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2nd
Portfolio Images
M20: The Trifid Nebula
1st PlaceM20: The Trifid Nebula
scalvert


Photograph Information Photographer's Comments
Challenge: Night Sky IV (Standard Editing)
Collection: Portfolio
Camera: Canon EOS-7D Mark II
Location: Westport, CT
Date: Jul 2, 2018
Aperture: f/7
ISO: 800
Shutter: 90 seconds x 75
Date Uploaded: Jul 3, 2018

 I couldn't let a night sky challenge go by without at least making an attempt at my favorite subject. Unfortunately, this challenge was scheduled around a full moon, which washes out faint objects, so I waited until the last clear night before the deadline. That happened to be a night with an excessive heat warning and bazillion percent humidity, so I spent four hours in a sauna.

The Trifid is one of the most interesting objects in the sky: a combination of emission nebula (the red part), reflection nebula (the blue part), and open cluster M21 in the bottom left corner. The nebula is a stellar nursery, and there are about 150 newborn and developing stars hidden in the dust.

The image was captured from the Westport Observatory using my own guided refractor (essentially an 805mm f/7 lens), and composed of 75 stacked frames at 90 seconds each. The bright moon and haze really washed out the frames, and it took a lot of Pixinsight and Photoshop voodoo to bring out the details. Next time, how about a night sky challenge when it actually gets dark?

Statistics
Place: 1 out of 21
Avg (all users): 7.9333
Avg (commenters): 8.3333
Avg (participants): 7.3846
Avg (non-participants): 8.0851
Views since voting: 1873
Views during voting: 146
Votes: 60
Comments: 18
Favorites: 0

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AuthorThread
 07/17/2018 02:04:04 AM
You still here Scalvert? You old ribbon hunter you :)
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 07/17/2018 12:16:32 AM
Beautiful capture. Congrats on the blue!
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 07/15/2018 03:54:40 PM
Congratulations. Outstanding image.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 07/13/2018 01:32:32 PM
Congrats! This is amazing!
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 07/13/2018 12:02:58 PM
Congrats on your win. Amazing image.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 07/13/2018 11:21:06 AM
Originally posted by pgirish007:
Next time when you do, ping me and I will drive up north. I haven't done these kind of things and WOULD love to do that and see how you do :)

Of course, anytime! I'm out shooting on most clear nights (four times so far this week), so whenever it's convenient for you. I'll give you a tour of the observatory, too.
 07/13/2018 10:30:00 AM
Very nice - congratulations!
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 07/13/2018 09:32:40 AM
Awesome!!!
Next time when you do, ping me and I will drive up north. I haven't done these kind of things and WOULD love to do that and see how you do :)
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 07/13/2018 08:13:30 AM
Congratulations on your win this is beautiful!!!
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 07/13/2018 07:02:22 AM
very well done, awesome
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 07/13/2018 06:51:39 AM
marvelous photograph(s) ... !! ..
i have looked into this type of photography and was overwhelmed by the technicalities of it ..
by the sounds of it you had quite a challenge getting the end result ..
congratulations on the blue ribbon .. worth the sauna and the frustration of shooting in less than ideal conditions .. :)
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 07/13/2018 12:48:05 AM
Congrats!
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 Comments Made During the Challenge
07/12/2018 08:44:00 AM
nicely painted
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 07/12/2018 01:45:12 AM
Stunning & rare shot
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 07/11/2018 02:26:31 PM
My favorite in this challenge.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 07/11/2018 01:46:53 PM
Clear winner, totally unbeatable. My Blue dragon Award and a shiny sparkling 10.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 07/07/2018 09:09:10 PM
Ireally like this image
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 07/07/2018 09:03:21 AM
one of the best of the challenge, nicely done, this is something i've never tried to shoot photography wise
  Photographer found comment helpful.


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