How to photograph the Cocoon Nebula (IC 5146)
A small pink and blue nebula at the end of a long, dark dust lane.
When to shoot it from your location
About the Cocoon Nebula
The Cocoon is a mix of red emission and blue reflection light, sitting at the tip of the dark nebula Barnard 168. The dust lane only shows well with unfiltered data from a dark site.
Gear and framing
The Cocoon Nebula spans about 12′ of sky. It frames best with:
- Small refractor (250-600mm)
- Long focal length (800mm and up)
You can see how other people have built their rigs on RigDesigner, including my Sony a6700 and 60mm refractor rig.
Filters
This target glows in emission lines and also has broadband detail. Unfiltered color frames under dark skies give the most natural colors. A dual-band filter lets you shoot it from the city or with the Moon up.
Tips
- At 400-600mm you can fit the Cocoon and part of the long dark lane trailing from it.
Processing
Stack your light frames with darks and flats, then remove the background gradient before stretching. AstroBake does all of this for you. Point it at your folders of raw frames, then adjust the result with live sliders.