The problem with living near L.A. is that in order to find dark skies, you wind up so far out into the desert that Vegas becomes a problem. I once thought that my camera had a light leak until I realized what direction the telescope had been pointed; SE toward Sin City.
This is what's left of a supernova...
Veil Nebula is an old supernova remnant in the constellation Cygnus. It is the remains of cataclysmic explosion of star that exploded between 5,000 and 8,000 years ago. This nebula is about 1,860 light-years distance.
16x150seconds, 10"SCT 6.3focal reducer, aligned, calibrated and stacked in DSS. CLS filter, and manual focus. No autoguide.
It does not have to be this way, with simple well designed lighting fixtures.
Anyway, I had no idea those of use that want dark sky's are all Communist and Socialist....