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I'm such a total no little novice at this point I have no real idea re the focal length. Most bits I've read so far have led me to believe my 14 to 24 is a good place to start. Definitely will want to put the 1.8 Plena to use if possible@ssheipel , you have the Plena, don't you? I wonder if that will give you good results.
Thanks you!Two good YouTubers who do some with trackers and dslrs/mirrorless:
SarahMaths: https://youtube.com/@sarahmathsastro?si=8DtkU0fXwxFBlgA3
NebulaPhotos: https://youtube.com/@nebulaphotos?si=G1hvDJ3cxUI2dbWl
Great; hope you share your journey with this too! Like you I'm just looking forward to taking some shots of star filled skies to begin. Long , longrange, a friend has an impressive telescope that she hasn't used in years and years and I'd love to get to a place where I'm shooting through that. But pulling back on the reins with my enthusiasm for now -- just want to figure out the technology and software required as step one, then get a basic un trailed star shot and then a basic milky way shot.... Then worry about getting creative with it. So first the stars then the universeThanks for starting this thread. I'll be following it, and learning from your foray into astro. I hope to start with some wide field milky way stuff and see where it goes.
Some of the more experienced folks also commented here on a thread another astro beginner (me) started after the aurora last may.
Thread 'Equatorial mounts for astro work, any recommendations?' https://bcgforums.com/threads/equatorial-mounts-for-astro-work-any-recommendations.36479/
I'm looking forward to learning from your experiences. I haven’t been able to get away this summer but will try this Fall.
With DSOs your life starts getting a lot more expensive with more equipment and automation. Plus you end up wanting cooled cameras, etc. lol. It’s a trap!If you really want to do astro, and especially dsos, trackers make life much easier.
Wow! Maybe I can convince my wife we need astro photography gear more than her car...With DSOs your life starts getting a lot more expensive with more equipment and automation. Plus you end up wanting cooled cameras, etc. lol. It’s a trap!
I posted this today as it’s relevant. NGC 7000 with about 17 hours of capture time over 6 days and with a dual band 3nm filter.
I’m fairly sure that Hudson Henry has a course on Astro…and he’s my number 2 go to guy after Steve as he’s primarily a landscape photographer. I’ve thought several times about getting a tracker…but then there is no such thing as light pollution free sky here in SE FL.In support of one of my operating principles -- "more gear than talent" (the other is "more money than brains, and I ain't got much brain" -- I've ordered a star tracker. I have since the first time I saw the milky way in a light pollution free location (north of Lake Superior) decades ago I have wanted to capture photos of it. My ultimate goal (if I have one) is to do portraits with the milk way. But I digress.
Wondering if you have any favourite starry sky photography courses you found useful and engaging, to get me started on the taking photos part of the process . The real challenge will come when I'm gonna have to use software to layer photos LOL
Oh, and this is the tracker all roads led me to for a beginner.
Move Shoot Move NOMAD Grab & Go Star Tracker for Beginner and Experienced Photographers, 🎁 Happy Milky Way Season - Do Not Miss Again!
Capture stunning astrophotography images with ease using our portable and user-friendly star tracker. Ideal for both astrophotography beginners and experienced landscape photographers, this star tracker is the perfect solution for long-exposure astrophotography, allowing you to capture the...www.moveshootmove.com
Cheers!
lol, Some people even spend more than that chasing the brass ring! But I can tell ya there is a LOT you can do with a small tracker, a 35-80mm range lens, a filter, and lots of patience.Wow! Maybe I can convince my wife we need astro photography gear more than her car...
Most places in the eastern US are in the same boat due to light pollution and fear of the dark. But if you find a dual band filter that fits your camera or lens you can filter out a lot of that pollution. It’s only usable for emission nebulae, though. But there is a lot of it!I’m fairly sure that Hudson Henry has a course on Astro…and he’s my number 2 go to guy after Steve as he’s primarily a landscape photographer. I’ve thought several times about getting a tracker…but then there is no such thing as light pollution free sky here in SE FL.