A stupid question about time lapses regarding an astrotrac

[garethmob]

Hello guys. I have a stupid question but one which came into my head when I was reading another thread. (And a previous kickstarter program called the astro)

Now my AP rig is on an astrotrac mounted on the non geared manfrotto head with an az3 sitting under it.

For me to do a time lapse and to eventually meld it I to a video or a spinning image (the proper name escapes me at present) can I polar align it up but not turn the AT on?

As far as I seem to understand a time lapse can be created on a tripod so would it work that way? Or can I just mount it all up (for sturdy ness) and point the at and camera any where?

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[Digz]

I suppose it depends on what kind of time lapse you want to create.

if its one where the stars move across the frame then a static tripod will suffice. If you want to follow the stars I.e. the ground effectively moves then a tracking mount is needed. This latter point is purely speculation on behalf so I'm happy to be proven wrong.

[Photosbykev]

Polar align the AT but leave it turned off if you like. Timelapses with the stars moving across the images or star trails are done with a camera static mounted. A recent idea is to run the mount at x1/2 sidereal rate to give you better star fields and get some foreground detail, I'm not convinced by the idea, it seems to be a compromise imho

[garethmob]

Thanks guys exactly the answer i wanted

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