To Stack or to Track - Which is better for Astrophotography?

This week I work out To Stack or to Track - Which is better for Astrophotography?
I've had the chance to use a star tracker recently and I wanted to know if it was better to track the stars or to stack my images for a better astrophotography image.

Thanks for the tracker dude!

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Thanks

Mike

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[tony_r_pierce]

Mike, this was a nice video! Some of the astrophotographers I follow are now doing stacked and tracked together for really awesome results -- even producing panoramas that are stunning. I have done stacked with great results using Starry Landscape Stacker, and have begun to use the StarWatcher Star Adventurer for tracking. On my next trip to the darkness I hope to combine the two techniques. Thanks for posting!

[canaanjh]

I remember watching this video during the early parts of the pandemic. There was one sentence around the four minute mark, "if you really get into it, you can track nebulas etc." Thousands of dollars later I am a dedicated Deep Sky Object astro nerd. Thanks a lot Mike.... What did you do to me?! Cheers

[toshy]

Foo Fighters rule. I was just about to buy a tracker, will just try stacking for now. Great vid, subscribed.

[jesseberdinka]

Just getting into both tracking and stacking. Thanks for the info!

[fouuladvand]

Another nice video of you. I really appreciate your down to earth and directly getting to the point tutorials. Not much big Blablabla. I wanna learn something, I find your video and after I found the information that I was looking for. It was the same with the timelapse videos! Thanks! Would be great seeing you doing more advanced tutorials on different things like astrophotography and timelapses.

[shazmalik]

Great video Mike. As a beginner intro AP, but someone who has used telescopes and understands equatorial mounts a little bit, I often wondered how you could use a star tracker to get sharp images of foreground as well as sky, but taking multiple separate images of the foreground and stacking, then blending tracked sky + stacked foreground makes complete sense. Very well explained!

[JoeSteinerIII]

You sir are an excellent explainer!! Ty, this is next level 🍻

[JohnMichnowicz]

As usual a fine tutorial. Always look forward to your videos.

[gordonnorman]

Very timely discussion, Mike - was wondering about this myself, having done some stacking and recently purchased an inexpensive tracker - think you nailed the pros/cons for each nicely.. Thanks!

[davidburchettephotography]

Also, when using the tracker you don’t simply align Polaris so it is “in the crosshairs”. It’s usually aligned somewhere in the ring around the center crosshairs (if your viewers get into trackers, they’ll quickly see what I’m talking about). So if you’re going for those long exposures (>1-2mins.) you will benefit from a more precise alignment. There are several pieces of software you can use - I think the one I use is called polar scope align.

Excellent video! Great info and well presented. Subbed.

[cmichaelhaugh]

I’ve been stacking for about a year and am very tempted to get a tracker. The hold up revolves around the fact that I live in upstate NY with lots of clouds, humidity and night haze. To get good night skies I have to travel and dealing with the extra size/weight on airlines is daunting. Thanks for helping make the decision even more difficult.

[craigattig]

Mike, great video, thanks for sharing. Keep in mind that your foreground shot can be thought of as a completely different exposure. Frame up your composition to get the foreground the way you want it, take a long, non-tracking exposure to capture the foreground to get a nice exposure histogram, eg. a frame at 5-min f2.8 ISO 100 (and maybe even multiple shots to *focus* stack and nail those closer compositional elements!), and then refocus on your stars and get your series of tracking shots. I use an older AstroTrac TT320X tracker, virtually unknown these days, but a great piece of portable kit. I still keep my frames down to 2-3 minutes just to keep my stars as pinpoint as possible... polar alignment can be tough with the AstroTrac.

[guitar_hiro]

Thank you for these videos. I'm looking to get into astrophotography and your videos are so helpful!

[SAKinDXB]

I like your presentation skills - you present with conciseness and brevity. And, cheery on the top is your british accent! ;)

[VitaminVS]

Was waiting for this comparison. Thanks Mike :)

[passsacaglia]

I’m on Affinity also, great software esp Photo and Designer! 🥂

[jasonlambert]

Under Oklahoma sky's here. I really enjoy your videos. Very informative for some one starting out. Good Day and good luck on your Asto projects Sir. Subscribed.

[paulfox]

I bought an iOptron SkyGuider Pro + Ball head attachment a last year and found that the base was terrible. A lot of the YouTubers recommend upgrading to the William Optics base. After doing that I ended up with a tracker that tracked in RA well enough. I then picked a lens that wouldn't exceed the limits of the tracker.

More recently I upgraded my mount to the SkyWatcher HEQ5, which is a much better solution (tracks RA and DEC) to the tracking, and it has a GOTO feature. The HEQ5 cost about AUD$300 less than the SkyGuider Pro with the upgraded base. So I wish I'd just gone with that mount in the first place. If I had gone with the HEQ5 I could have also been less restrictive with the lens.

If you're thinking of doing astrophotography... and portability is your main concern, then perhaps one of these trackers is good. If you are not worried about portability, then save your self some time and money and just do it right. I think the rule is "buy the best you can afford", not just what suits you right now because that will change more quickly than you can change your gear, especially if you're on a budget.

[v..vanquishl]

Awesome vid as always
Can't wait for the next one.
Keep up.

[stephenwoodburn]

I love your astro photography videos, Mike. This one was another great one. I got the starry landscape stacker and was really impressed at how easy it is and how good a job it does. I tried stacking in photoshop once and there is no comparison as far as ease of use goes. I am looking forward to my next Milky Way shoot with the Sony 24mm F1.4. Tracking seems cool. I would love to try it sometime. I really like the colors that you are able to get. Keep up the great work. Cheers!