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Spent 3 weekends trying to fix star trailing before I realized my tripod was the problem
I keep my rig on a concrete balcony in Chicago, and every shot over 30 seconds had stars that looked like little dashes. I tried everything: polar alignment 5 times, guiding with PHD2, even swapped my camera. After 3 weekends of frustration, I finally set my phone on the mount and recorded a 2-minute video. The whole tripod was vibrating every time a truck drove by on the street below. Turns out my old aluminum tripod was acting like a tuning fork. I put it on a rubber mat and added 10 pounds of sand in a bag hanging from the center hook. Next clear night, 5-minute subs came out round. Has anyone else had a cheap tripod ruin their shots, or is it just me?
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hannah88114d ago
The "tuning fork" comparison is dead on but I have to disagree that the tripod was your real problem. A concrete balcony in Chicago is basically a giant speaker for street traffic and wind, and no amount of sand bags fixes vibration that's coming up through the slab itself. You got lucky that 10 pounds of sand and a rubber mat helped, but I'd bet real money your 5-minute subs still show some softness on windy nights or when a bus rolls by. Hanging weight from the center hook can actually make things worse too because it lowers the whole rig's center of mass and lets it swing more in a breeze. If you want to test my theory, try shooting the same target from grass or dirt a few blocks from the street and compare the subs.
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