Скачать или смотреть Milky Way Photography - Stacked vs. Tracked vs. Blended

When it comes to Milky Way photography, there are a few different approaches you can take, and each produces a very different result. Stacking is all about reducing noise — you shoot multiple exposures of the same composition and combine them in post to get a much cleaner, sharper image. Tracking uses a star tracker to follow the movement of the sky, allowing you to shoot longer exposures without star trails, which reveals way more detail and color in the Milky Way without having too much noise to begin with. Blending takes it a step further by combining multiple types of shots, like a tracked sky with an untracked foreground, for the best of both worlds.

The right method really depends on your goals, your gear, and how much post-processing you want to do. If you’re just starting out, stacking is the easiest way to improve your results. Tracking requires more equipment, but it can unlock incredible detail. Blending takes the most work but gives you the most flexibility and dynamic results. Typically, tracked images will always be blended, but blending stacked images is optional but highly recommended!