Here’s a clear, beginner-friendly walkthrough to get you started with Astro Pixel Processor (APP)—one of the most popular tools for stacking and calibrating astrophotography images.

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🌌 Astro Pixel Processor – Beginner Tutorial

1. What APP Does (Quick Context)

APP is designed to turn multiple raw astrophotography images into a clean, detailed final image. It handles:

    •    Calibration (removing noise/artifacts)
    •    Alignment (lining up stars)
    •    Integration (stacking images)
    •    Initial processing (stretching, color correction)

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2. Prepare Your Files

Before opening APP, organize your images into folders:

    •    Lights – your actual photos of the sky
    •    Darks – same exposure, lens covered
    •    Flats – correct uneven illumination
    •    Bias – shortest possible exposures

Good organization saves headaches later.

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3. Load Your Images

Open APP and follow the tabs from left to right:

Tab 1: LOAD

    •    Click “Load Lights” → select your light frames
    •    Do the same for Darks, Flats, Bias (if you have them)

👉 Tip: If you’re just starting, you can stack only lights—but calibration improves quality a lot.

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4. Calibrate Your Data

Tab 2: CALIBRATE

    •    Click “Create Master Calibration Frames”
    •    Then click “Calibrate”

APP will:

    •    Remove sensor noise
    •    Correct vignetting and dust spots

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5. Analyze Stars

Tab 3: ANALYZE STARS

    •    Click “Analyze Stars”

This step:

    •    Detects stars in each image
    •    Evaluates quality (sharpness, tracking, etc.)

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6. Register (Align Images)

Tab 4: REGISTER

    •    Click “Register”

APP aligns all your images so stars overlap perfectly.

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7. Normalize Brightness

Tab 5: NORMALIZE

    •    Click “Normalize”

This ensures:

    •    All frames have consistent brightness
    •    Background levels match

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8. Integrate (Stack)

Tab 6: INTEGRATE

    •    Click “Integrate”

This is the magic step:

    •    Combines all images into one
    •    Reduces noise
    •    Enhances faint details

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9. Basic Post-Processing

Tab 9: TOOLS

After stacking, your image will look dark and flat—this is normal.

Try:

    •    Stretch (Ctrl + Shift + S) → reveals details
    •    Saturation boost → enhances colors
    •    Remove light pollution → fixes gradients

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10. Save Your Image

    •    Export as TIFF (16-bit) for editing in other software like:
    •    Adobe Photoshop
    •    PixInsight

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🧠 Beginner Tips

    •    Start with 10–30 light frames
    •    Use a tripod or tracking mount for better results
    •    Don’t worry if results look bad at first—processing is a skill
    •    Keep your workflow consistent (same settings across sessions)

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🚀 Simple First Workflow (Quick Version)

    1.    Load lights
    2.    Analyze stars
    3.    Register
    4.    Integrate
    5.    Stretch

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