The first steps in professional image processing in astrophotography, including photometry.
PixInsight is an image processing tool optimised for astronomical purposes. PixInsight has a reputation for being difficult to use and requiring a long learning curve. Anyone who has worked through this book will find that it is not so difficult after all and that PixInsight is a great, relatively easy-to-use tool. The book is primarily intended as an introduction, so difficult topics such as narrowband filters and mosaics are only outlined briefly. Nevertheless, every astrophotographer will find one or two useful tips.
The book explains the workflow in several stages: It starts with an already stacked colour image, for example from a DSLR camera, and ranges from the one-coffee workflow to the standard workflow and the comfort workflow. From chapter 6 onwards, special topics such as combining images and comets are covered. PixInsight also allows aperture and PSF photometry, making it a good tool for variable star observers, which is why a separate chapter is devoted to this topic.
The book is designed according to the Pareto principle: 80–90% of the best possible results should be achieved in 10–20% of the time. This is sufficient for most amateur astronomers and does not burden them with details that only confuse and offer no great advantage. The book limits itself to the most important ten percent of the possibilities.
The images required for the One-Coffee Workflow and the Standard Workflow can be downloaded from the author's website. This allows the procedures explained in the book to be practised in parallel.
The author Dr. Erik Wischnewski was born in Hamburg in 1952. He studied physics, mathematics and astronomy at Hamburg University and obtained his doctorate in Graz. Today he works as a freelancer. Erik Wischnewski has been practising astronomy at a high level for decades. He has also made a name for himself in the field of knowledge transfer. The minor planet 227770 Wischnewski was named in his honour.
