Spent 6 months using the wrong filter for nebula shots until a guy at a star party pointed it out

I was out at Cherry Springs last fall with my new rig, feeling pretty good about my Orion nebula captures. This older guy walks by, looks at my screen, and says "why's your core so blown out?" I had been using a cheap UV filter I bought on Amazon thinking it reduced light pollution. He laughed and handed me his H-alpha filter to try. Night and day difference. I felt like an idiot but at least I learned. Anyone else start out with totally wrong gear and not know for way too long?

2 comments

2 Comments

rileyjones1mo agoProlific Poster

Wait, did anyone mention that UV filters actually block some UV light that certain nebulas emit? I mean, it's not a huge amount but for something like the Orion nebula every little bit of data matters. I had a buddy who used a UV filter for years on his DSLR before someone told him the same thing. He was losing like 10% of his signal just from that filter alone. It's not just about light pollution, it's about what you're literally blocking from hitting your sensor. Even cheap glass filters can mess with your star colors too, making everything look a bit off. idk it's just one of those things nobody thinks about until you see the side by side comparison.

ray_king1mo ago

You mentioned "a cheap UV filter" and yeah, those things are basically just glass to protect your lens, not really for cutting light pollution. Nebula shots need narrowband filters that only let specific wavelengths through, not a UV filter. It took me buying a used Ha filter off CloudyNights to finally get that Orion core to look right.

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