Night Sky Imaging: Tools & Techniques

Written By Andrew Imhoff

Night Sky Imaging: Tools, Techniques and Gear for Every Level

Astrophotography is a truly mesmerizing art, blending almost all aspects of photography together in one, and the cherry on top—you are doing it in the pitch black! With the advancements in technology and camera equipment over the past decade, astro has really started to gain popularity, as the barrier to entry has been lowered significantly. However, despite this, getting started can still feel very overwhelming. This guide breaks it down for beginners while offering insights for intermediate and advanced photographers looking to elevate their astrophotography as well.

Link to my Amazon Storefront for photography gear I personally have used!

Getting Started: The Basics for Beginners

1. Find Dark Skies

Light pollution is your biggest enemy. Use apps like Light Pollution Map or Dark Site Finder to locate dark sky areas near you. National parks and certified Dark Sky Parks are great options.

2. Know the Moon Phase

The moon will wash out stars, so plan your shoots around the new moon phase for the darkest skies.

3. Best Time for Shooting

The Milky Way core is visible in the Northern Hemisphere from roughly March to October. Aim for clear, moonless nights with low humidity.

4. Camera Settings

  • ISO: 1600-3200

  • Aperture: f/2.8 or lower

  • Shutter Speed: Use the 500 rule (500 / focal length = max seconds before stars trail)

    • Shutter speed when you aren’t tracking is all based around the longest you can shoot for without getting star trails. The wider the focal length the longer you can expose for with no trailing. Use the equation above to calculate a good exposure time and be sure to zoom in on your LCD screen to check for any star trailing.

  • Make sure you are shooting in RAW for maximum editing flexibility

Beginner Gear Recommendations

1. Camera

  • Entry-Level DSLR or Mirrorless: Know the difference between full frame and cropped sensor. The full frame sensor is a larger sensor letting in more light, ideal for astrophotography. I personally use the Nikon Z6 and the Nikon Z7II

  • Smartphones (with Night Mode): iPhone 13+, Google Pixel, Samsung Galaxy S series.

2. Lens

  • Wide-Angle Lens: The aperture number here is the key. Any wide angle lens with a fast aperture: F/2.8 or lower. Personally I use the Nikon Z lens 14-24mm F/2.8 and the Tamron 35mm F/1.4

  • The wider and faster (lower f-stop), the better for capturing more light. (The more light the better!!)

3. Tripod

  • Sturdy Tripod: Manfrotto, Vanguard, or Benro models are reliable.

4. Remote Shutter or Timer

  • Avoid camera shake caused by pressing the shutter by using a remote trigger or your camera's 2-second shutter delay.

5. Apps

  • PhotoPills, Stellarium, or Sky Guide: These help you plan shoots and track celestial events. These apps will help you plan in advance when and at what time the milky way core and other objects in the night sky will be visible. They will also help you, on location, line up different compositions showing you exactly where the milky way will be rising!

 

Intermediate Tips and Tools

1. Star Trackers

  • Devices like the Sky-Watcher Star Adventurer or iOptron SkyTracker Pro counteract Earth’s rotation, allowing longer exposures without star trails.

  • This will allow you to keep your ISO lower and compensate with longer exposure time. This will pull more detail out of the Milky Way and allow for a cleaner image with more post processing control.

  • When polar aligning it is helpful to use a laser pointer and shoot it through the polar scope to see where your scope is aiming.

    • If you are shooting wide angle a lot of time pointing this laser through the scope and lining it up with the north star is good enough polar alignment to shoot those 1-3 min shots and not get any trailing.

2. Manual Settings

  • Once you get your tracker polar aligned try stopping down your lens (meaning if you’re shooting on an f.2.8 stop down to f/3.2-3.5) and expose for 1-3 min with an iso ranging from 800-1600.

  • A 2 min shot at iso 800 f/3.2 will usually give you pretty good results, but always be looking at the exposure on the back on the camera to make sure you aren’t getting any star trails or blowing out highlights.

    • A helpful tip to keep in mind your monitor brightness can effect how the exposure looks. It will be very dark and an overly bright LCD screen can make under exposed shots look properly exposed. Keep monitor brightness at night at a level of around -2 brightness.

Advanced Gear and Techniques

1. Astro-Modded Cameras

What Changes Are Made?

Most consumer cameras have an internal infrared (IR) cut filter placed in front of the sensor. This filter blocks IR and some deep red wavelengths to keep colors accurate for daytime photography. However, this same filter blocks about 75%–90% of the light in the hydrogen-alpha spectrum (around 656nm), which is critical for astrophotography.

Why Use an Astro-Modded Camera?

  • Better Nebula Detail: You’ll reveal much more structure and color in emission nebulae.

  • Shorter Exposures: More light = less exposure time needed.

  • More Accurate Colors: Deep reds and magentas come through naturally in your images.

    1. Full-Spectrum Modification

    • The IR cut filter is removed entirely.

    • The camera can now detect a full range of wavelengths, including infrared and ultraviolet.

    • Pros: Allows for maximum sensitivity across all wavelengths (great for deep-sky objects).

    • Cons: Requires the use of external filters for normal photography to avoid strange color casts.

    2. Hα-Enhanced Modification

    • The stock IR filter is replaced with one that still blocks UV and IR but allows Hα light to pass through.

    • Pros: Balances day/night usability and significantly boosts nebula visibility.

    • Cons: Still not as sensitive as full-spectrum mods for all wavelengths but much more practical for dual-purpose use.

3. Panos and Stacking Images

Pano Photography

  • Personally, I shoot tracked panos of the night sky. Meaning I will use a more zoomed in focal length lens (like a 35mm or 40mm) and shoot a wide field pano of the core. Usually consisting of anywhere between 9-30 shots depending on the field of view I want.

  • When shooting this technique a Pano Head is crucial. This tool will allow you to rotate your camera at almost any angle and make capturing the wide field of view panos much much easier in the field.

    • This allows you to pull out incredible detail in the core and nebulas.

  • I use software like PtGUI to stitch the night sky panos together, and Adobe Photoshop for post-processing.

Stacking Images

  • Stacking images can help reduce noise and improve dynamic range in your images.

    Why Stacking Helps Reduce Noise:

    When photographing the night sky, especially in low-light conditions, your images will naturally contain a lot of digital noise. By taking multiple exposures of the same scene and stacking them, you're averaging out the random noise in each frame while reinforcing the actual signal—the stars, nebulae, or Milky Way.

    This works because noise is typically random, while your subject (the night sky) stays consistent. Stacking increases the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), which makes your images clearer, sharper, and more detailed.

    For example, stacking 10 identical 30-second exposures can yield a final image that looks much cleaner and more dynamic than a single 5-minute exposure—which would risk star trailing or sensor overheating.

    Many astrophotographers also include dark frames (photos taken with the lens cap on), bias frames, and flat frames to further calibrate and clean up the final image.

 

Whether you're snapping your first starry night on a weekend camping trip or aiming to image distant galaxies, astrophotography offers endless wonder. Start small, upgrade as your skills grow, and most importantly, enjoy the night sky.

Happy shooting!

Andrew Imhoff