Orion Nebula (M42)
02/09/2026
Processed (64 Frames at 1 second exposure each)
Between lectures and late nights, I stole a few photons from Orion.
M42, 1300 light-years away, still worth the pause.
I was really happy with how this one came out. This was my first time actually feeling like I understood what I was doing with Siril, even if I couldn't get plate solving to work for some reason (metadata was all good, unsure why it wouldn't detect stars…). Anyway, using Siril to stack then photoshop for color control and fine-tuning sharpness and noise was such a fun experience. I think the next time I aim at Orion I will attempt to capture more of the blues, but for an iPhone and an alt-az, I'm super stoked with this image!
Gear and Workflow:
– Celestron StarSense Explorer 130DX (image taken at 65x mag. using 25mm lens)
– manual Alt-Az
– iPhone 14 Pro, ProCam
– ProCam → Siril → Adobe Photoshop
Images were taken through 130DX on a clear night by mounting iPhone 14 Pro to lens and using a capture remote to reduce shake with images. 62 frames were taken at 1 second exposure, 7mm focal length, ISO 12500. 2 additional images were stacked on top for star sharpness using 1/8 exposure, 7mm focal length, ISO 1600. High exposure set TIFs were registered and stacked through Siril where high exposure images underwent some histogram and color correction. Stacked high exposure layered with 2 low exposure images in Photoshop for final sharpness of stars, denoise, saturation, contrast, brightness, vibrance, and color tweaks.
by carson_krefft