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Best approach for collecting data of same target with different camera

ZWO ASI2600MM Pro Acquisition Collaboration Deep Sky
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François Guiot avatar
François Guiot avatar
Me and two friends have decided to take a cooperative picture of a single target (there's still pending discussion about which one).
The cool thing is that we have quite different sensors but the same focal length. Here's the situation:
  • Sky_watcher 80ED with 0.85 focal reducer
    • ASI 2600MM Pro (Ha, L, R, G, B filters available); Bortle 4
    • ASI 183 MC Pro
      • One will use L-Pro filter as the photograph resides under heavy Bortle Sky (like 8 I guess)
      • The other can easy shot without any filter (Bortle 4)



How can we optimise shooting regarding our respective setup?

Intuitively, I would focus the monochrome on L and/or Ha data but what about OSC?

Blending all that together will also be challenging but I'm really excited about it!

Many thanks in advance for your precious advices.
Carastro avatar
Carastro avatar
The best thing is to make sure both your cameras are orientated the same, then all you will have to do later is a Crop on the largest FOV.

I have often combined data from different set ups and provided the target does not have much rotation in repsect to the different cameras I simply use Registering software to re-size them to each other.

Carole
Vasile Unguru avatar
Vasile Unguru avatar
Hi Francois,

I think there is a huge difference between this two cameras. 2600mm with 2 hours on every filters L/R/G/B will be miles ahead of many hours exposed with the 183. 
But, this doesn't mean that it can't be done. i would use 2600mm with L for luminance and optional Ha filters and no reducer. the 183 OSC + 0.85 reducer  can collect color data. 
I dont think to be difficult to combine all data together; you will have 2 separate integrations (but keep them registered/alligned to each other) one OSC and one mono luminance. process them separately and at the end just layer luminance on top of the color. 
this was anyway my workflow when i was using two scopes/cameras working in parallel on the same target.  

Of course a lot depends on the target you choose. Much greater and quicker result will be to shoot predominantly nebulae mono Ha with 2600mm and color data with the 183 (preferably with a duoband filter). 

Anyhow, good luck and clear skies!

Vasile
Helpful
andrea tasselli avatar
andrea tasselli avatar
In general you'd want to shoot the Luminance or H-alpha frames at the settings that give you the most advantageous SNR and the best possible resolution and the colour frames with an FOV that encloses that of the L/H-alpha frames.