You won't wanna miss this one.. RC-ASTRO - BlurXTerminator for PixInsight

This new tool by Russell Croman is EXCEPTIONALLY good!! - You need to check it out!
NEW! : Affiliate link for RC astro! - HUGE thanks to Russell Croman! :-)
If you choose to use any of these links you'll be helping me out at no additional cost to yourself!
BlurXTerminator -
www.rc-astro.com/resources/Bl...
StarXTerminator -
www.rc-astro.com/resources/St...
NoiseXTerminator -
www.rc-astro.com/resources/No...
Adam's Video - • BlurXTerminator for Pi...
#astrophotography #pixinsight #blurxterminator #starxterminator #noisexterminator #deconvolution #bxt
/ lukomatico
/ lukomatico
AFFILIATE LINKS!!
Topaz Denoise, Gigapixel & Sharpen AI are some of my favorite software to aid in astro and terrestrial image processing! If you buy the software through this link I would receive a commission at zero extra cost to yourself!
Topaz Labs Affiliate Link! - topazlabs.com/ref/1133/
My new Mini PC for imaging! Amazon Affiliate Links! - Anything you buy through one of these links will give me a small commission at no extra cost to yourself!
Amazon UK - amzn.to/3EOCgpV
Amazon US - amzn.to/3quGPlD
High Point Scientific Affiliate Links!
High Point Scientific Affiliate Link - www.highpointscientific.com/?...
Orion Telescopes & Binoculars Affiliate links!
www.pjatr.com/t/R0FHSUdKTEFGS...
www.pntrs.com/t/S0BMQ0pFQEVHR...
www.pntrs.com/t/R0JJSEVIS0ZCR...

[@ChucksAstrophotography]

Excellent!

[@lukomatico]

Thank you Chuck!! - Hope you're doing well and have a wonderful christmas & new year my friend :-)

[@lawrencepizzi9068]

Oh great! I just downloaded and used it. I now have to (1) delete my entire astroBin account, (2) go back and re-process every image I’ve ever made, (3) buy back every image I’ve sold, (4) delete and restart my instagram and Facebook accounts😂😂😂. This is an amazing tool! Thanks very much, Luke!

[@lukomatico]

Hahah!!! My feelings exactly lol, every time I try the tool on some data I'm just sat here wondering how it's possible! Insane! (Shameless plug, but if you end up purchasing the software and would like to help support my channel, then I now have an affiliate link for the tool thanks to Russell Croman himself! - what a kind guy!)

[@2badger2]

Can't wait for the Photoshop release ...

[@lukomatico]

I can't say for sure but I'm not sure if this is a doable thing in Photoshop? from what I understand it needs to pull from some deconvolution tools/functionality that's integral to PixInsight. (really hope i'm wrong though!) All the best

[@olly7248]

@@lukomatico I think you are correct, Adam Block mentions this in his tutorial

[@FrootyRecords]

As you said Luke, Gamechanger. I will be buying :) . Now we have to reprocess everything again!

[@lukomatico]

Hey Dave! - Hope you've been well mate :-) I totally hear you RE: reprocessing lol! It's been a lot of fun taking a look at my old & new data - what a fantastic tool this is, being able to breathe new life into old data is magic! :-D Have a good one mate!

[@Simon-yn8zs]

Wow. Incredible

[@lukomatico]

Thank you mate! - It's an amazing tool :-)

[@marygarcia4544]

This is an AMAZING tool, forget the trial i purchased it right away!! I feel like i had a instant eye examination lol thanks to Russell Croman and you Lukomatico for all your great tutorials/videos!

[@lukomatico]

'Instant eye examination' Haha!! That's awesome Mary! :-D so glad you like the software and thank you so much for your kind comment 👍👍

[@Pilord]

Holy! Im sold after watching your video! Thank you!!

[@lukomatico]

That's awesome :-D I'm glad you liked the video my friend! Clear skies!

[@ScottDavies]

Wasn't sure after seeing a tweet about BlurXterminator but now I can see WOW 🤩 Buying

[@lukomatico]

Awesome mate :-D it's absolutely superb!

[@lukomatico]

UPDATE: Affiliate Link! BlurXTerminator - www.rc-astro.com/resources/BlurXTerminator?refId=f712c623b0bbe906 Huge thanks to Russell Croman for kindly offering me an affiliate code that you guys can use to help support my channel at zero extra cost to yourself! :-) Clear skies!

[@filipdziegielewski4742]

Fantastic tools :)

[@lukomatico]

Glad you enjoy them too my friend!! :-D

[@stuparker776]

old images come to life!!!

[@lukomatico]

Agree 100%! Breathing life into my oldest works is like magic haha :-)

[@luispena9081]

I bought it immediately after this video. I don't know how this guy is doing it but all his softwares is truly beyond comprehension and changing the game. Turning 2 or 3 steps into one single motion. Phenomenon video in demonstrating the power of this tool Luke! Love all your videos!

[@lukomatico]

That's awesome Luis!! - I totally agree haha, I've no clue how Russell is doing all this but i'm certainly glad he is! :-D Thanks so much for your support my friend!

[@sageastreaus7905]

@@lukomatico Seriously! He's making so much easier for the rest of us haha. Absolutely dude, your videos are all so informative and now, using Pixinsight has become slightly easier to use and reasonable. Emphasis on the slightly, just cause there's so much to Pixinsight that it can be overwhelming. Once again, thank you for everything you do! Also, this is my main account 😄

[@N4GW]

Fantastic tool. Thanks for sharing

[@lukomatico]

Thanks for watching! Appreciate it bud :-)

[@rafapliszka2986]

I got trial version few days ago.What an amazing tool. Will get permanent version after Christmas madness ends.Thanks for sharing .

[@lukomatico]

My pleasure mate! Glad you like it :-D just to add, I've now got an affiliate link for the product now in my description if you'd like to support the channel at no extra cost to yourself when you purchase! Clear skies bud!

[@johnanddawn2918]

Great video. Just purchased. Thank you for sharing.

[@lukomatico]

Superb! :-D I hope you enjoy it as much as I am!

[@SkyShedPODTeam]

Thanks for the heads up as usual Luke!

[@lukomatico]

My pleasure buddy!! :-) thanks for watching!!

[@ACEOFSPACE2000]

Excellent info Thanks

[@lukomatico]

Thanks for watching mate!! 👍👍

[@HeavenlyBackyardAstronomy]

Holy Moly ... AMAZING!!! I definitely am going to download this software. Thank you, Luke, for bringing this to our attention.

[@lukomatico]

Thanks for the great comment Pat!! - This software is out of this world!, I could not be more impressed haha :-) Clear skies my friend!

[@ClearAmbientSkies]

I'm with ya, I again, need to go back and redo every image I've ever processed. I said this when StarXterminator, and then again when NoiseXterminator was released. I admit, I never started, but now, I am honestly compelled. Thanks for the review, Luke. -jason

[@lukomatico]

Hey Jason! - I feel the same haha, it's crazy how fired up this has got me - I'm so full of vigor for astrophotography right now and it's all thanks to these superb tools we have now! Thanks for watching!

[@beatsntoons]

Yep, I've now bought it as well :) Cheers Luke, thanks for the heads up.

[@lukomatico]

Hope you enjoy it bud!! :-D Superb!

[@stuparker776]

Hey Luke how cool.Brought it already!!!!!

[@lukomatico]

Top man!! :-D I pulled my card out so fast it got whiplash lol!

[@Tony-Elliott]

Another great video Luke Russell's work is saving everyone so much time

[@lukomatico]

Agreed mate!! - All of his tools are such major boons to the astro community as a whole! :-) Thanks for watching!

[@sammymedina3996]

Excellent tool! Just tried it and got a bit more pop out of a recent shot of Thor's Helmet. Keep the videos coming! My processing has come a long way thanks to you!

[@lukomatico]

Aww mate that's so good to hear!! - I'm really glad to have helped somehow :-) Clear skies to you my friend!

[@brianastrodoc2886]

I downloaded the trial and immediately tried it out on some old data. It’s a miracle! I’ll definitely purchase the full version. With the tools from RC-Astro put the fun into this hobby and save a ton of time! Clear Skies!

[@lukomatico]

Superb buddy!! - I couldn't put it better myself, the gratitude I feel towards folk like RC for making these fantastic tools can't be measured! :-) (Shameless plug, but if you do decide to purchase the software and would like to help support my channel then Russell has very kindly been in contact and furnished me with an affiliate link! what a guy!)

[@trinigunbankashi8871]

You're absolutely right. Luke, that tool has made me allude. For example, I never used convolution in my little sessions because it was hell for a newbie like me, and now that it's as easy as dropping and dragging, it's crazy.

[@lukomatico]

I totally hear you! It's majorly tricky to get right, I don't think I've ever perfectly applied deconvolution before haha! And yet now, it's a drag and drop process! So good. Thank you for watching and giving your support!

[@danboulton2128]

Hi Luke. I did the same as Brian Astrodoc below and used it as soon as I opened your video up. I've tried it out on some of my images and immediately clicked to buy. Good job Luke and thanks for the info.

[@lukomatico]

That's superb Dan, I'm genuinely touched you have such faith in my recommendations my friend! :-) The tool is such a piece of art, I love it! Hope you have a superb day bud, and thank you for all your support!

[@Wheeljack678]

You were absolutely right. This thing is amazing. I've tried it on several of my older stacks - some of which had egg-shaped stars and were even slightly out of focus, and I can hardly believe what a simple click of a button can do. I own the rest of the plugins from RC-Astro and they've all been amazing so I bought this without even trying (used your affiliate link even) and BlurX did definitely not disappoint. I am seriously impressed and I encourage everyone to give the trial a testrun and see for themselves.

[@lukomatico]

Aw mate that's superb to read! - Thank you for your support too by the way! :-) I've been bowled over by the power of this tool, I'll never be able to go back to not using it!

[@alneid2707]

Great video, Luke. I downloaded the trial version of BlurXT last night and was impressed with how this tool worked.

[@lukomatico]

Superb to hear that mate! - I imagine as we all get more comfortable with it's usage that it's functionality will only increase further, - not to mention future AI updates too!

[@PatJones82]

It is to the point now that if Russell puts out a tool, you just buy it sight unseen, because you KNOW it will be awesome! But, I do appreciate the confirmation and the great video you created to give me assurance of that! THANK YOU! Away I go to BUY BUY BUY! :)

[@lukomatico]

Haha! - You've got me there mate, I think that's pretty much where I'm at now Pat! if he puts out an astro tool then I'm getting it! :-D Hope you enjoy the software!!

[@benjiwhittle]

This is amazing. Take my money!

[@lukomatico]

Haha, that was my thought too! 😂👍

[@jonbasstro1413]

Hi Luke, thanks for bringing this piece of software to our attention.After seeing your results and watching Adam's video I downloaded this one straight away.Excellent timing as we've had some decent clear spells this past week.The results are almost like I've upgraded my scope to something 2-3 times the price and quality on the few images I've tried it out on .I'm on the 30 day trial,but I now think this one is going to be missed if not purchased. Hope you're getting some clear skies as well.

[@lukomatico]

I feel the same way mate! - It's like a major scope upgrade, or sort of feels like I've sent it to better quality skies! :-) Really so happy with how it's performing. I did indeed get 3 clear nights actually mate, got my first big project done with the Poseidon, - video to follow this coming week I reckon!! :-) Hope you have a superb rest of your weekend!

[@scotiaastro]

*Reaches for credit card* LoL! Nice take on this wonderful new tool and thanks for helping to get the word out! Really like how Russell awards 'loyalty' too with the discounts...enjoy your new toy Luke...like I will! ;) Have a great weekend! :)

[@lukomatico]

Hope you have a great weekend too mate! - I really know the feeling btw lol, I literally immediately stopped what I was doing and bought it! Glad I did too! Clear skies mate!

[@tomutendorf]

Thanks! I've learned so much from your stuff. I have a question for you about how you deal with residual artifacts after running starxterminator. Maybe you don't get them. For some reason but I and others do and I haven't figured out a good way to avoid/remove them. Anyway, if you happen to have run across those and have a good solution, I look forward to seeing it in a video someday. Thanks for your passion for this!

[@lukomatico]

Thank you Tom!! That's so kind of you my friend :-D RE: residuals after extraction, I used to occasionally get them with the older versions of the AI, but since switching to the newest one I haven't really had any issues mate!! In the past, my best method to try and avoid getting artifacts during extracting was by using SXT on the image while slightly de-stretched to reduce the overall intensity it has to deal with. Hope that helps mate! Thanks again for your support :-)

[@garyw.2224]

My goodness. I don’t know what kind of voodoo magic RC is summoning. This is just amazing.

[@lukomatico]

Couldn't have said it better! - It's absolutely magic! :-)

[@briankotak403]

Oh boy! This and NoiseXterminator has just made this PI newbie's life so easy. Thanks for sharing this Luke. Now on to Adam's video for the in-depth review! You guys are awesome. Dr B from Manitoba, Canada

[@lukomatico]

Thanks for watching Dr. B! - It's pretty darned spectacular software for sure :-) Clear skies my friend!

[@kuzma4004]

by this logic why even bothering with pixinsight if you can download space telescopes images? this AI draws, not enhances

[@AstroDenny]

I just got this and started playing with it-- Kind of a game changer!

[@lukomatico]

100% agree my friend! It's absolutely mind-bendingly good in person, the video compression does it no justice!

[@SuperNova-py1ec]

I share your enthusiasm I have recently started reworking my old data and the difference it has made is astounding. I also use noise xterminator which is also a very powerful tool. Hoping his next tool will help out with decent colour calibration as I still find this a bit of a challenge.

[@lukomatico]

That's awesome to hear!! I'm loving what the tool offers, I've been able to really feel like I'm getting the most out of my gear and skies for once which has been very satisfying! :-) I appreciate your time!

[@SuperNova-py1ec]

@@lukomatico I agree. In fact the tools have reinvigorated my interest as I was getting to stage of possibly selling my kit as I haven’t been using it much over the last year. There are other factors such as lifestyle changes but hopefully it will kit start my imaging mojo. Of course mid summer is not the best time as little to no night skies. Anyway I’ll keep reprocessing those old images in the meantime!

[@staceylloyd6236]

Thanks for your videos like this one. This tool along with the others you have identified from Bill Blanshan over the past few months have helped me make GREAT strides in improving my image processing (while making it easier!).

[@lukomatico]

Thank you mate!! So glad you've found the vids useful :-D

[@olly7248]

This amazing software completely fixed all the dodgy stars in a M45 Redcat image that I had previously cropped by 20%+ It’s a total game changer👍🏻

[@lukomatico]

That's superb! The tool is ridiculously powerful isn't it! :-D

[@olly7248]

@@lukomatico Hi Luke, it just changes everything… I’ve just used it on my EDGE HD8” image of Melotte 15 and after processing have got such a detailed result that I’ve decided to crop in to the central structure, it’s like doubling the focal length of the scope‼️ Checkout the last revision on Astrobin 👍🏻 Clear Skies

[@josephluciani5531]

Luke, I can’t imagine how plodding my Pixinsight efforts would be if it weren’t for the wonderful tools you bring to us. One thing about Lukomatico, your channel keeps us on the cutting edge. I’m sure I speak for many others when I say that you do all of us a great and invaluable service. Thank you for your ongoing inspirational videos, your enthusiasm, and your authenticity (burp included, LOL). Can’t wait to try this!!!

[@DrJoeSelfCoaching]

Just downloaded and tried BlurX.....just as you say Luke, FANTASTIC!

[@lukomatico]

Aw mate you're too kind, I'm only too happy to be able to help people with my vids, even if it's just by shining a spotlight on supreme talent when I see it! Russell's work here is nothing short of miraculous :-D

[@lukomatico]

Glad you agree mate!! - It's so darn good!!

[@josephluciani5531]

Would you say that’s Topaz AI sharpening does a similar (or different) job?

[@lukomatico]

Good question Joe! - it does a similar job in some regards, as in the resultant image is sharpened, but how they go about it is different. Whereas Topaz is using machine learning to sharpen and denoise your image, this is using machine learning to calculate and apply deconvolution and in doing so, remove blur without adding any denoise 👍 If you ask me, I'd say Topaz still does a great job when used carefully! But BXT is a truly accurate way of doing things, and does work phenomenally well on every single image I've tried 👍

[@petesastrophotography]

Awesome, thank you for the heads up once again Luke. I haven't done any deconvolution on my images for a long time now either as I find the process simply too slow and tedious. This is going to be another must have tool, I have NoiseXTerminator and StarXTerminator and can't imagine going back to the 'old' way of doing these operations.

[@lukomatico]

Superb to hear that Pete! Thanks for the lovely comment my friend :-) I agree by the way, there's just no going back now - If I had to go back to the dark old ways I'd quit lol! (Shamelessly would like to add that since the publish of this video Russell Croman has incredibly generously given me an affiliate link to use, so if you do purchase the software and would like to support my channel, it's an option! :-D Hope you'll forgive the plug haha, a guy's gotta eat!)

[@petesastrophotography]

@@lukomatico Done. Have to say I'm beyond impressed with BlurXTerminator and am currently reprocessing a lot of my old images. I have only just started uploading processing videos but I am going to have to redo them already as the new images are so much better.

[@MrSpike2450]

Hi Luke,. Another great video, well done.. Very keen on seeing your latest OSC workflow especially with all the latest tools from Bill. I'm getting a bit lost at the moment as to the best way forward.

[@lukomatico]

Great suggestion mate thanks! - I'll have to look into doing that :-) I appreciate you watching!

[@SimonsAstro]

Wow, that’s brilliant Luke, it’s on my Xmas list, but I don’t think I’ll be waiting till Xmas 🤣🤣 Clear skies!

[@lukomatico]

Bahaha - I hear you mate! I waited about 10 seconds LOL! (Just adding that if you do buy the software, I'm very pleased to say I now have an affiliate link for it! :-) )

[@terrydanks]

Was on the fence. Saw Adam's video. Was impressed. Glad I watched this as I was not aware I could get 10 bucks off as a current license holder of some other of RC's software. Anyhow, it's installed into my PI now and I will play with it tomorrow. I see lots of reprocessing in my immediate future! LOL! I played extensively with Deconvolution years ago. Always had some artifacting and decided it just wasn't going to work for me. This makes it insanely easy.

[@lukomatico]

Thanks for the great comment mate! - It's absolutely wild what's available to us these days, what a fantastic time to be alive and in astronomy :-) I totally hear you RE: regular decon btw, it's a pain in the rear lol! (Shameless plug but if you do purchase the software and would like to support my work then I now have an affiliate link for this software thanks to the kindness of RC himself!) Clear skies!

[@sevenskiesastro]

Well that looks like a little Xmas present to myself Luke. Very impressive tool especially on them galaxies which are my favourite. Clear skies bud have a good Xmas.

[@lukomatico]

Definitely Rob mate! - It's absolutely bloomin' marvellous haha! :-) (Just adding - If you do decide to buy the software, I now have affiliate links active thanks to Russell - top man!) Hope you have a superb christmas bud!

[@DSOImager]

Such an awesome tool. It's going to redefine how we process our images. Just insance! I'm in the middle of cutting my video on it when I saw that yours was posted. :) Mine will drop in 7 hours or so. CS Luke!

[@lukomatico]

Superb buddy!! So glad to hear you've got a vid coming on it too :-D It's mind-boggling to me that something so complex can be turned into pretty much a drag & drop operation, we're so lucky in this hobby to have such incredible minds working on these things. Max respect to Russell!

[@deep_space_dave]

Finally someone putting AI to good use! I have all of Russel's tools and this one I wish I had when I was struggling with deconvolution. Thanks for the video!

[@lukomatico]

Glad you liked the video buddy! :-D I love Russ's tools, they really are next-level stuff, unreal!

[@deep_space_dave]

@@lukomatico I just got the GPU acceleration going! Now the fun begins LOL

[@Pletharoe]

That's mind blowing! Thanks for the video Luke... Where's my wallet!?

[@lukomatico]

It's got me fired up for astronomy so much lol, really it has! - I'd just like to add if you do end up purchasing the software and would like to support the channel, I do now have an affiliate link for the software thanks to Russell! Shameless plug but I hope you'll forgive me haha, a guy's gotta eat lol! :-D Clear skies buddy!

[@Pletharoe]

@@lukomatico consider it done :)

[@lukomatico]

@@Pletharoe Aw thank you mate!! Really appreciate it 🙏 Clear skies!

[@dumpydalekobservatory]

More Pixinsight goodies I really must it sometime, great video as always mate I better go shove the dome now lol

[@lukomatico]

Oh mate, once you go PixInsight you never go back lol! :-D Hope your imaging goes well!

[@dumpydalekobservatory]

Cheers mate bit of a glitch to begin with but the subs are coming in nicely, using the 102 EDR but the RASA will return. Clear skies!!!

[@MayfieldCreekObservatory]

I bought it as well. Amazing stuff going on out here.

[@lukomatico]

It really is! Enjoy it buddy, what a time to be alive!

[@MayfieldCreekObservatory]

It sure is. I went back today and reprocessed some galaxy images and also M78. I am floored by what I was able to do. Amazing and I have all three tools now, Noise X, Star X, and now Blur X. I love it! Thanks for the heads up so much.

[@anata5127]

Very impressive! Star size is good indicator. Smaller FWHM, better picture.

[@lukomatico]

Indeed it is, 100% agree! :-) Thanks for watching mate!

[@janelubenskyi1177]

Sure is a software that will allow us to get the blur out of star clusters for example and allow us perhaps to use bigger frame cameras on otherwise scope focusers that unfortunately create elongated stars in the edges of image…this software will fix this problem.

[@lukomatico]

It's pretty insane the possibilities that this opens up, I'm so excited for the future of astronomy now! :-) Clear skies!

[@donorastrophoto]

Russell Croman has made himself rich. 🤑

[@lukomatico]

Haha! Hopefully so mate! :-D he deserves every success I reckon! Clear skies!

[@kenhansard3734]

Worth saying for lazy astro photographers like me who just dive in without reading the help files. This does require linear data. Do it early on after a crop and without stretching else it does not really affect nebulous data

[@lukomatico]

Very true Ken! I was in such a flurry making this video I forgot to mention it's intended for linear data! 😅 Oops! That said.. I've tried it on non-linear too and honestly it still does a great job 🙏 what a great tool! Clear skies mate

[@ariebakx]

A while ago TopazAI users where criticized for doing something similar. Filling in/replacing data based on an expected pattern. They were judged as being unrealistic, by making up details that aren’t there. This Xterminator, like the other 2, are a blessing to use nevertheless. And, like you say, if Adam Block gives it his blessing, who am I …..

[@lukomatico]

Totally hear you mate! Topaz when used carefully can be very effective indeed, but it can also be easily 'misused' for want of a better word, haha! I think this tool is something different though, it's operating from Deconvolution itself as far as I understand so shouldn't add any data - just reveal what was already there but hidden by atmospheric blur! Incredible :-) Thanks for watching buddy!

[@CDigata]

ho ho ho Merry Christmas sir Luke

[@lukomatico]

Merry Christmas to you too buddy! to us all haha! :-D Santa Croman has blessed us lol Clear skies!

[@chrisoriordan6975]

It’s clearly adding detail that was never in your original dataset

[@lukomatico]

Hey Chris! - That's not how this tool works mate, it can't add data that wasn't already there - it's literally just deconvolution calculated and applied by an AI, - it's well explained by the documentation if you fancy a read-up on it bud :-) Hope that helps!

[@lukomatico]

@@NomenNominandum I'm pretty sure this is a troll attempt man, good effort though! :-D

[@lukomatico]

Ahh, another good attempt! I'm a bit too sharp for you though buddy! do keep trying! 😂👍

[@LogansAstro]

Russell Croman has some magical tools (I'm beginning to think he has Wizard blood in him). I have often looked at people doing workflows and showing their results using deconvolution and mostly the changes in the image are miniscule given the amount of time spent on the long winded/painful process of Decon. This tool seems to make much greater improvements in the image sharpness with one click of a button compared to doing deconvolution with PI way. I presume this doesn't "invent" detail that never existed like some of the Topaz tools as I'm pretty sure Russell wouldn't make a tool that did that. Looks like a winner to me. Now, where is my credit card......

[@lukomatico]

'Wizard Blood' haha! - He could teach Gandalf a trick or two I'd bet! Totally agree mate, decon is a bloody pain to get right - if I'm being honest I don't think I've ever got it totally right even once! and now it's better than ever and able to be dragged and dropped, madness. (shameless plug but since the release of this video Russell Croman has incredibly kindly furnished me with an affiliate link for the software, what a kind guy! - If you'd like to support the channel when you purchase then it's an option anyway buddy :-D!)

[@siegfriednoet]

Another very interesting work from Russel, he" a genius, thanks for pointing this out Luke Normally I do this in Photoshop Camera Raw with the clarity and texture slider, gives about the same result

[@lukomatico]

Thanks for sharing mate! - Glad you liked the overview/vid :-D Clear skies!

[@AntPDC]

@ Siegfried "Photoshop Camera Raw with the clarity and texture slider, gives about the same result". Really? Well that saved me $100 right off the bat then!🤑🤑

[@lukomatico]

Haha, gotta be worth a try if you already have Photoshop! :-)

[@AntPDC]

@@lukomatico Yeah I have; it doesn't 😠😠. No surprise there eh?

[@lukomatico]

@@AntPDC Ah well, at least you've given it a go! 👍

[@spaztech]

Feeling that itch again.. although I'm more of an APP guy, my license has expired. Should I bite the bullet and buy PixInsight and go ahead and learn it.. or stick with Astro Pixel Processor? I want everyone's opinion please.. yes, that means you Pete, and Brian, and Logan, and Dennis, and Dumpy, and of course Luke of the shorn head.

[@lukomatico]

Hey bro! - I'm gonna be totally honest, I think if you want the best possible results from your image with the least effort, then sadly you need both! - I have APP for stacking and gradient removal, then PixInsight for everything else, and all of the fabulous tools available for it now too! It's SUCH an expensive way to do things, but when you look at it from an image quality per $ spent, it's actually incredibly cheap by that metric. It's a big decision to make, no need to rush I guess! Good luck!

[@spaztech]

@@lukomatico I had a feeling you were going to say that.. and I’m okay with that. Good tools cost money. Thanks for the feedback Luke!

[@TheOriginalTommo]

Really looking forward to trying this. Do you think it matters whether you use it before or after BN, ABE/ DBE & colour calibration?

[@lukomatico]

Great question mate! - Honestly, I'm not too sure really! I think the main thing is to make sure you use it as early as reasonably possible so the deconvolution it applies can be accurate! :-) Hope that helps!

[@astro7996]

Very impressive results, just amazing. Would you mind posting some results comparing the same images of blur exterminator vs topaz ai? Thanks for getting the word ou!

[@lukomatico]

That could be a good video idea for the future mate! thank you :-) for purely astronomy image sharpening, this tool works better than anything else though I'd say already.

[@RumourHasitYT]

I’ve been using topaz myself but I think getting the free trial and doing a side by side comparison is a no brainier. If it beats Topaz, Russ will be getting more of my money

[@lukomatico]

Definitely try the trial out Tom! - It's phenomenally good software :-)

[@physmc1]

Installed the demo today and tried it on some data with poor collimation and some star trails ... I guess Christmas miracle happens early this year XD

[@lukomatico]

Oh mate agreed lol!! Santa came early haha :-D (Shameless plug but if you do end up buying the software and would like to support the channel, then I'm very happy to say I now have an affiliate link thanks to Russell himself!)

[@BeingwithCosmosLive]

I see magenta halos around my brighter stars after BXT. Even star colors are getting compromised in some way. I even changed routine to do SPCC after BXT to correct stars, but that not doing a job completelly. You got magenta too on Alnitak in this video. Any ideas about that halo? Thanks for sharing and for marvelous job on pixelmaths.

[@lukomatico]

Interesting mate! and well noticed by the way, I do see what you're saying yeah! - it should be easily correctable though by just running "correct magenta stars" script, then you're good to go I guess! :-) Clear skies buddy!

[@paulhumberstone5784]

Great video, Luke. Where are you using this in your workflow?

[@lukomatico]

Super early on mate, pretty much crop > dbe/abe if needed > BXT! This may change of course, but that's what I'm doing atm! Hope that helps!

[@travelanddrones]

Hi and thks for the video. I feel a bit frustrated after applying NXT on different linear astrophotos, I always get lots of extra noise and weird artifacts. I've tried using the default parameters and I've also tried different parameters, but the result is always the same. I mean, I see the stars on my images get pinpoint ones, and in some cases, some areas of my nebula photos get a bit better (more details and structure), but the noise is more than the original photo. I have only applied ABE or DBE to my images, with even no color correction, but I cannot get ridículo of that noise. Could you help me please? Any suggestions/ideas? Parameters to try? Thks in advance.

[@lukomatico]

That's very odd mate, have you updated to the latest version of the AI and selected it via the tool? Usually problems only occur when using it on nonlinear data, but as you've already mentioned you're using linear data it's a bit of a puzzle! I'm sorry I can't be much more help right now mate, I'd give it a go on some more alternative data sets too ( I have some for download on my tutorial videos) as that may help highlight something too. Good luck!

[@travelanddrones]

@@lukomatico thks for answering. I'll continue working on this problem anyway, someone told me it has to do with the signal. In my case, I just got 4 hours of gold signal, I stacked the photos, Aand took them.to Pixinsight.....perhaps all of the examples I have seen in YTube are photos of many many hours....

[@kgunessee]

Cheers Luke (and Russell of course), my wallet is now £80 lighter 😂

[@lukomatico]

Haha! My pleasure mate, and mine's lighter too so at least you're not alone haha :-D Clear skies bud!

[@chrismcgrew4692]

Luke, BlurXT is a linear state tool, so if I'm using HSO narrowband data can I do an LRGB combine and color calibration first all in the linear phase? Up until now I've always done the LRGB combine in the non-linear phase just after stretching.

[@lukomatico]

I believe you can indeed do that bud! It should be fine :-) hope that helps!

[@chrismcgrew4692]

@@lukomatico I've tried a few different ways and each has its drawbacks. I'm keen to see what workflow you come up with. Please share with us if you get it sorted on narrowband data. It's a great tool, just need to know how to use it properly.

[@lukomatico]

@@chrismcgrew4692 Will do mate, for sure! I'll hopefully get a good chunk of time over Christmas to sink into learning and testing stuff! 🙏 Clear skies bud!

[@briandiaz3758]

I bought it immediately after this video, what is the best result before or after stretching

[@lukomatico]

That's great to hear!! - RE: your question, definitely use before stretching mate, it's intended for use while data is linear :-) Hope that helps!

[@kurtbauch5491]

I have not watched Adam Block’s video yet and have a couple of questions... Should you use this before of after a permanent stretch? I seems that it may increase noise slightly, so should one still use noise reduction(I use EZDenoise)? Thanks and excellent video, as usual!

[@lukomatico]

Hey Kurt! - you should use it before stretching mate, and ideally before NR also - really quite early into the workflow seems to work well I'd say! :-) Hope that is helpful to you my friend!

[@kurtbauch5491]

@@lukomatico yes, sounds good, thanks!

[@Mel-127]

Great video Luke thanks. One day I may delve into this setup. It's the platforms that tick me off. My Mac with PS is impressive but it's 12 yrs old. Would this work on such an old computer. It works as fast as the buttons is touched, no delay still. But. It's too expensive to replace. Then there's 'Wind' , I'm sick of their snooping cookey mad updates. I would love this programme but I suppose I've just shot myself in the foot twice. Still brill to be in the know. Who knows maybe a platform may convince me one day. Dame good video Luke thankyou.

[@lukomatico]

Hey there Mel! - I hear what you're saying for sure, I don't like many facets of computing/tech myself, the snooping, planned obsolescence, etc - the list is as long as my arm haha! All that said, my personal feeling right now is that it's a necessary evil in order to enjoy the maximum benefit from my equipment and life! :-) Hope that explains my feelings on it, it's a pretty multi-faceted subject for sure!

[@tomtoka]

I read somewhere that the blur is not working on your file, but using nice photos database and modify your image, isnt it?

[@lukomatico]

I'm afraid you were misinformed by whoever wrote that mate, it's definitely not doing that! - It's effectively an AI powered deconvolution, that's a bit of an oversimplification though! :-) Clear skies!

[@stuparker776]

Hi Luke I see its best used in linear data it would hardly be worth doing star reduction.Can you make a new vid with the new process and where to add it in :)

[@lukomatico]

I'll definitely look into doing that Stu!! I think some degree of star reduction like from Bill's tools could be beneficial in certain cases but I do totally see your point bud!

[@filipgloria]

This is totally amazing!! Why send thing out in to space when you can just deconvolve? ;D

[@lukomatico]

You're not kidding haha! I have no idea on earth how Russell's been able to do this, but good grief am I glad he has!

[@filipgloria]

@@lukomatico: He should work at NASA! He could also start a religion with all his miracles!

[@indysbike3014]

Does it fix coma at the edges?

[@lukomatico]

In my understanding, it can indeed fix small optical errors like coma/astigmatism, even to a degree it can correct for slight mechanical errors too like small amounts of star trailing :-) Hope that helps mate!

[@asdasdasd999999]

im so confused by this tool, it does not do anything i have seen in this video for me, the only thing it does once i use it at default settings is make stars smaller, no further quality on nebulae at all, tried on 6 images with the same results..something is off..

[@lukomatico]

That's weird indeed mate! Not really sure what could be happening there - may be worth trying on someone else's data to make sure the tool is working correctly too 👍 good luck!

[@cucubits]

I feel we're getting too close to crossing the line here. At this point our data plays less of a role in the final image. It's not my image anymore if a sharpening tool knows how and what to sharpen by learning from hubble and jwst images. This feels like cheating because, well, it is.

[@lukomatico]

I understand what you're saying, but if you read the documentation with the software that's not how it works - it does indeed use a neural network trained on stellar images, but only so far as to enable it to calculate and apply deconvolution to a level which would take a human hours of trial and error, if someone could even feasibly do it to that degree of accuracy - To be clear, it's only deconvolution, nothing is being added or invented by the software :-) Hope that helps!

[@Astro_Shed]

Great video Luke, as usual….But this is just not great for image processing, as it just generates what detail it thinks should be there based on Hubble data that the AI was trained on, it’s just adding structure and detail that is just not present in the image to start with, and it’s just creating false images at the end of the day….it’s taking all the skill out of processing by adding data that was not captured by the imager….sorry to disagree, but great video as usual…..👍🏻

[@lukomatico]

Hey mate! - I'd just like to clarify that this software doesn't work like that, it's not adding anything that wasn't already there :-) it's been trained on astronomical images to recognise what detail looks like, and PSF's, but it can't paste them onto your image - it can only deconvolve what's already there hidden in your data - Hope that helps! Other software -can- do what you describe though, Topaz when used aggressively can certainly add stuff that wasn't there! Hope that helps my friend, thanks so much for watching and for raising this point! :-) Clear skies!

[@Sidecontrol1234]

wow. *throws money at screen*

[@lukomatico]

Haha! - That was my feeling too mate! :-D "Take my money!"

[@nikaxstrophotography]

Pixinsight only no intention for Photoshop this is an absolute disappointment.....

[@lukomatico]

I'm sorry to hear that bud, I think it's likely a limitation of Photoshop that prevents it's implementation on there as it'll have no astronomy deconvolution tool or methods of calculating a PSF.

[@nikaxstrophotography]

@@lukomatico yeah it makes sense but still a disappointment

[@lukomatico]

Totally hear that matey, my apologies if I got you excited and then let you down! 🙏

[@nikaxstrophotography]

@@lukomatico hahaha no I already was prepared for it

[@miclanone]

I've to admit, it looks really good. But it's ai driven, so every little piece of "detail" is just made up. That's not what this hobby is about imho. As a beginning astrophotographer I'll stay away from this ia stuff and keep processing with real data. At least till someone convinces me it is ok to use it artistically. Tnx for sharing though.

[@lukomatico]

I appreciate the feedback mate! - I'd just like to clarify a misconception here though, BXT isn't like Topaz or similar AI's in that it hallucinates detail, - all BXT does when used on linear data is apply deconvolution in an extremely optimized manner :-) If however you use BXT on stretched/nonlinear data then it can indeed be fooled into hallucinations, but that's because deconvolution solutions are only accurate on linear data sets. Hope that helps my friend, thank you for watching! I appreciate your time!