Astrophotography with a Star Tracker – How to Get Started

Utilizing a celestial tracker when astrophotographing is the optimal way to photograph the night sky in its full majesty.

I`ve been photographing the Milky Way for many years, but it wasn`t until I began tracking astrophotography that I could finally capture the clean, vibrant, and detailed images I had long sought.

Whether planning to photograph the Milky Way with a star tracker or capture deep-sky images, in this article, you’ll learn the basics of star following:”

• • What is a star tracker in astrophotography?
  • Why is a star tracker necessary for astrophotography?
  • Star tracker setup
  • Best Camera Configurations for Tracked Astrophotography
  • Helpful pointers for astrophotography with a tracker
  • Post-editing of tracked astrophotography images
  • Star tracker gear

If you wish to learn more regarding star tracker models, I encourage you to read our premier star trackers for astrophotography article, where you’ll find detailed information about the top star trackers accessible. Below, you can also watch a video presentation that I gave concerning star tracker photography.

What is a star tracker in astrophotography?

A device used in astrophotography that has a small motor to compensate for earth`s rotation is called an astrophotography star tracker or just star tracker or astrophotography mount. By counteracting the rotation of our planet, it is able to follow stars as they move across the night sky, allowing for extended shutter speeds that capture sharp star images. Unlike when photographing the Milky Way without a star tracker, there are no limitations like the 500 rule or the NPF rule.

To correctly track the stars, you need to align your star tracker with the pole star. This step, which I’ll explain in more detail later, is crucial for capturing pinpoint stars.

A star tracker can also be employed to follow the sun and moon; however, in this guide, I will primarily discuss documented astrophotography focused on the Milky Way and nebulae.

Why do you need a star tracker for astrophotography?

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Increase the exposure time

Vortex star trails stand out differently than standard ones and can be almost hypnotic. There are two ways to generate vortex star trails: either directly at the location, by using a rig that gradually modifies the scope a fixed amount after each photograph, or during post-production. Creating vortex star trails in post-production necessitates both LRTimelapse and Adobe Lightroom.

This showcases the distinction between using a star tracker or capturing from a fixed tripod – 3 minute presentations

Reduce the ISO

As a direct outcome of raising your shutter speed, you can decrease the ISO. Instead of utilizing the standard low-light photography ISO 3200-6400, in tracked astrophotography, you are able to drastically reduce the ISO to values under 1600. This will minimize the noise and provide more dynamic range in your images.

Close the aperture

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All three of these factors combined will produce imagery of higher quality, with abundant fine details, minimal digital noise, and richer colors. As mentioned earlier, obtaining a star tracker for astrophotography exponentially improves the caliber of astrophotographs one is capable of capturing.

Set up your star tracker in 7 steps

Knowing the appropriate procedures for establishing your star tracker is an indispensable part of the process, and there are multiple approaches to setting up a star tracker contingent on your tracking gear and your aims (basic tracked images, tracked Milky Way panoramas, and so on.)

In this section, I’ll explain how to set up your star tracker for astrophotography using a simple setup with a tripod, tracker, and two ball heads.

1. Level your tripod

Ensuring that the equipment to track stars is situated on a stable base that is made level is the initial step since success cannot be achieved without a leveled platform like a tripod or balanced surface for proper support. The start tracker necessitates placement on a leveled foundation, either by using your tripod legs directly or a leveling base.

Here, I suggest using a bubble level if your tripod has one or an electronic level app on your smartphone. A leveling base can hasten the process but, personally, I don’t use it for tracking since it can include instability to your tracking setup.

2. Mount the ball head or equatorial wedge

Remember, you’ll need a ball head or equatorial wedge (EQ base) to hold your star tracker. This accessory needs to be robust as it’ll support the weight of the entire star tracker setup (tracker, camera, accessories, etc.).

Using an equinoctial bracket (also known as Altitude/Azimuth base) is my suggestion here to help you with the polar orientation process that we’ll discuss later.

3. Slide the tracker on the ball head or equatorial wedge

Mount your tracker on top of your ball head or EQ base and confirm that it’s fixed with no instability.

When installing the star tracker onto the ball head or EQ wedge, do not disturb the balanced positioning of the tripod legs during this process. Verify that the level is maintained after completing this step.

4. Mount the second ball head or EQ wedge on the star tracker

The basic set up for star tracker photography ordinarily employs two ball heads: one to support the star tracker and a second one to support the camera. However, there are multiple accessories that can be used instead of a ball head, such as a two-way mount, a Z/V bracket, a panoramic ball head, etc. Your photographic aims will determine the appropriate accessory for you.

5. Attach your camera

Mount all the camera and accessories intended for your tracked astrophotography session, such as an intervalometer or an external power supply. Ensure everything is properly attached.

It’s important to connect all your camera extras now before carrying out your Polar Adjustment to minimize the possibility of disrupting your adjustment later on.

6. Align you star tracker with the North/South celestial pole

Polar alignment is the next crucial step in the process. Getting sharp stars in your tracked images directly relies on a correct polar alignment.

There are two primary methods to align a star tracker with the poles. You can use a polar scope or a laser beam (or both together). Both have one thing in common: you need to precisely locate the North or South celestial pole depending on your geographic location.

In the Northern Hemisphere, you’ll need to direct your laser or polar scope towards Polaris. In the Southern Hemisphere, you need to locate the south celestial pole.

To assist you in locating the celestial poles, we’ve prepared these two helpful images which we encourage you to save to help you in the field.

If utilizing a scope rather than a laser, you’ll need to check the location of Polaris/Sigma Octantis inside a star-tracking software program for instance PS Align Pro and place the celebrities inside an identical position inside the reticle of your star-tracker.

As commented before, having an EQ wedge with an altitude knob and Azimut screws is the quickest and simplest way to fine-tune your polar alignment.

7. Take a test shot and check the sharpness in your stars

Finally, it’s time to take a test photograph and verify if everything is arranged correctly. Turn on the star tracker and capture a 1-minute test shot. Zoom in your image and check if you see the stars as sharp dots, then you’ve carried out the entire star tracker photography setup process correctly.

If you identify trails in the celestials and it’s not brought about by the breeze, reiterate the past advances.

After the test shot and once you know that the process is correct, increase your shutter speed until you see trailing in the stars or until you exceed 3-4 minutes. (which usually means overexposing areas of the Milky Way).

If the length of exposure allows capturing photos without star trails, you can begin taking pictures of the Milky Way using a star tracker!

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Best Camera settings for tracked astrophotography

If you are previously acquainted with how to photograph the Milky Way, then this segment will sound familiar. However, with tracked Milky Way photography, there are a few key differences I’ll address in the following few paragraphs.

A good starting point would be:

Two-to-Four-minute exposures

Begin with two-minute exposures and adjust according to your lens focal length, wind conditions, and the tracker model in use.

For wider angled scopes, you’ll be able to extend the exposure period further than 2 minutes even if your polar alignment is not flawless. But also consider the wind; if it’s too gusty, the longer you expose, the chances of getting star patternswill be higher. Finally, some trackers can bear a heavier payload than others and will allow you to lengthen your shutter speed with no trailing.

Aperture f/2.8

This depends on the maximum aperture of your lens. I suggest you narrow your aperture by half to a full stop. For example, if using a lens with an f/1.4 maximum aperture, sharper details will result closing down to f/2 or f/2.8.

As noted before, this will decrease the peripheral darkening, lens distortions, and enhance the sharpness.

ISO 800

Begin by choosing ISO 800, then alter as required depending on the exposure after the initial test photograph. I generally retain my ISO between 640 and 1600. Employ the lowest ISO possible to capture less noise and better dynamic range in your image file.

If you can’t track long exposures because of the wind or any other reason, you can heighten your ISO to get the appropriate exposure. You might see a little noise, but you can easily eliminate it using an .

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Best tips for tracked astrophotography

Over time, I’ve learned handy techniques when capturing astrophotography images while tracking. I personally apply these hints every occasion I’m outside shooting tracked Milky Way photographs, and I guarantee you’ll obtain high-quality shots if following them too.

Here are the recommendations I’ve compiled for this star tracker photography tutorial:

1. Start tracking easily

The most common mistake I see in my astrophotography lessons is beginners trying to photograph images over longer focal lengths or to shoot intricate tracked panoramas.

To prevent aggravation, commence using wider focal lengths between 14 and 20 mm, and don’t add more difficulty until you feel comfortable with the fundamentals oftracking.

2. Polar align before mounting your camera

Polar alignment needs to be as exact as possible, and if you try to do it with your camera mounted onto the star tracker, it will likely be far more difficult or even impossible with some tracker models. Always polar align before mounting your camera on the star tracker.

Once mounting your camera, rechecking and finely adjusting your polar alignment if needed since it`s very possible you`ll marginally move it in connecting your camera.

3. Use a laser to polar align

If lasers are legal where you live, utilizing a laser during polar alignment is one of the best star tracking strategies.

Most times, when looking through the scope, there will be either no stars at all or too many stars. Using a laser will help immensely to attain the closest conformance with the celestial pole.

4. Run aperture tests

If capturing the highest quality photos is important, test shots should be taken at differing lens openings to find the best balance between image quality and lens imperfections.

Lleida

Lleida

2017

5. Check the ISO-dynamic range ratio of your camera

The cameras designed for capturing images in low-light conditions like starlit skies, such as Full-Frame models, are well-suited for recording scenes in minimal luminance, but recognizing your camera`s characteristics allows you to determine the ISO setting providing the finest output.

Here, the best way to assess this is to inspect the read noise and dynamic range performance data offered by Photons to photosand, as always, to conduct your own tests.

6. Always check your histogram

A properly illuminated tracked Milky Way photograph should have the information in the mid-tones. Also, another helpful rule of thumb is to zoom into the Lagoon nebula. If you see detail in the nebula and it’s not blown out, then your shot has been correctly exposed.

7. Shoot your foreground and sky separately

When utilizing a star tracker, you’ll observe that the foreground becomes blurry because of the motion of the star tracker. There are techniques like using the tracker at half speed, but I don’t recommend this if you want the best outcomes and image quality.

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8. Use a counterweight

If your star tracker model offers the choice, use a counterbalance to stabilize your star tracker setup. This will help lessen the strain on the motor, and you’ll also be able to add a small quantity of weight to the astrophotography mount. It’s also convenient to add steadiness in breezy conditions.

You can perfectly use your tracker without a counterweight, but always consider your aims and the confines of your equipment.

9. Use a lens warmer

This small accessory will help keep your lens from fogging up when you are in cold and humid locations. Fog could appear straight away or after some hours. If you don’t own a lens warmer, a minor trick is to utilize the lens hood, it will delay the fog, but it won’t prevent it entirely.

Post-processing of tracked astrophotography images

When carrying out astrophotography with tracking capabilities, you’ll need to process your images. When you follow the sky`s movement, the foreground will appear blurred, which is why, as I explained in the previous section, you’ll need to photograph the sky and ground separately and then combine them together in Photoshop.

Editing your tracked Milky Way photos will extract all the detail and colors.

At this point, the most difficult part is the blending, since the foreground in your tracked image will be larger than the foreground in your non-tracked shot.

Once you integrate both images, you have the ability to apply all the adjustments related to exposure, color, detail, etc. and enjoy the magic of star tracking when viewing your images with an impressive quality.

In my Milky Way photography course, I provide over 12 hours of editing content where you’ll gain knowledge of everything from combining tracked astrophotography with foreground scenes to extracting maximum detail out of your tracked Milky Way images. I clarify all my workflow step-by-step with plenty of advanced techniques and tips so you can make the most of your tracked astrophotography!

Get the best results from your tracked Milky Way photographs by carefully editing them .

Star tracker photography gear

Essential gear includes items like a camera, a quality lens for milky way photography and a tripod necessary for tracked astrophotography. Consult our specific articles on those products to learn more. In this section, I will cover the dedicated equipment necessary for star tracker photography:

1. Star tracker

Choose the best star tracker according to your abilities and needs. If you take extended hikes, I recommend using a light star tracker such as the MSM Rotator, the Star Adventurer Mini, or the iOptron Skytracker Pro. If you will mainly track from an accessible location, you can carry a standard tracker like the iOptron Skyguider Pro, the Sky-Watcher Star Adventurer Pro 2i,or the Benro Polaris.

Don’t forget to check out our sky trackers for astrophotography purchasing guide for more information.

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2. Equatorial wedge

A wedge-shaped mounting surface aligned with Earth`s equator provides the utmost precision for a star tracker. With this fitting, you can fine-tune the position of the tracker to attain a more accurate polar orientation. Generally sturdier and more stable than a regular ball head mounting.

3. Ball head

To mount the camera on the star tracker, use a quality ball head with sufficient payload capacity to withstand the weight of the camera and all the accessories that you want to attach.

You may also employ a Z or V bracket to mount the camera on the star tracker. These accessories are practical when capturing tracked shots of the Milky Way in a panoramic format.

4. Declination bracket

Additionally, you could utilize a declination bracket mounted to your star tracker to assist with the balance and sturdiness of the entire setup. If you are using counterweights, a declination bracket will be essential.

5. Polar scope or laser

An important accessory for correctly positioning a star tracker relative to Polaris is a polar scope. I strongly advise acquiring one integrated with illumination functionality, making polar alignment simpler and more practical.

If you use wider focal lengths and your country’s laws permit it, you can also use a laser for polar alignment. This method is less exact, so I don’t recommend utilizing it for longer focal lengths or deep-sky tracked astrophotography. A laser will also be helpful to assist you in locating Polaris in your reticle.

6. Intervalometer

An intervalometer will allow you to shoot in bulb mode without touching the camera during the process and introduce unwanted shakes that could ruin your image.

7. Other accessories

If planning more difficult images like tracked panoramas, can use other accessories like nodal slides or L-brackets.

You can take a look at the current panoramas setup showcased in the video below in case you are interested in seeing the components I employ.

Tracked astrophotography Examples

As always, to provide some ideas and inspiration, I’ve compiled a selection of tracked astrophotography examples here. I captured these images by applying the same techniques outlined in this article. I hope you find enjoyment in viewing them!

Tracked Milky Way

This is the most frequent subject to track with an astrophotography star tracker. The millions of stars, nebulae, constellations, and colors, all come together to make an eye-catching subject that will be perfect for your first tracked night images.

Tracked deep-sky astrophotography

The contrast when doing deep-sky astrophotography with a star-tracker is huge. Even using longer focal lengths or small telescopes, a tracker will allow you to capture all the subtle detail of those distant targets in the night sky.

Tracked Milky Way panoramas

This is a more advanced methodology where you combine the steps I explained in my Milky Way panoramas article and combine them with the steps presented here. The final result is worth the effort because you’ll get a high detail panorama.

Tracked Winter Milky Way

Astrophotographers tend to overlook this portion of our galaxy, but I encourage venturing out and photographing it! It’s filled with hydrogen-alpha nebulae and beautiful constellations such as Orion, Taurus, and Gemini.

Star tracker photography FAQ

Conclusion

Utilizing a star tracking hardware for astrophotography will completely transform the before and after of your nighttime photos. It`s the item that will make the greatest variance in your visuals once you have familiarized yourself with the fundamentals.

If you are wondering whether a star tracker is needed for astrophotography, look at your recent night images. If you miss detail, color, and texture, then the answer is undoubtedly yes!

I highly suggest giving a try to a quality star tracker and see the outcomes yourself. If you want to have a complete in-depth guide to track your images, I’m certain that my Milky Way Pro tracking coursewill assist 😉

Have a cheerful time photographing nature & allow bright skies!