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Astrophotography

Mrshredder2

By Mrshredder2
in Imaging - Discussion

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Mrshredder2

Mrshredder2

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hey guys

just wanted to know what equipment would i need for astrophotography? we already have a Canon EOS 1000D Un-modded camera.

also is there any programs on the net which i can use to view and edit images?

what sort of things could i see if want to start astrophotography?

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Mrshredder2

Mrshredder2

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we have a celestron astromaster 130eq it has a equatorial mount.

the lenses we have for the Canon EOS 1000D camera are a 18-35mm and a 75-300mm.

already got GIMP but havent used it in a while, any good tutorials where it shows me how to edit pics?

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jgs001

jgs001

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Firstly, if you have a tripod you can have a bash at some simple widefield imaging ... http://stargazerslounge.com/imaging-tips-tricks-techniques/73737-basic-widefield-camera-tripod.html There are tutorials that MartinB wrote in the imaging tips and tricks section, and Steve's book 'Making Every Photon Count' is very good for all aspects. In fact that should probably be your next purchase.

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Mrshredder2

Mrshredder2

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i can just use the mount on top of the astromaster 130eq telescope as the tripod can't i? as they allow a camera to be placed on top.

just read in the manual something about polar allignment how do i do this?

sorry to be a pain lol.

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Mrshredder2

Mrshredder2

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ok np cheers for the help mate

the dark frames part where it says lens cap on i know stupid question and the answer is probably obvious but do you take pictures while the lens cap is on and thats 5 pictures? i just want to make sure cause knowing me i'll do it wrong lol.

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jleach29

jleach29

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If you mount tracks the sky you can attach your camera on top of the scope, it is called piggybacking and is my favorite type of Astro photography. To answer you other question about dark frames, you do leave the lens cap on, and take the pictures during you photo session, it will record only the noise from the camera and improve your image during stacking.

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jleach29

jleach29

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I shoot with both my 18-55mm and my 70-300mm. Your 18-35mm is good for large patches of the Milky Way, and the 75-300mm is great for things like the andomeda galaxy and larger nebula. I have managed exposures of about 7min at 300mm as long as my polar alignment is really good. if you get some post them, I would like to see what you come up with since I have just recently started getting decent shots with the piggyback technique.

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jgs001

jgs001

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If you're gonna try static, then you'll maybe able to push to 30s at 18mm, about 8s at 50mm before trailing becomes a problem. If you have a drive on your mount, depending on how accurate the alignment and drive is, you ought to be able to get a reasonable exposure time on any of the focal lengths listed. As the focal length goes up, so does the requirement for accurate tracking, so it's probably easier to start off at shorter focal lengths, and work up as you get more accustomed to your kit and what you can get away with.

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Mrshredder2

Mrshredder2

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ok mate well our motor drive is quite rubbish tbh, is it supposed to rotate slowly? like when we turn ours on it seems like it is not doing anything if that makes any sense.

plus we decided to get a T-adaptor with a barlow intergrated onto it and we had to get the T-ring seperately.

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jleach29

jleach29

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It should rotate very slowly. When my scope is tracking I barely notice it's movement, but the only way to really tell how it is working is to toss your camera on it and see. Find a bright star and like jgs001 said, start at 18mm at around 30sec exposures and continually increase your focal length and exposure time till you see trailing, once you see trailing in the stars that will propably be the limit of your equipment, but make sure your polar alignment is very accurate. I would start with the piggy back way of shooting till you are fimilar with setting on the camera for shooting at night and how well your mount tracks since shooting through the scope will only magnify any tracking and alignment issues.

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jleach29

jleach29

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No, you can use it for prime focus if the tracking is accurate enough. I just thing that piggybacking the camera is easier because tracking errors will be less noticable than with prime focus because your max focal length with you camera lens will be 300mm and your scope is about twice that so any tracking errors will be twice as noticable. I am hoping to get the chance the to shoot tonight but might have the same problem with the clouds.

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jleach29

jleach29

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you still need the tracking for piggyback shooting, unless you are shooting at 18mm. Shooting without tracking will only allow you about 30 sec exposure at 18mm. So, you will need it for piggyback and prime focus, but with piggyback, even at 300mm you are not zoomed in on the target as much as you would be shooting through the scope. The more zoom you have the more chance you have to see tracking errors, but you need the tracking for both.

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iamjulian

iamjulian

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I use a 30mm lens piggy backed on the scope and can manage a minute on an untracked mount. Just get a high powered eye piece in the scope and keep a star just in the field of view. Each time it floats out of view, nudge it back using the slow motion controls.

Obviously, the methods above will be much better, but don't let people tell you it cannot be done. Your 18-35mm lens will cope fine without tracking if you have a steady hand.

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jgs001

jgs001

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Rob, if you have a tracking mount, you can use it to take pics. If it's an AltAz mount, tracks up/down, left/right, then you are limited in exposure length, depending on where in the sky you are and the drive accuracy. Apparently focal length isn't a factor in the exposure length for the altaz tracking, but it does put more demands on the drive train and that may affect the lengths. Low in the east and west you can achieve 2 minute exposures, but as you get further north/south or up the exposure times drop to something in the order of 30-45 seconds before star trailing becomes a problem.

I have achieved 2 minute exposures with my Celestron NexStar SLT mount, low in the east on M31.

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Mrshredder2

Mrshredder2

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Guys i need some input on this pic.

Autosave001.jpg

Have i done it right, have we captured stars? or is it something to do with the camera?

Also sorry to be a pain could some of you post your camera settings as im real useless lol cause i really want to take some good pics.

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