I've just ordered a star tracker
- Thread starter ssheipel
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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
Thanks you!
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 universe I have a friend who is really into astronomy. He recently upgraded to a 10 or 12 inch cassegrain reflector telescope. I'm hoping to tag along with him at some point. There's a fantastic local astronomy group in our area. You might want to check and see if there's an amateur astro group near you.
I'm thinking of getting a Rokinon 14mm f2.4 for the milky way shots. Some folks are using it with a z8 and z9. So it's cross platform with my D500. I may pick up a d850 as well before getting a z8 or z9, it should work fine for this and be useful for digitizing old negs, and botanical work.
Right now I'm working with a tight budget but hopefully it will loosen up at some point. (Wife's car isn't drivable, we're shopping).
I'm thinking of getting a Rokinon 14mm f2.4 for the milky way shots. Some folks are using it with a z8 and z9. So it's cross platform with my D500. I may pick up a d850 as well before getting a z8 or z9, it should work fine for this and be useful for digitizing old negs, and botanical work.
Right now I'm working with a tight budget but hopefully it will loosen up at some point. (Wife's car isn't drivable, we're shopping).
I have contemplated getting one of these several times but always talk myself out of it. I'm curious to see what your experience is once you start using it. I typically just go by the 500 rule and do the best I can without introducing movement but one of these would be undoubtedly better.
Cameron T
Well-known member
If you really want to do astro, and especially dsos, trackers make life much easier.
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.
Wow! Maybe I can convince my wife we need astro photography gear more than her car...
Cameron T
Well-known member
One of my better images. I just don't have as much time as I wish I did for astro
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"
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.
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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!
Enjoy Steven, that's a fun piece of kit to get introduced to astrophotography. A few more things to add from my end:
- Focal length: the longer in focal length you go, the more complex things become. Equipment like the MSM were really designed to be used with wideangle lenses, so use it as such. There's tons of things you can do with a wideangle, so should keep you busy for a good while to come.
- Image complexity: while stacking images (to get optimal SNR) is where you want to go; I wouldn't start there. Start off with doing single long exposures, get the hang of those and up the complexity from there one step at a time (stacking, separate foreground blending, mosaics,...).
- The biggest learning curve in astrophotography is the postprocessing piece. Some good resources have been linked in this thread already that should you get you on the way.
Looking forward to seeing your results
- Focal length: the longer in focal length you go, the more complex things become. Equipment like the MSM were really designed to be used with wideangle lenses, so use it as such. There's tons of things you can do with a wideangle, so should keep you busy for a good while to come.
- Image complexity: while stacking images (to get optimal SNR) is where you want to go; I wouldn't start there. Start off with doing single long exposures, get the hang of those and up the complexity from there one step at a time (stacking, separate foreground blending, mosaics,...).
- The biggest learning curve in astrophotography is the postprocessing piece. Some good resources have been linked in this thread already that should you get you on the way.
Looking forward to seeing your results
I look forward to seeing what you shoot through that telescope. And thanks, yes there are some good groups locally I will be bugging
Yah the smarter approach for me might have been to give it some work without the tracker, first, but I got a (small) discount code and went for it
Very cool shot.
Cool shot. Is that through a telescope or camera lens?
Cameron T
Well-known member
Camera lens and my z9. Used my 180-600 for it
Yah, it was his recent post about this tracker (and his discount code
) that prompted me to finally make the purchase.
Excellent, thanks. And yup re focal length. Got the s14-24 2.8 z and plan to use that.Enjoy Steven, that's a fun piece of kit to get introduced to astrophotography. A few more things to add from my end:
- Focal length: the longer in focal length you go, the more complex things become. Equipment like the MSM were really designed to be used with wideangle lenses, so use it as such. There's tons of things you can do with a wideangle, so should keep you busy for a good while to come.
- Image complexity: while stacking images (to get optimal SNR) is where you want to go; I wouldn't start there. Start off with doing single long exposures, get the hang of those and up the complexity from there one step at a time (stacking, separate foreground blending, mosaics,...).
- The biggest learning curve in astrophotography is the postprocessing piece. Some good resources have been linked in this thread already that should you get you on the way.
Looking forward to seeing your results
Sequator is free software for star stacking.
Sequator - Download
NOTE 1. This software is only for non-commercial use A personal studio is allowed to sell the derivatives but remember to donate coffee :) 2. You can distribute this software but charge is not permitted 3. Must keep the integrity of all files when make copies 4. When you distribute thissites.google.com
Looking forward to hearing more about your journey. It's one rabbit-hole I've been able to resist thus far, although I live 10 minutes away from the darkest spot in Costa Rica.
I am big on this software, be sure to check it out. I owned that gizmo you bought, but I prefer to simply set up on tripod and do timed photos.
Stellarium Astronomy Software
Stellarium is a planetarium software that shows exactly what you see when you look up at the stars. It's easy to use, and free.
stellarium.org
MikeJ
Well-known member
My first year or two I tried short, 20-30 second exposures (500 rule) with the F 14-24. They were OK, just not what I was looking for. So I caved, bought the IOptron Skyguider Pro (I had a few hundred dollars in Amazon gift cards because of a work rewards program, so I got it for almost nothing). I opted for that startracker since it has a counterweight, so a heavier payload (11 pounds). As I'm using a Z9 and now the Z 14-24, that payload is very welcome.Yah the smarter approach for me might have been to give it some work without the tracker, first, but I got a (small) discount code and went for it
The nice thing with the tracker is you're not shackled by the 500 rule...the downside is a bit more post-processing. And don't forget to turn the tracker off and get stationary images, so you can blend a stationary foreground with the tracked stars.
And @Nimi, I'm jealous you're so close to a dark sky area! I have to drive at least 3-4 hours to get truly dark skies. This one is from one of the lakes in Superior National Forest, in Minnesota. Probably my best Milky Way photo to date.
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Lots of suggestions but one I like for setting up the Nomad is
Ref. finding the pole star. If you get the PS Align Pro app for your phone (costs a few dollars) then this gets you very close to the pole star.
Ref. finding the pole star. If you get the PS Align Pro app for your phone (costs a few dollars) then this gets you very close to the pole star.