Help needed with solar imaging on a Mac

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nicspenceryork
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Help needed with solar imaging on a Mac

Post by nicspenceryork »

Hello,
I use oaCapture, AS!2 and ImPGG on my MacBook Air for capture & processing as well as GIMP instead of Photoshop for solar imaging. Most online videos and books give instruction with PS and I’ve spent a very long time working out GIMP equivalents for myself.
Can anyone familiar with GIMP tell me the equivalent of Photoshop’s HDR toning function? I’ve seen the ease and amazing ‘pop’ achieved in a couple of clicks of a button. I’d welcome links to any apps, you tube videos or websites to help me move on with processing. I’m stuck in a loop of wanting more contrast but just seeming to pay the price by making my black sunspots even blacker with comic book definition at the moment and it’s sooooo frustrating! I use a quark prom, skywatcher evostar 80 and an ASI174MM (also have a Coronado PST & ASI178MM).
Thanks,


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Montana
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Re: Help needed with solar imaging on a Mac

Post by Montana »

I've been using oacapture on my hubby's Mac and it is a real pain that it forgets everything every time you use it, and you have to reset all the settings. I've not used it for a year so I expect I have forgotten again. I'm no help as I transfer everything from the Mac and onto my computer for processing ;)

Alexandra


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Re: Help needed with solar imaging on a Mac

Post by marktownley »

Hi Nic,

I would just use ImPPG for the post processing, if the sunspots are doing that in photoshop/Gimp it sounds like you're completely over egging it and things aren't coming out natural. Use gamma and levels in ImPPG.

Mark


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Re: Help needed with solar imaging on a Mac

Post by nicspenceryork »

Montana wrote: Thu Jul 29, 2021 12:10 pm I've been using oacapture on my hubby's Mac and it is a real pain that it forgets everything every time you use it, and you have to reset all the settings. I've not used it for a year so I expect I have forgotten again. I'm no help as I transfer everything from the Mac and onto my computer for processing ;)

Alexandra
Thanks, you can save the settings as a profile now in case you ever did go back to it! You can save different profiles for different targets/equipment. It’s a really helpful feature.


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Re: Help needed with solar imaging on a Mac

Post by nicspenceryork »

marktownley wrote: Thu Jul 29, 2021 12:22 pm Hi Nic,

I would just use ImPPG for the post processing, if the sunspots are doing that in photoshop/Gimp it sounds like you're completely over egging it and things aren't coming out natural. Use gamma and levels in ImPPG.

Mark
Thanks Mark. I’ve had good (enough for me!) results with limb images using ImPGG but couldn’t quite manage the spots for some reason. I’ll put in the time in and try again. I haven’t (knowingly) used gamma in ImPGG I now realise so I need to go and investigate it.


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