First time star trails

outonalymm

outonalymm

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I'm planning my first attempt and have been reading up and watching YouTube videos, but there's one thing I remain a little puzzed about.

Using Star Stax there's the option of including a dark frame. Is is necessary or advisable to process/sync that dark frame as with all other photos taken for inclusion in the star trails image?

Any help would be appreciated.
 
The dark frames will help reduce noise in the final image. Running the sensor for long ish exposures over an extended time at a potentially higher ISO will create noise in the image. Once you have finished your trails shots, pop the lens cap on and fire off a handful of frames. I think it does make a difference when I have post processed, not perfect but better.

You need to do it at the same time as it’s all about the temperature of the sensor at the time of shooting. Taking the frames later won’t get the same effect. If you are standing out for a couple of hours taking a few hundred star images, 5 or 6 dark frames is a minor extra effort!!
 
The dark frames are shot at the same exposure as the light photos with the lens cap on, this helps eliminate the dead or malfunctioning pixels when stacking the photos. It is also recommended to do some bias shots too. Do the same as before but with a fast shutter speed like 1/400s. This is supposed to reduce the electro magnetic interference caused by the shutter / mirror mechanism.
I've just watched a tutorial about stacking on YouTube about this, how true it is, I don't know. But it can't do any harm I suppose.
 
Thanks David. I've not heard of bias shots before but I'll take your advice and give it a try too.
 
It was the first time I had heard of it myself yesterday, I suppose I can't do any harm?
 
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