30
31
recommended Processing Sequence
What is the best order to apply the processing functions in? Here is a recom-
mended sequence:
1. Calibrate (Dark Subtract and Flat Field calibrate)
2. Convert Raw to Color
3. Combine
4. Filter
5. Color Balance
6. Stretch
Once you have the combined image, you are free to continue processing the
image as desired, or export it to a program like Photo shop. Be sure to
Save
a copy of the combined image; otherwise you might have to go back to the
beginning and stack individual images again!
note on File Format
When saving images (using
Save
or
Save As
in the
File
menu), you have a
choice of file formats. The default produces .fit files, but .tif, .jpg, .png, and
.bmp file formats can also be selected. Having a choice of output file formats
is useful, especially if images will be exported to other software programs for
additional image processing (like Adobe Photoshop, for instance).
If you save to a file format other than .fit, you will need to check the
Auto
Stretch
box, or otherwise
Stretch
the image to change the
Output Range
(in the
Stretch
command window) to match the Size Format (in the
Save As
window). Otherwise, the
Output Range
will likely exceed the
Size Format
,
and the saved image will be ruined (will turn all white).
For example, say the
Output Range
is set to create image brightness values in
16-bit format, while the
Size Format
of a specific file format (.jpg, for example)
may only support 8-bits. Since the 16-bit format sees 65535 brightness levels,
and the 8-bit format can only support 255 levels, all of the levels above 255
in the 16-bit image (i.e. the vast majority of the 16-bit brightness levels) will
be saved at the maximum 8-bit value of 255. So the saved .jpg will have very
little brightness information from levels 1 to 254 and almost all the brightness
information at level 255. Thus a white image results.
If you plan to do all image processing within MaxIm DL Essentials Edition
(or the optional full version of MaxIm DL), saving images in the FITS (.fit)
File
Format
using the IEEE Float
Size Format
is recommended. This ensures that
all saved data will be kept intact. If another
Size Format
is utilized, there may
be some loss of data, especially when saving combined images.
Batch Process
Batch Process can be used to
process multiple images simul-
taneously using the various com-
mands available in MaxIm DL
Essentials Edition. It is especially
useful when calibrating and con-
verting each raw image to color.
Select
Batch Process
from the
Process
menu (Figure 22).
Procedure for basic batch pro-
cessing:
1. Select the image file you
want to process from your
computer using the
Select
Files
button. Use CTRL-click
to select individual files, and
SHIFT-click to select a range
of files. You can see the path
for the selected files by turning on the
Show Path
check box. Or you can
select images already open in MaxIm DL Essentials Edition by clicking
the
Select Images
button. The window that pops-up will indicate all the
images currently open.
2. Select the processing task you want done in the
Processing Commands
box. Choose up to 6 processing commands which will be executed in
sequence.
3. Use the same recommended processing order for batch processing as you
would normally do manually. You should 1.
Calibrate
, 2.
Convert Raw To
Color
, etc.
You can remove selected images and files from the
Batch Process
list by
selecting them with the mouse and clicking the
Remove
button.
4. Select the location for the saved files using the
Path
button, or click
Write
Output to Source Folder
to cause the files to be saved back into the
folder from which they were loaded. (This option cannot be used when an
image has never been saved, for example, one freshly acquired from the
camera.) In the event that saving a file will cause it to overwrite an existing
file, you can select
skip save
,
overwrite it
, or
move to subfolder
. You
can specify the subfolder name in the adjacent field. Use
Size Format
to select between
16-Bit Integer
and
32-Bit IEEE Float
formats for the
processed images. To keep all processed image data intact (especially for
stacked images), we recommend using the
32-Bit IEEE
Float format. If
you need to open the resultant files in another program, however, you may
need to use the
16-Bit Integer
format.
Figure 22.
The
Batch Process
window
allows you to select all the images you wish
to process without actually opening each
file and consuming system memory. This
feature is especially helpful when processing
numerous planetary or deep space images.
Choose up to 6 processing commands.
