Star Trails- Feb 2024

Description	The image depicts a star trail photograph taken in the desert near Judah’s Thumb. The camera was positioned in a fixed location and captured approximately 400 frames, each lasting 20 seconds, over several hours. These images were later combined using software called StarStaX. Notably, I did not remove any satellite or airplane trails from the final image.
Technical Details	Equipment: – Mount: Benro Polaris for tracking – Cameras: Sony a7R V (not astromodified) and Sony a7 III (astromodified) – Lenses: Sony 24mm f/1.4 GM, Sigma 14mm f/1.4 DG DN, Sigma 50mm f/1.4 DG DN Acquisition: For the sky, I always use tracked imaging with 180-second subs, all tracked by the Benro Polaris. When capturing panoramas, I typically take one image per panel. If I’m shooting a single image, I may take 5 to 10 180-second exposures and then stack them. For the foreground, I shoot during the blue hour, using either the Sigma 14mm or 50mm lens. For the sky, I utilize the astromodified Sony a7 III, while for the foreground, I use the non-astromodified Sony a7R V. Post-Processing: I handle post-processing using several software packages: I use Sequator for stacking, PTGui or ICE for stitching panoramas, and Photoshop and Lightroom Classic for color management and composition.

Description

The image depicts a star trail photograph taken in the desert near Judah’s Thumb. The camera was positioned in a fixed location and captured approximately 400 frames, each lasting 20 seconds, over several hours. These images were later combined using software called StarStaX. Notably, I did not remove any satellite or airplane trails from the final image.

Technical Details

Equipment:

– Mount: Benro Polaris for tracking

– Cameras: Sony a7R V (not astromodified) and Sony a7 III (astromodified)

– Lenses: Sony 24mm f/1.4 GM, Sigma 14mm f/1.4 DG DN, Sigma 50mm f/1.4 DG DN

Acquisition:

For the sky, I always use tracked imaging with 180-second subs, all tracked by the Benro Polaris. When capturing panoramas, I typically take one image per panel. If I’m shooting a single image, I may take 5 to 10 180-second exposures and then stack them. For the foreground, I shoot during the blue hour, using either the Sigma 14mm or 50mm lens. For the sky, I utilize the astromodified Sony a7 III, while for the foreground, I use the non-astromodified Sony a7R V.

Post-Processing:

I handle post-processing using several software packages: I use Sequator for stacking, PTGui or ICE for stitching panoramas, and Photoshop and Lightroom Classic for color management and composition.

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