Any Astrophotographers Willing To Advise A Rookie?

T

Texsport

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I'm planning on taking some star shots and star trails this summer.

I'd appreciate opinions on the lenses I'm considering.


DIGITAL

(1) m43 Voigtlander 10.5/0.95 - if released in time.
(2) m43 Voigtlander. 17.5/0.95


FILM - Cinestill 800T

(1) Zuiko 21/2
(2) Zuiko 24/2.8
(2) Canon FD 35/2 concave ( On a Canon FD with mirror lock up)

* Noritar 80/2 Medium Format - possibly.( On a Warner 66 or Rittreck 66 with mirror lockup)

Moon shots

I have a Zoomar 1000/8 mirror lens with adapters for Mediium format, 35mm, and m43.

Any advice on which format might work best for an enlargement? I'm guessing I should go 6X6 but not sure.

Any advice appreciated!

Texsport
 
Reciprocity will also lead to colour shifts if you are using colour film.

As noted in a previous post already, you need dark skies. For the moon, dark skies are not as critical due to the brightness of the moon. However, atmospheric conditions will affect the quality of your photos. Not just air pollution, but movements of the air due to temperature differences in different layers of the atmosphere will affect the results when you are using a long lens like the 1000mm mirror lens. It may affect image quality more than the choice of film or film format.

Even if you plan to use film, I'd suggest that you use digital to check out exposure times.
 
Also need to allow time for the temperature of the mirror lens to equalize with that of the ambient temperature. Therefore, you should not use the mirror lens right away after taking it out of the house or a heated car.
 
Thanks for all the help.

Has anyone used chemical hand warmer packets around lenses to discourage condensation?

Texsport
 
you won't get condensation when you take a lens out into colder night. You only get it if the lens is cold and you bring it into a warm house/car/etc.

With high mag, you might need something to track the movements.
 
Pherdinand said:
you won't get condensation when you take a lens out into colder night. You only get it if the lens is cold and you bring it into a warm house/car/etc.
Click to expand...

But you might get near the dew point. So it's worth keeping an eye on the relative humidity in relation to the temp.
 
You can make a heated dew cap easily, tons of DIY articles on this so i wont elaborate.

The key bit of advice here, you really need to let your equipment assimilate to ambient temperature before shooting.

I reccomend visiting www.AstronomyForum.net, tons of great members eager to give you advice!

Goodluck!
 
Pherdinand said:
With high mag, you might need something to track the movements.
Click to expand...

For short exposures with the moon, you likely do not need to have a drive system. But for anything else (other than star trails and auroras) you'll need to have a drive system.

For your star trails photos or any other long exposures, you may also use the 'hat trick"---i.e., use a felt hat to cover the lens, open the shuttle, then take off the hat to start the exposure. At the end of the exposure, just reverse the procedure. Do not let the hat touch your lens or camera though. This way you also will eliminate potential camera vibrations due the the movement of the shutter. Of course this technique is essential if your camera do not have a mirror lockup control.
 
rogue_designer said:
But you might get near the dew point. So it's worth keeping an eye on the relative humidity in relation to the temp.
Click to expand...

If the humidity is high, you will not have an ideal shooting condition anyway. That is why astronomers and astrophotographers usually go out in the winter when the sky is clearer, the atmosphere is more stable, and humidity is usually low.
 
Unfortunately my desired shots are across a Minnesota lake, so there will be max humidity.

Not so worried about Milky Way short exposures, but star trails are a concern.

Great helps here, thanks!

Texsport
 
I suggest going over to cloudynights.com and searching forums there for the technical information. As for dew, it;s not really a warm to cold thing as mentioned previously. Chemical packs will work but if you're near power, a small hairdryer used every now and then will help If astrophotography is something you really get into, then a proper dew control system is worth the investment, as well as stacking software (shoot multiple frames and 'stack' them into a single exposure.
 
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