is possible with limited equipment.

Give us some more info and we might be able to give you more specific answers.

 

[markie]

Thanks for that Geof

I am using a Bresser Messier 10" Dobsonian and a Galaxy A20e phone, I can get a decent shot of the moon with just a basic 1 click, but if I try Jupiter with video and try Registax, it doesn't seem to pick it up, I'm doing it to avi, do you think I'd get a result using the burst button and using them in a stacking software or doesn't it work like that?, 

Sorry if it's a silly question.

Mark

Edited August 21, 2022 by markie

[geoflewis]

On 8/21/2022 at 7:47 AM, markie said:

Thanks for that Geof

I am using a Bresser Messier 10" Dobsonian and a Galaxy A20e phone, I can get a decent shot of the moon with just a basic 1 click, but if I try Jupiter with video and try Registax, it doesn't seem to pick it up, I'm doing it to avi, do you think I'd get a result using the burst button and using them in a stacking software or doesn't it work like that?, 

Sorry if it's a silly question.

Mark

Hi Mark,

Sorry for my late reply, I've had a few days away in Oxford with my wife, so only just seen this. There are no silly question in this hobby (actually life in general I think), however, I've never tried to image Jupiter from a smart phone, so I don't know the answer. I'd say if you can get an AVI file that plays on your phone, then either Registax or AS2!/AS3! might be able to process it. The same applies to stacking individual frames from a photo burst, but again I have no experience trying that. It would certainly be intersting to see how you get on with that, so I'll wish you good luck and hope to see what you can achieve.

 

Edited August 24, 2022 by geoflewis

[BrumTaffy]

On 8/21/2022 at 7:47 AM, markie said:

Thanks for that Geof

I am using a Bresser Messier 10" Dobsonian and a Galaxy A20e phone, I can get a decent shot of the moon with just a basic 1 click, but if I try Jupiter with video and try Registax, it doesn't seem to pick it up, I'm doing it to avi, do you think I'd get a result using the burst button and using them in a stacking software or doesn't it work like that?, 

Sorry if it's a silly question.

Mark

 

Thats an impressive image for a single shot!  Good for you!  Do you have some kind of attachment for your Galaxy to the eyepiece?

 

The theory of stacking video frames is to eliminate atmospheric distortion. If your images are as sharp as above, you’re already in clover 😁