Mt. Adams at Night

RxForB3 · Jul 30, 2012

Well I took the long drive to TakhLakh Lake again to try for stars and star trails there. These turned out better than the ones from Fife's Peak, but still is lacking! Now what do I try?

This first one is soft. I realized after I'd finished the 21'20" exposure (plus 21'20" noise reduction) that I might not have really focused before taking the photo. I think it's a bit soft because it was close but not quite, however, the original before editing appears to be fairly in focus. I'm not really sure if it's my post production, the focus, or just having too much noise due to the long exposure and using a Rebel t3i...

Mt. Adam Star Trails by RxForB3, on Flickr

This second one I think I like better, but the high ISO (6400, I think) led to lots of noise, of course. From what I understand, though, the only way to stack images of stars (not star trails) when you have something in the foreground, is to do a composite. Is that right?

Mt. Adam Stars by RxForB3, on Flickr

Sw1tchFX · Jul 30, 2012

http://www.thephotoforum.com/forum/articles-interest/276016-shooting-night-pictures-stars-stuff.html

RxForB3 · Jul 30, 2012

Thank you, Sw1tchFX. Believe me, I've read the article several times, but seem to be lacking in the execution somehow. I really wonder if the post production is part of my problem, and how much is limitation of my camera. Guess I'll have another read over that article.

Sw1tchFX · Jul 31, 2012

If you're not doing any NR in post, than it very well could be the camera. My D70 would pretty much destroy detail past a couple minutes. A grass field would be just a flat color with no definition.

RxForB3 · Jul 31, 2012

I did do some NR in Lightroom. Not sure I really knew the best way to do it, though. I need to read up on that. I'm thinking it's probably a combination of several factors. First, not being exact with the focus. Second, the quality of the lens (just the kit lens). Third, the camera. And fourth , lack of post processing skill.

Do you cover the viewfinder for your night pics and/or use a lens hood? I read an article suggesting both...

Sw1tchFX · Jul 31, 2012

You could, but it probably wouldnt make much difference. the softness is not from the lens, it looks like it's more from noise reduction as opposed to lens problems.

RxForB3 · Jul 31, 2012

Hm...I would question whether it was the noise reduction as the image was soft even before I added the noise reduction. However, since I did do the LENR in the camera itself, that might explain why the original image was soft as well. I should try to find a place around here that I could rent a camera and try out a better camera to see if I get better results, or whether it's just me