Coloring a photo of the Milky Way

[ElizaMM]

Can someone please tell me how to get color into a photo of the center of the Milky Way? I am thinking of the wonderful image with beautiful blues in the current Subaru car television commercial. Haven't been able to find it on line, so I can't give you a URL. Is it all post processing? Is the light/contrast/saturation/sharpness manipulated in each layer? Is it necessary to separate the colours to RGB and handle them individually? When trying to include a foreground object, how many shots/layers would be necessary? Now that I've asked, it sounds like it might be a huge job. The limitation on my zoom lens is 24mm, f/4. A new lens is not in the budget for the moment.

 

[Didereaux]

is the shot a picture or is video?...if you can find a link then come back and lookup AstroNikon, he should be able to provide you with the answer or at least where t look for one.

 

[ElizaMM]

Thanks, I will keep looking.

 

[Peeb]

Several excellent youtube videos. Lemme look....

 

[ElizaMM]

I wrote to Subaru and they kindly got back to me with the URL in short order. This is a video, but the ending, about 50 seconds in, looks like a photograph.

 

[Didereaux]

I wrote to Subaru and they kindly got back to me with the URL in short order. This is a video, but the ending, about 50 seconds in, looks like a photograph.

I do not believe that is colored in post. Looks like a normal long exposure too me.

 

[ronlane]

The colors are there, but just need to be brought out in post. That 24mm f/4, while not the ideal lens, should be able to produce the image you need. But if you are in the Northern Hemisphere, you'll have to wait a few (about 6) months to get out and shoot the MW again.

 

[ronlane]

I wrote to Subaru and they kindly got back to me with the URL in short order. This is a video, but the ending, about 50 seconds in, looks like a photograph.

I do not believe that is colored in post. Looks like a normal long exposure too me.

It's not ADDED color in post. The colors are enhanced in post.

 

[ronlane]

Here is an example that I picked from just a quick search.

 

[Didereaux]

Can someone please tell me how to get color into a photo of the center of the Milky Way? I am thinking of the wonderful image with beautiful blues in the current Subaru car television commercial. Haven't been able to find it on line, so I can't give you a URL. Is it all post processing? Is the light/contrast/saturation/sharpness manipulated in each layer? Is it necessary to separate the colours to RGB and handle them individually? When trying to include a foreground object, how many shots/layers would be necessary? Now that I've asked, it sounds like it might be a huge job. The limitation on my zoom lens is 24mm, f/4. A new lens is not in the budget for the moment.

here's a decent link telling how to shoot the the Milky Way. Not difficult, just requires attention to detail.
How to Photograph the Milky Way in 12 Steps (With 6 Epic Examples)

 

[KmH]

In the commercial the bright part of the Milky Way shown (basically the constellation of Sagittarius and looking towards the center of our galaxy) just above the trees is up in the Summer months, not the winter months.
To be seen in the winter months at night with snow on the ground you need to be in the southern hemisphere, and then the Milky Way would slant from upper right to lower left, opposite the way it is in the commercial.
Note too that they had to drive to a 'dark site'.

So the car/landscape in the video and the sky with the area of the galactic center are a composite.

The way to get good color saturation in your final image when shooting the Milky Way is to use a tracking mount, make 30 or more exposures, stack the exposures, and then post process the merged stack.
Even better is to also make dark and bias frames so post process stacking can subtract read noise, shot noise, thermal noise, and hot pixels from the stack of luminosity frames.
The ultimate is to use a camera that has had the IR filter removed from in front of the image sensor so the reds that the IR filter in DSLR cameras blocks can be included in the final photograph.

 

[ElizaMM]

I think removing the IR filter is a little advanced for me. I am familiar with dark and bias frames from doing some star trail tests. I had not thought of using StarStax for just one still and one dark. I will try that. A tracking mount will have to wait.
From what I have read, March is the time to start--hopefully, armed with the information you've given me, I will have more luck, this year.
I had never tested the software that came with my camera, but installed it this evening. Although I don't really understand tone curves, I was able to get a little more depth and bring out some color, working with an image from last August. By dragging the lines arbitrarily, I was able to bring up some colour.

 

[Peeb]

Here's a resource:
How to Process Milky Way Astrophotography in Adobe Lightroom

 

[KmH]

Your profile has no location info so I have no way to evaluate where in the sky the galactic center will be where you are.

Here in Iowa the galactic center doesn't breach the SE horizon until early June.
If you're in southern Texas or southern Florida the galactic center will breach the horizon a few days earlier.
Here the galactic center won't get more than about 20° above the southern horizon when it crosses the Meridian on July nights.

You might find the free planetarium application Stellarium handy.

 

[TCampbell]

You may want to check out the website "PhotographingSpace.com" which is loaded with examples of how to do this sort of thing and the articles are written by people whom, for the most part, that's their passion.