stars

[ecp1977]

So I’ve been experimenting with shooting star trails lately. I’ve tried taking long exposures (i.e. 30 + minutes) as well as shorter exposures (i.e. 3 minutes) and stacking the pictures. With the longer exposures, noise seems to become an issue as the top corners of the frame are a glowing pinkish-purple color and there are many red, green and blue dots scattered throughout. A big problem I face is ambient light so I’m not really sure what aperture to use.

I welcome critiques, comments, constructive criticism, etc… on this recent attempt of mine. Background on the setup: moon was between full and last quarter; Nikon D60, wireless shutter remote, Sigma 10-20mm. I used a focal length of 14mm stopped to f/7.1 and zoomed to infinity. I took 12 photos with 3 minute exposures and stacked them with DeepSkyStacker, slightly adjusting the luminance to make the overall picture darker.
I guess I want to know if the stars could be more clear and did I go about focusing the right way.


Thanks for looking.

[Krusty79]

Please reduce the size of your image to 740 pixels or less on the long side. The ad is blocking part of your image and write up. Also, post your exif data per the forum rules.

Critique Forum Rules

[ecp1977]

Sorry. I should have read the rules prior to posting. I tried to resize in photobucket...hope it works!

EXIF Data (if not mentioned above)
Nikon D60
focal length- 14mm
ISO-100
f/7.1
Exposure - 3 minutes (X12)

[Krusty79]

You didn't have to reduce the size THAT much, just 740 pixels or less on the long side. Unfortunately, I have not taken any of these type of shots, so someone else who has taken them will have to advise you. Someone on another thread mentioned a camera setting to reduce noise at high ISO settings, so you might check your manual and see if yours has such a setting.