Finally realized my stacked exposure shots were all wrong after a random YouTube comment

I spent 6 months blending my stacked astro shots using the wrong layer mode and wondering why they came out so noisy. One guy in the comments said 'try lighten mode instead of screen' and it turned my Milky Way photos from muddy into something actually sharp.

3 comments

3 Comments

hall.joel1mo ago

That random YouTube comment saved you half a year of frustration. Lighten mode is the real deal for stacking astro shots because it only keeps the brightest pixels from each layer instead of blending them all together. Screen mode can actually amplify the noise since it's multiplying values, which is why your Milky Way looked muddy. Have you tried using lighten mode with a median stack instead of average? That combo cleans up satellite trails way better too.

morgan.rose1mo ago

Switched to lighten mode myself after @hall.joel mentioned it. Game changer for sure.

wren6381mo ago

Nah, screen mode works fine if you know how to dial it in.