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c/astronomy-photos•iris394iris394•1mo ago

Talking to an astrophotographer at Cherry Springs changed my mind about editing

He said stacking and processing isn't cheating, it's just seeing what the camera missed. Made me realize I was gatekeeping my own hobby for no reason.
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2 Comments
olivia_webb
Ha, @margaret_singh1 beat me to it - guess we all needed a trip to Cherry Springs to stop thinking sliders were cheating.
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margaret_singh1
I used to think exactly like that for a long time, back when I was doing basic photography with a DSLR. A buddy took me out to Cherry Springs too, and the guy there showed me how stacking 20 minutes of exposures made a nebula pop out of a black frame. That hit me hard because I always felt like I was faking it if I touched the sliders in Lightroom. But the thing is, the camera just catches the raw data, and your eyes can't see what's there without some help. So yeah, I totally get what you mean about gatekeeping your own hobby without realizing it.
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