Stacking vs single exposures for deep sky photos

Everyone goes on about stacking dozens of short exposures now but I still prefer one longer exposure when I can get it. Last August I took a single 20 minute shot of the Andromeda Galaxy from my backyard in Ohio and it came out cleaner than any stack I've managed. Has anyone else found certain targets just look better single frame?

3 comments

3 Comments

ben_lewis1mo ago

Stood outside for an hour one night trying to get a single shot of the Orion Nebula with my old DSLR. Got this hazy blob that looked like a dirty cotton ball. Stacking gave me way more detail but honestly that single frame had this raw feel to it. Like you could tell it was real, not pieced together from a bunch of tiny moments. Sometimes the imperfections make it special.

kaigibson1mo ago

Mention @ben_lewis again - that raw feeling is exactly what keeps me coming back to single frames too. There's something about capturing light that actually traveled for millions of years in one continuous stretch, not stitched from pieces.

-1

reesej271mo ago

Single shots feel more like actual memories. Stacking feels like counting grains of sand.