Supper Easy Solar Image Stacking with ASIStudio ASIVideoStack

Solar imaging and stacking can be daunting since there is very little info out there about it. Most of the software for it is old and runs terrible on modern computers. But this ASIStudios ASIVideoStack is very slick. Simple clean interface and very fast. I was able to process gigabytes of data in less than a minute. That is very very fast by my book. The simplicity and quick and clean looking results it turn out are ideal for sharing on Facebook or instagram right away.
Here is an affiliated link where you can buy astronomy gear and support my channel.
www.astrogear.net/?ref=Narrow...

[@multispeciesangler]

I recently started to image the sun. I bought the ASI 174 mini mono to do this. I also have the Sharpcap Pro and saving the video with Sharpcap, then stacking with the ASI software is really easy for this beginner. Before I purchased the Pro version of sharpcap, I was just using the ASI cap, which isn't bad either. Being brand new so many of the other software is unreal to get to work properly without being an IT guy, lol. Thanks for your video.

[@craiglowery4427]

Great video Ben. I use ASIStudio all the time to capture planetary videos through my Celestron 14" Edge HD. Now I'm getting into solar using a Coronado Solar Max lll 70mm. I never realized I could use ASIStudio for solar too. Thank you so much.

[@TheNarrowbandChannel]

Fantastic!

[@ohwell2790]

Right now all I have is the Celestron XL 120mm long tube refractor and the AR102mm Explorer Scientific refractor using the Baader semi apo filter. Just got the ZWO color camera. Been looking at the SvBony apo refractors. Thanks for your videos.

[@AntonioPena1]

Ben thanks for sharing, really easy as you said. Be well!

[@TheNarrowbandChannel]

Thanks for watching!

[@filipgloria]

You’re amazing! What an informative video!

[@TheNarrowbandChannel]

Thank you so much!

[@mrdjango2171]

Great simple video and glad to hear from you , Grtz from Belgium 🇧🇪 💪👍💪

[@TheNarrowbandChannel]

Hey, thanks!

[@druid6605]

Good to see you Ben. Looking good. Hope all well.

[@TheNarrowbandChannel]

Thanks, you too!

[@lampyman101]

Nice work as ever, always inspires me to try new stuff.

[@TheNarrowbandChannel]

Go for it! It is fun.

[@RTFM70]

Hope it’s all going OK for you Ben. Thanks for the video.

[@TheNarrowbandChannel]

I think it is. Soon i hope to get a ct scan.

[@mineralmanager]

"Supper" Easy. Informative video.

[@TheNarrowbandChannel]

Glad it was helpful!

[@aw7425]

Another awesome video our Astro friend, this is very helpful. Clear skies to all forever and a day. I emailed you on the PP. take care and hugs to all

[@TheNarrowbandChannel]

Got it! Thanks Al.

[@LJSheffRBLX]

nice video keep up the great content

[@TheNarrowbandChannel]

Thanks, will do!

[@Oamaruastro]

I have had ASIStudio for as long as I've had my Daystar Quark H-alpha filter (longer, actually) but never thought to use it for my sun processing for some reason, using Autostakkert and Registax instead, which are MUCH slower and a LOT more fiddly. This is so much simpler!! Thank you for letting me in on this secret! Hope you're keeping well!

[@TheNarrowbandChannel]

Awesome. Ya i would like to see some of the other software packages get simplified or modernized some

[@Oamaruastro]

So I was out shooting the sun yesterday and decided to use Asistudio for the capture, and one thing that struck me is that it does not offer a simple way to shoot and incorporate flats into the process. When I use Sharpcap, it has a routine for capturing the flat and then it applies it to your images, which is nice. In the end, I just set up the Asistudio to shoot 50 images with my flat frame filter in place, aiming for a histogram at around the mid-point, stacked those in Pixinsight and applied them in Autostakkert and got a much cleaner result than I did stacking them without a flat in Asistudio. Maybe this is an area where ZWO could upgrade their software?

[@TheNarrowbandChannel]

Sounds like your camera is dirty and needs cleaning. @@Oamaruastro

[@Oamaruastro]

@@TheNarrowbandChannel I don’t think it’s a matter of my camera being dirty as much as it is to correct for variations in illumination. I don’t find that the difference between an uncalibrated and calibrated image is a reduction in lens errors as much as it is an evening of the field.

[@TheNarrowbandChannel]

@@Oamaruastro Sounds like your scope does not have large enough image circle then. That always make imaging harder.

[@Bortle10]

Thanks a lot! This worked great except for the .ser file i took of Jupiter. It had no idea how to deal with it. It worked great with the .avi files i took though. The .ser files i shot of the moon worked flawlessly.

[@TheNarrowbandChannel]

Great. I too have to get some images of Jupiter soon. Just got a filter wheel for my 178mm Pro. First purchase I have made since cancer.

[@stuartriley]

A great video Ben! I have been following you on this channel and I am a M43 supporter too. I have a newbie question about your capture of the solar disc to your computer. Are you using ASTAP or ASI studio or something else? Thanks for all that you do!🎉

[@TheNarrowbandChannel]

I was using ASI Studio. ASTRAP does not have much for solar capturing.

[@JeffreyMcPheeters]

Ben, do you have any preferences for stacking subs from the Seestar? I've used ASTAP and seen some reviews using Siril. I've mainly used ASTAP and just trying to get a handle with ASIStudio stacking. I'd be very interested if you ever decide to do a KZbin episode on the various options and recommendations with Seestar planetary stacks and deep space object subs as to what you find most beneficial. Due to the HD output, I've wondered if having a 2X drizzle capability in the workflow would be beneficial. Also, until they can incorporate a way to create a mosaic stack from objects a bit large for the field of view, I wonder if you've pondered whether manually creating such a mosaic is worthwhile with this system?

[@PhilHalper1]

what about flat frames? Can it do it?

[@ridealongwithrandy]

Awesome stuff, I'm live with the sun right now,em1x, 300 and tc

[@TheNarrowbandChannel]

Thats one combo i am taking to the eclipse

[@ridealongwithrandy]

@@TheNarrowbandChannel I'm practicing in case I can see a bit of it.

[@TheNarrowbandChannel]

@@ridealongwithrandy Its an event of a lifetime to see totality.

[@ridealongwithrandy]

@TheNarrowbandChannel agreed, I saw one once when I was younger, this one is almost out of my path in southern California

[@travisszkot7577]

Nice and informative video😃 keep going my bud! Hope u will get better as fast as possible😊

[@TheNarrowbandChannel]

Thanks, will do!

[@actudoran]

nice and quick results mate! I wish those 585 would come in mono too 😅

[@TheNarrowbandChannel]

You and me both!

[@dumpydalekobservatory]

Interesting Ben I might give it a try next time I do some solar, I use a solar wedge for white light & I have a CaK & Ha PST's to shoot in narrowband, Can it do live stacking like sharpcap?

[@TheNarrowbandChannel]

Not sure about live stacking. maybe it can. The their capture software and stacking software just have to talk to each other I guess. Will be something to try next time.

[@efx245precor3]

Super duper

[@TheJerryRN]

Great video! Thanks…PS you are looking very well my man. Stay out of the cornfield though… biggest environmental exposure to carcinogens is that field… and it can leech into the water table. Hang tough and touch base anytime… Jerry

[@TheNarrowbandChannel]

Thanks Jerry. I at least am feeling better.

[@whatmattersmost6725]

Wow, awesome as I would not think ZWO had good software for the Sun or Moon, I would like to see you do this to the Moon. Thanks to you I will give it a try.

[@TheNarrowbandChannel]

Will do very soon. I was up this morning imaging the moon.

[@whatmattersmost6725]

I just wished there was great Solar/Sun tracking software using Guide scope and ZWO camera??

[@TheNarrowbandChannel]

@@whatmattersmost6725 Me too. It's odd no one has done this yet. it cannot be that hard.

[@whatmattersmost6725]

@@TheNarrowbandChannelThere is a free program that the developer stopped working on it's called LuSol-Guide Solar Guiding Software. I hope to try it on Saterday.

[@amp2amp800]

Yes, you will get higher framerates with a PC/USB3 compared with an ASIair or RPI. The ASIair is sufficiently (but just barely) adequate for fast video. That's my personal choice, but there's an opportunity for about 50% improvement here for those who want to take it.

[@TheNarrowbandChannel]

I also ran into a limitation of only capturing 1080p or maybe i was just doing something wrong.

[@amp2amp800]

@@TheNarrowbandChannel I had that too with my deepsky 533 camera. For planets I'm using a ASI462mc and for sure with that camera ROI options are available on the left of the screen. With the smallest region of interest (ROI 320*240) the ASIAir app shows a frame rate that peaks around 110 fps. Somebody recently told me that the ASIAir is showing the wifi transfer rate (not the USB3 rate) and said that I need to count the frames and the video length and do the sums. I should find it's doing much better. Well I just checked avi properties in the mediaplayer and it says... 109fps... so you can't believe a word you hear! I also hear that 😉... PC software gives an option to drop the ADC bitwidth from 12 to 10. I can't find that high speed option on the ASIair, and I don't think it is offered to users. The camera handbook claims 276.8fps (normal 12 bit ADC) 589.6fps (high speed 10bit ADC). The PC's internal data bus is a lot faster than a raspberry pi and I think that's what really makes the difference.

[@TheNarrowbandChannel]

@@MisterM950 Never heard of the Slate.

[@MrLycraCladChamp]

Hey Ben, Would you be able to offer any input on using our Micro 4/3 cameras (Oly Em1-3 and EM5-3) for solar imaging? I have the Oly 150-400 as well as a Coronado SolarMax 70mm.

[@TheNarrowbandChannel]

With that you could put your em1 or Em5 on the Coronado with an adapter and shoot video. That is a really nice scope by the way I wish I had it. For the 150-400 you could get a 95mm filter from Thousand Oaks and do the same thing. The hard part is turning your videos into avi files so this software can stack it. Now other software like autostackert and linkeos can handle any video file that is .mov from a camera.

[@drunk_astronomy]

Ha! Kinda stupid thing I just noticed, but I had that exact same dinning chair. Btw. Thanks for the review on the mk127. The next ota I get will prolly be that one.

[@TheNarrowbandChannel]

Is yours splitting on the laminated parts? Kinda need to refinish mine. They look warn.

[@craiglowery4427]

Ben one question. Is your telescope one-star polar aligned? What do you recommend

[@TheNarrowbandChannel]

The air uses multiple stars.

[@frank5angels308]

Are you planning to shoot the Eclipse in April 24 and if so will you use the same s/w and method or what do you suggest ?

[@TheNarrowbandChannel]

Ill be going to texas i hope. Doing minimal imaging though. Don’t want to miss the experience.

[@theduggernaut8331]

Hey there, love the channel man, i just had a quick question, what brand and model is that solar filter? And which website did you order it from? Im looking to get into solar imaging with my MK105 as well, and wanna get a good solar filter, not one of those crappy thin ones lol. Keep up the great work on the channel!

[@TheNarrowbandChannel]

It was a filter from Orion. I bought it probably 20 years ago now. If you search for a glass solar filter those are good. A bunch of brands make rebranded versions of the same thing. Meade, Orion, Baader and Thousand Oaks too.

[@theduggernaut8331]

@@TheNarrowbandChannel Awesome thank you!

[@user-pi5xu7qs7n]

Hope you are doing well.

[@TheNarrowbandChannel]

I feel better at least.

[@carolsantulis1990]

I just tried it. Very easy to use and decent image, but SAVE as a JPG! No, I don't want a jpg.

[@TheNarrowbandChannel]

You can save fits or tiff too

[@bamsemh1]

Good evening. Have you noticed something odd about jupiter tonight? Like some clouds/dust or something covering it? I use om-1 with oly 100-400mm f5-6.3 lens, at 400mm/f6.3/iso 6400/2 sec/spot metering. I don't know how I can show you a photo of it. Hope Google won't delete my comment.!

[@TheNarrowbandChannel]

its not up yet here.

[@bhastro9959]

You don't really show the results of stacking compared to individual frames. Using the solar stacking feature on Asiair I find that the stacked version is actually worse than the best individual frames, probably because it does not allow one to set a acceptance/rejection threshold. When I try to use AsiVideoStack app on my computer (Mac OS 12.6.7) as you describe, when I drag an Avi file into the app it crashes. Any idea why? Nice video though!

[@TheNarrowbandChannel]

The end result after sharpening is way better compared to individual frames. it's actually crazy how much more detail can come out once you stack and sharpen them compared to trying to sharpen a single image. Your crash issue is not something I have experienced. Had it freeze once or twice but that was it. They come out with new updates to this software often. On the next update try it again and see if it crashes.

[@bhastro9959]

@@TheNarrowbandChannel - I succeeding in stacking using AsiVideoStack (on a more powerful computer) but I found the stacked images were actually inferior to almost all of individual the frames of the orginal AVI video, as I had found with the version of the videostack software that comes with asiair. There appears to be no example on KZbin of successful solar stacking with AsiVideoStack. I think your case would be more convincing if you showed a comparison of original frames with the stacked result.

[@TheNarrowbandChannel]

you have to use sharpening once stacked. then they are better @@bhastro9959