Many people enjoy taking photos of stars but may struggle to create images that match the quality of those taken by experienced photographers. This is often due to a lack of experience, professional information and observation skills, making it challenging to capture the subtle nuances of the night sky. In this article, I will share tips to help you create excellent images.
Table of Contents
Change a good condition for photo-taking
Weather
When taking appealing star photos, choosing the right weather conditions is crucial. A cloudless night sky is generally the easiest to work with and can produce stunning images. You need to research weather forecasting and satellite imagery before taking star photos.
Location
Many people enjoy taking star photos in the mountains near the city, but the town itself is not a suitable location due to light pollution. Additionally, you need to find a High-altitude environment with better atmospheric conditions, less air pollution and less atmospheric distortion. You can use these websites to find the best place for star photography.
Time
Many photographers have no chance to take images that match some excellent works by experienced photographers because they have no detailed plan and poor timing. To improve your star photography, you must pay more attention to timing. For instance, you need to determine the proper seasons take star photos and learn about the Milky Way’s rise and set times. You can check this milky way calendar in 2023.
Camera Equipment
A full-frame camera
A full-frame camera is a good choice for star photography. Compared with the APS-C camera, a full frame can offer clear, high-quality images in low-light conditions. Sometimes, photographers must set ISO as high as 3200-6400 or even ISO12800; a full-frame camera can ensure high-quality photos in a high ISO setting.
Camera lens
What kind of types of camera lenses can be used for star photography? The ideal ultra-wide-angle lens with a large aperture is the best choice. Here are some advantages of ultra-wide-angle lens:
- Close focusing distance
- Low light performance
- Increased depth of field
Here are some camera lens recommendations
- Nikon AF-S NIKKOR 14-24mm f/2.8G ED
- ZEISS Distagon T* 15mm f/2.8 ZE Lens for Canon EF
- Sigma 14mm F/1.8 Art DG HSM Lens
You can choose the best camera lens for star photography based on your interests and needs.
Tripod
A tripod is a crucial part of star photography. But why do we use a tripod in star photography? Here are some reasons:
a. stability. Using a tripod in low light conditions can help photographers take star trails and time-lapse photography. For example, if you use the image stacking method to take star images, it is essential to buy a tripod to ensure that the camera constantly takes a series of still images over several hours without any movement or shake;
b. Portability and convenience. When choosing a tripod, it is essential to consider factors such as portability and convenience. Carbon fibre tripods are the popular choice, which are lightweight and easy to carry but resistant to temperature change and extreme weather.
Flashlights & Headlamps
If you want to take stunning photos of the stars, choosing a place away from severe light pollution is vital. However, it is essential to have flashlights or headlamps to help with focusing and other camera settings in low-light conditions. Some say a smartphone’s built-in lights are an excellent choice when taking photos. But the smartphone’s light is inadequate for lighting up the environment. Here are some flashlights and headlamps recommendations:
- GearLight 2pack LED Flashlights High Lumens – $19.99
- WdtPro 4 Pack LED Flashlights – $16.99
- LHKNL Headlamp Flashlight, 1200 Lumen Ultra-Light Bright LED Rechargeable Headlight
Astrophotography Tips & Techniques
Camera Setting for Astrophotography
To capture clear star photos, it’s essential to set the camera to manual mode and control the shutter speed time to achieve the correct exposure and avoid the appearance of star trails. It is better to use the 500 rule, which means that the exposure time (in seconds) should be less than or equal to 500 divided by the lens focal length (in mm).
For instance, if you’re using a camera lens with a focal length of 16mm, applying the 500 rule would mean that the exposure time should not exceed 31 seconds (500 divided by 16 is about 31.25). If you want to take photos without visible star trails, applying the 400 rule is the best choice. (25 seconds – 400 divided by 16).
Note: All camera settings are fit for full-frame cameras.
In low-light conditions, it may take many underexposed pictures, which require ISO and aperture camera settings. A higher ISO setting (3200-6400) and broader aperture (such as F2.8 or wider) can help capture more light and reduce the risk of visible star trails. But it may bring many noises into photos; I will share some tips for reducing noise in astrophotography.
How to use lights to take landscape photos
a. Sometimes, it may be necessary to shoot before moonrise or after moonset, and in those cases, you need to use lighting equipment such as headlamps or flashlights to illuminate the foreground artificially;
b. Please take star and landscape photos at different times, including blue hour and night. After taking pictures, you can combine them in post-processing;
c. Another technique is to take a long-exposure shot of the landscape for several minutes and then use masking in Photoshop to merge the sky and landscape photos. However, using a high ISO and prolonged exposure can produce a lot of noise in the final image. To reduce noise, it’s recommended to enable long-exposure noise reduction in the camera or stack multiple shots. Applying dark frames to the final astrophotography image can also help reduce noise;
Manual focusing
We all know that it is a challenging task to get proper focus in low-light conditions. And the manual focusing is one of the essential skills. Additionally, some photographers may find it hard to get a clear direction; in this situation, you can use lights to illuminate the foreground.
Focus stacking
When shooting in low-light conditions with a wide aperture, achieving the desired depth of field can be difficult, especially when the foreground is close. So, how do we solve this problem? You can use focus stacking to fix this problem. It is recommended to take separate photos with a manual guide, one is a clear foreground with blurred stars, and another is a blurred foreground with clear stars. Finally, the clear parts of the two shots can be combined in Photoshop to create a final image with a sharp focus on both the foreground and the stars.
Noise reduction
When taking star photos, we need to use long exposures and high ISO, which can result in significant image noise. Therefore, learning some techniques for reducing or eliminating this noise is essential. One of the first steps is to understand the different types of noise that can occur in astrophotography.
Luminance noise
Luminance noise refers to the noise in an image related to its brightness or luminance.
Colour noise
Colour noise is a type of image noise that appears as random variations in the colours of an image, particularly in areas of low light.
Thermal noise
Thermal noise appears in an image due to random thermal vibrations of electrons in the camera sensor. This noise is more pronounced during long exposures or in high-temperature environments.
Four methods to reduce noise
In-camera noise reduction
When it comes to in-camera noise reduction, there are two types: one is High ISO Noise Reduction and the other is Long Exposure Noise Reduction. But High ISO Noise Reduction only fits JPG files and cannot keep many details in images. While Long Exposure Noise Reduction may help reduce noise but the time required for taking photos may double.
Using Adobe Camera Raw /Lightroom for noise reduction
You can use an Adobe camera raw or Lightroom to reduce image noise. Generally, both tools have the same setting for noise reduction. Regarding colour noise, please choose the default setting. Regarding luminance noise requirements, keeping the noise parameter within 20 is recommended for optimal results.
Using plugins to reduce noise
You can choose some plugins to help reduce noise. Capture One, Luminar NEO, and Noiseware are the best choices; you can select one to fix noise problems.
Noise reduction using stacks
Fix your camera position, take 6-11 continuous shots, and stack them for noise reduction. However, the effectiveness of stacking decreases after the first four or five images. Therefore, it is unnecessary to take too many shots. Using four or five ideas for stacking can achieve good noise reduction performance.
How to take Star trails
Time and location
Please choose a cloudless night or a night without a moon when taking some star photos. This can help to minimize the impact of atmospheric conditions and moonlight, producing detailed star trail photos. Please find a location far away from the place with high light pollution.
Pro tip: Photos of star trails appears faint and less defined because of strong moonlight.
Camera Equipment
You should buy a camera lens, including a wide-angle, standard, or telephoto lens. All camera lenses are suitable for taking star trail photos. But mainly, you should purchase the shutter release cable and camera anti-fog filter. A shutter release cable can take multiple images automatically with specific settings such as time and number. The camera lens may become foggy when exposed to a damp or humid environment, potentially jeopardizing your photo-taking plan. It is recommended to use anti-fog filters for taking sharp images.
Tips and Techniques– Multiple exposure stacking
Multiple exposure stacking is a technique that allows photographers to capture more detail and dynamic range in their images, resulting in more vivid and clear photographs. You can try taking some pictures to define camera settings (including ISO, aperture and more) and photo compositions. Then you must check and adjust camera settings(ISO and aperture) based on images and histogram. Use the reciprocity rule to calculate the required shutter speed.
Reciprocity Rule
One of the most basic rules of photography is the reciprocal rule. The basics of this rule state that if you’re hand holding your camera, your shutter speed should not be slower than the reciprocal of your effective focal length (but not lower than 1/50th of a second) to avoid “camera shake,” i.e. the blur that results from any slight movement of the camera during the capture of the image. It’s important to note that these are very general guidelines, and actual results will vary depending on the lens, your camera, the stillness of your objects, and the steadiness of your hand. Furthermore, “camera shake” is not confused with motion blur, i.e. the blur from moving objects within the image. Freezing a moving object is an entirely different subject. – slrlounge.com
Pro tip: You need to take the below measurement when taking star trail photos:
a. Please close the long exposure noise reduction function;
b. F2.8-F5.6 with an aperture and ISO of 200-800 may be the best camera setting;
c. Manual focusing is the best choice;
Post-Processing
- Please make some changes to Adobe Camera Raw and Lightroom, including colour temperature, exposure, contrast and noise reduction;
- To apply all finished setting into all images;
- Select File > Scripts > Statistics in Photoshop and load the photos into a stack;
- When in stack mode, select “Maximum. The processing speed may vary and may take some time. After computation, star trails will be formed.
Conclusion
This is the ulmate guide for star photography, and if you have any good ideas on how to take star photos, please share them with us below the comment.
