Template

[Toddyh]

I captured this image not far out of Muswellbrook. I light painted the old house.



The reason I'm calling it a template is that I actually captured 6 images at 13" with the sky exposed well then one image at 123" to expose the house. I plan on using Sequator to overlay the images in the next day or so. Will be the first time I've used it so keen to see the results.

[Toddyh]

First attempt with Sequator. 6 image stack

[Grumpy John]

I love how the sky turned out Todd, there seem to be a lot of detail there. Just a couple of questions 1. Is that city lights causing the light sky on the horizon? 2. Is that a light trail from a plane in the first image?
I have used DeepSkyStacker and StarStaX for processing night sky images with mixed results. IMHO the only way to get truly remarkable night sky images is to get right away from any city lights. I believe it also helps if you can do your photography after midnight to get a truly dark sky.

[Toddyh]

Thanks John. I'm fairly happy with Sequator in terms of reducing noise and bringing out detail in the sky.
1. not city lights but rather a mine. On the left is a coal mine and the light on the right is from the moon about to rise.
2. Yes, plane in the first image.

The house is located in Edderton, NSW. Been abandoned a long time but remained fairly untouched.

[Grumpy John]

You've done well considering the circumstances. I'll post a couple of my attempts in a new thread, they're not very good. I find this an extremely difficult and technical area of photography, so many conditions need to be met to achieve a good image. I've never heard of Sequator before, is it a relatively new program?

[Toddyh]

Been around a few years I think John. I think just starting to become more popular now.

[Isac]

I like both of these Todd. Living in the big smoke, these types of photos are just a dream for me. I don't get out in the bush like I used to in days gone by. Here's somethin that might be of interest to you (and others) about doing NOISE REDUCTION in photos.

[Toddyh]

Thanks Greg. I get out bush often enough but the trouble is finding an interesting foreground when you're in the bush can be difficult. That's why I want to try more of these kind of images.

[Toddyh]

You have seen the sequator results but I bit the bullet and bought photoshop. So I have done a very rough combine of the 6 image stack and the 123" second image for the foreground. The brushing was very rough but here it is anyway.