The first step you take before editing your photos is to check your photos.

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What do you check your photos for?

- Presence of the object

- Presence of unwanted objects

- Tracking errors / movements

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Presence of the objects

One of the things you check your photos for is whether they contain the object you were trying to capture.

If this is not stated, you do not have to include the photo in the edit.

So you have to check all the photos step by step.

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Presence of unwanted objects

There are quite a few objects that can be in your photos that you don't want to be there when you edit your photos.

A few examples of this are:

- Cloud cover

- Animals (e.g. a spider)

- Airplanes
- Satellites

- Dew on the lens

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You must check all your photos one by one for these unwanted objects. The more expensive programs for editing can remove some objects, but this is not always 100%. So taking a moment to check your photos can prevent a lot of worries.

 

Tracking errors/movement

Another thing you should check your photos for is whether your telescope tracked properly.

If stars have become dashes in a photo, you can better delete it.

Such an error does not always have to do with your mount, but can also happen because you bumped into it or because of the wind. Even when you walk past your mount, vibrations can already be visible in your photos. 
In addition, if your telescope has a meridian flip he may lose his focus. Many programs always refocus before continuing to photograph.

 

So you should always check your photos carefully before going to the next step, Stacking.
 

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