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Chris and all,
This version of M45 is actually
built around a set of scans I did some time ago... I happened to notice that the
histogram showed detail into the extreme highlights, so my question was... could
there be more detail around the stars than what was showing in the original
version of this?
All I did was do a
circular selection around each star that was about 10-15 pixels out past the
edge of the star, feather it 10 pixels, and adjusted the curves... mostly up at
the bright end. It took a few iterations on some of them, but eventually the
data was compressed enough to bring the detail under the glare to the surface. I
could go even further, but then the stars become too small and it does not look
"right"... it's like the Pleiades lost their luster.
The striations were enhanced by
first selecting all the stars in the image, increasing the selection 4 pixels,
and feathering two pixels. Then the selection was reversed, and an unsharp mask
was applied... amount = 30% , radius = 30, and threshold = 0. This affects the
major details in the image without increasing the grain or making the stars more
prominent... I only went 30% because I wanted to keep a natural look... at 50%
it looks awesome but it's a bit much... I usually take things too far so I'm
trying to be a bit more understated.
Thanks for the kind
words,
Have a good one,
Tony
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