Is this camera ANY good for astrophotography?

[70x7]

to be honest, I have no idea what I would need to get good photgraphs of what I see in my telescope

Maybe you can give me some insight into this:

http://store.kodak.com/store/ekconsus/en_US/pd/Z981_Digital_Camera/baseProductID.169236500/productID.169370500

its a few years old, but this is the camera that I have. Does it have any features, or any way remotely good for taking photos of space objects? What else would I need?

Thanks for the help. I really dont know and when I read some of posts, i dont understand the language and abbreviations that are used.

[swag72]

The camera's most often used for astrophotography are dedicated astro cooled camera's or DSLR's such as the Canon 1000D. They connect to the telescope directly and it is used like a big lens. What you need to be looking at is the camera's ability to deal with noise as well as the possibility of long exposures.

Most camera's like the one you have will be limilted to 30s at the most and they will be pretty ineffective at dealing with noise - I would say that you do not have a ideal camera for astro stuff. What are you using for a telescope and mount?

[Whippy]

Virtually any camera can be used to take images of the moon, connecting the camera to an eyepiece (the 'afocal' method) using a bracket will allow you to do this. If the camera is able to expose for several seconds then some bright deep sky objects can be imaged too (M42 for example). I first started imaging using an old Canon Powershot, it's maximum exposure setting was 15 seconds but using several shots and stacking them, I was able to get a few images that way.

HTH

Tony..

[David JM]

Rather than use the camera for shots through your 'scope have you thought about tripod mounting it and using the zoom and wide angle to capture wide-field shots? As it has a video function you can also have a play with using that and stacking the results in something like registax as well. As I'm still having to wait for clear skies to have another go at getting images and using DSS to stack them I have used registax where I 'shouldn't' to stack DSOs.

As i'm a believer in using unsuitable kit in unusual ways [usually through complete ignorance] I would also try an eyepiece with a wide exit pupil, or a 'projection' one and using the zoom on the camera to magnify the image. I've also taken mobile phone videos through an eyepiece and stacked them in registax.

In August we should be getting a good view of the Persids, a wide angle and long exposure may capture some meteor trails as well. Finally, if you live under a flight path you could go for an aircraft crossing the starfield, something that can look quite artistic. If you do a search on some of my first posts you should find my early results with a tripod mounted Canon EOS 500D along with the ISO, f-stop, lens and shutter speed info. If you can't find them drop me a PM with your email and I'll send them on.

[70x7]

well i havent really taken any pictures with any camera as of yet, but I would like to. This camera I mentioned is just one sitting around the house, but it sounds like its not quite up to the task of taking some good pics to hang on my living room walls haha

I would really like to get into astrophotogrophy but i dont know if I even have the right scope or the ability to invest alot for things I would need to do it right

[swag72]

You really want to get into AP? This is the very first thing to do - Buy this book http://www.firstlightoptics.com/books/making-every-photon-count-steve-richards.html. It will save you money as you willknow the best things to buy and how to use them. You need to think about a budget for AP as it can be very expensive indeed and also what you want to image. You will benefit from different kit for Solar system targets and DSO's - One scope does not do it all. Plants and the moon can be done fairly cheaply with a webcam and a slower scope - DSO's I am afraid, if you want a picture to hang on your wall, will test the depth of your pockets regularly as you will need this and that. People do do DSO's on more budget equipment, but it's hard enough as it is and so battling with equipment that is not usually considered to be the minimum for the job is not my idea of fun.

You've not mentioned what scope and mount you already have. The mount is considered to be the most important part of AP - It needs to be rock solid, otherwise you will not be getting decent data.

[David JM]

not quite up to the task of taking some good pics to hang on my living room walls haha

I have the image here stargazerslounge.com/topic/143668-m45-with-aircraft/ blown up and on my wall. No scientific merit, it's not even clear what is in the sky, but I like it for the image and the luck getting it.

Sometimes you just get something you like rather than a magazine quality piccy that someone will have spent a lot of time and money on getting.

[70x7]

You really want to get into AP? This is the very first thing to do - Buy this book http://www.firstligh...e-richards.html. It will save you money as you willknow the best things to buy and how to use them. You need to think about a budget for AP as it can be very expensive indeed and also what you want to image. You will benefit from different kit for Solar system targets and DSO's - One scope does not do it all. Plants and the moon can be done fairly cheaply with a webcam and a slower scope - DSO's I am afraid, if you want a picture to hang on your wall, will test the depth of your pockets regularly as you will need this and that. People do do DSO's on more budget equipment, but it's hard enough as it is and so battling with equipment that is not usually considered to be the minimum for the job is not my idea of fun.

You've not mentioned what scope and mount you already have. The mount is considered to be the most important part of AP - It needs to be rock solid, otherwise you will not be getting decent data.

I have the Celestron Nexstar 130SLT scope and using the mount that came with it. I have noticed that is kinda touchy though.

At this time I dont really want to spend thousands of dollars on a new scope but it seems that is what is needed for this kinda thing. I purchased the scope

I have because of some user submitted pics I saw on the celestron website that was supposedly using the same scope but I am not even getting close to those!

It did say it was good for planetary and deep space objects.

[David JM]

EDIT supposedly using the same scope /EDIT

The 'scope is one thing, the camera and mount are another. The images may have been taken with an Atik type camera and filters then heavily processed, from a dark site with good seeing by a professional with a better mount than you have. After all you wouldn't want a slightly blurry image if you are trying to sell a 'scope would you?

I don't process my images much as I prefer the 'as seen' of objects visible to the eye through the telescope and just stack those that aren't.

Don't give up with the camera, try using it in other ways, and for the 'scope try a webcam for solar system imaging.

[swag72]

What David says about the mount is spot on. You can use a different mount and will probably be able to get much better results. First though it will be worth ascertaining that you can indeed connect your camera to the scope.