Basic Camera exposures Constellations Longer exposures of constellations will reveal many more stars than the eye can see. In addition the longer exposures will bring out the colors of these stars with tremendous clarity. You will be able to see the variety of colors that the stars exhibit ranging from ruby red to bright blue-white. There are yellow, green, and orange stars that will appear in the photograph as well. The human eye cannot detect these colors in the stars under most circumstances without the aid of a telescope or camera.
Most stars appear to be white and twinkling.
But with the camera, the true colors are revealed for and it is interesting to look at the variety that exists. When a bright nebulae or galaxy is contained in the constellation being photographed, a long guided exposure can also show its detail and in most cases will reveal the true colors of these objects as well. Nebulae like the famous M42 Great Nebula in Orion will appear in most photographs of the constellation Orion. If exposed for a half-hour or more, there will be lots of nebulosity visible around the sword and belt area of Orion as well. The nebulosity is a deep red color for the most part with blue and white visible around the M42 region.