Boost the contrast in your astrophotos

Astrophotography processing is about bringing out details by stretching data. This is achieved via two main editing functions: ‘Levels’ and ‘Curves’. Both are available in Adobe Photoshop and the free editing software GIMP, and it’s often necessary to perform a Levels adjustment before using Curves.

Levels is used to balance the ‘Red’, ‘Green’ and ‘Blue’ (RGB) channels; this process draws out detail by brightening the image. Using Curves then manipulates the tones in your image, allowing greater