Astrophotography

[SD-[Inc]]

Do you guys have any recommendations on a good mid-range DSLR for astrophotography? I am still a noob so probably don’t need top of the line to start with. And, it would be nice to also just have a decent camera for normal photography as well. I know there are some full-frame high end units built for astrophotography specifically. But, I was looking for something in the $1000 -$1500 range. Any recommendations?

[CyanBlues]

pretty sure the canon 6d is probably the best/budget related one you can get. Unless you want mirrorless, you can probably find a used a7 through a7III, if you're interested, I might sell my a7iii since I picked up the a7iv. the a7III is currently the backup cam.

Also the a7II and III supposedly have star eater issue because of some weird noise reduction thing, but I don't think most people would notice unless they do comparison shot. Your best bet is probably still the Canon 6D and there are company that will mod it so that it becomes specific for astro.






we don't have enough dark sky around here so I have to drive about 3 hours to get to a spot. Also no tracker so I haven't done any deep sky tracking.


here's a few landscape I did last July with tamron 17-28 2.8

[CyanBlues]

nm looks like star eater issue has been fixed for the a7III https://petapixel.com/2018/06/08/son...in-the-a7-iii/

[SD-[Inc]]

No tracker? How did you get those shots??

[Tyr-Sog]

Maybe you can find a second hand Nikon D810A for a reasonable price.
I've read good things about using the Canon 6D for AP.

Those iOptron SkyGuider Pro look ideal for a astro camera setup.

I'd like to use my Nikon DF for some astro with that big beautiful
light gathering 16mb fullframe sensor lol

[CyanBlues]

Originally Posted by SD-[Inc]

No tracker? How did you get those shots??

https://www.lonelyspeck.com/milky-wa...re-calculator/

I use this, put in the lens size, then the smallest aperture number your lens and iso you want to use. It's not exact but it gives you an over all for how long you should expose/keep lens open for.
Also those pictures do not look like that in raw format, if you want I can upload some of the raw files and you can see what they really look like before all the tweaks like bringing up exposure etc and color fixes etc...
this is what I used for those shots I believe. That lonelyspeck site has a ton of information I would suggest you go through the site, it also has a recommended lens/camera etc...


Bsically it'll let you know how long you can generally expose for before the Stars start showing up with light trails

[SD-[Inc]]

Originally Posted by CyanBlues

https://www.lonelyspeck.com/milky-wa...re-calculator/

I use this, put in the lens size, then the smallest aperture number your lens and iso you want to use. It's not exact but it gives you an over all for how long you should expose/keep lens open for.
Also those pictures do not look like that in raw format, if you want I can upload some of the raw files and you can see what they really look like before all the tweaks like bringing up exposure etc and color fixes etc...
this is what I used for those shots I believe. That lonelyspeck site has a ton of information I would suggest you go through the site, it also has a recommended lens/camera etc...


Bsically it'll let you know how long you can generally expose for before the Stars start showing up with light trails

Cool, a 29 second exposure? I thought for sure you would see star trails with that long of an exposure. I am used to shooting through a telescope with more focal length. Tracking happens in seconds there.

[Trunks0]

I also gotta imagine if you get a tripod mount for a phone, you can probably snap some nice shots as well. My S9 Plus can do a 10 second exposure and I bet with a 3rd party app that can be extended.

[Trunks0]

Still cool . Nicely done

[CyanBlues]

Originally Posted by SD-[Inc]

Cool, a 29 second exposure? I thought for sure you would see star trails with that long of an exposure. I am used to shooting through a telescope with more focal length. Tracking happens in seconds there.

yeah being a wide angle lens lets you take longer exposures so that helps with star trails. and its just an estimate, you can change it depending on what it looks like.


telescope would definitely need a tracker, anything above 100mm would need a tracker imo.


If I lived close enough to dark skys i'd have invested in a tracker, being that I'm in a light polluted area, I'd have to drag it out pretty far away so I haven't bother to try deep sky astrophotography.

[CyanBlues]

hey SD-[Inc] here's a link to some raw files https://drive.google.com/drive/folde...j9?usp=sharing


to see how they really look like, If you don't have a raw processor you can use the free one from capture one for sony https://www.captureone.com/en/capture-one-express/sony

[SD-[Inc]]

Originally Posted by CyanBlues

yeah being a wide angle lens lets you take longer exposures so that helps with star trails. and its just an estimate, you can change it depending on what it looks like.


telescope would definitely need a tracker, anything above 100mm would need a tracker imo.


If I lived close enough to dark skys i'd have invested in a tracker, being that I'm in a light polluted area, I'd have to drag it out pretty far away so I haven't bother to try deep sky astrophotography.

I have a decent scope today without tracker. I am thinking of getting a real tracking setup and start shooting deep sky photos. Looking for a new DSLR to use as my standard shooting camera and also to attach to new scope for deep sky imaging. The 6D looks good. I also saw the EOS R which is mirrorless and around the same price too. I don’t want a modded camera even though they are better for deep sky because I want it for regular photography as well. So, trying to find one that can do both well.

[CyanBlues]

Originally Posted by SD-[Inc]

I have a decent scope today without tracker. I am thinking of getting a real tracking setup and start shooting deep sky photos. Looking for a new DSLR to use as my standard shooting camera and also to attach to new scope for deep sky imaging. The 6D looks good. I also saw the EOS R which is mirrorless and around the same price too. I don’t want a modded camera even though they are better for deep sky because I want it for regular photography as well. So, trying to find one that can do both well.

I think you meant the RP? the R is like $1800. the Nikon Z5 is also closer to your range too, I think that one is like $1200


But yeah if you live closer to dark skys, a tracker is great.



this guy has a lot of good videos too, you should go through them, i think he has one where he gets deep sky without a tracker too, the one below is about budget range

[SD-[Inc]]

Originally Posted by CyanBlues

I think you meant the RP? the R is like $1800. the Nikon Z5 is also closer to your range too, I think that one is like $1200


But yeah if you live closer to dark skys, a tracker is great.



this guy has a lot of good videos too, you should go through them, i think he has one where he gets deep sky without a tracker too, the one below is about budget range

I’ve seen his videos. I am thinking of making something in line with the getting serious rig. Depending on what you what to shoot, you can get filters to help with light pollution.

[CyanBlues]

Originally Posted by SD-[Inc]

I’ve seen his videos. I am thinking of making something in line with the getting serious rig. Depending on what you what to shoot, you can get filters to help with light pollution.

same here, I so want to invest in a tracker etc.. I just can't justify it if I only get to use it 2-3 times a year

[SD-[Inc]]

Originally Posted by CyanBlues

same here, I so want to invest in a tracker etc.. I just can't justify it if I only get to use it 2-3 times a year

That's not the most expensive part of my plan. We want to get a travel trailer too and start spending more time in the back country. Been saving up and looking forward to it. Love camping. But roughing it is killing my old body. Getting the camera is step 1. It's been a while since my last DSLR got stolen. So I was getting excited about buying a new one. But, used makes sense as I really never was that great of a photographer to begin with. lol.

[CyanBlues]

Originally Posted by SD-[Inc]

That's not the most expensive part of my plan. We want to get a travel trailer too and start spending more time in the back country. Been saving up and looking forward to it. Love camping. But roughing it is killing my old body. Getting the camera is step 1. It's been a while since my last DSLR got stolen. So I was getting excited about buying a new one. But, used makes sense as I really never was that great of a photographer to begin with. lol.

that's perfect for astro then, being able to go to dark sky places etc, too bad RFtinkerer doesn't seem to be on here anymore he had a bunch of great deep sky astro and would be a great source of info.

[SD-[Inc]]

This guy’s video’s are really good too. Here is a whole video he presents on how to deal with light pollution:

[SD-[Inc]]

Originally Posted by CyanBlues

I think you meant the RP? the R is like $1800. the Nikon Z5 is also closer to your range too, I think that one is like $1200


But yeah if you live closer to dark skys, a tracker is great.



this guy has a lot of good videos too, you should go through them, i think he has one where he gets deep sky without a tracker too, the one below is about budget range

I was going back and for between used 6D and RP and decided to splurg and get the RP. I get so nervous with used cameras and decided I needed to treat myself. Got it with a basic kit lens for $1300. If my astrophotography ever takes off, I'll eventually upgrade to a dedicated astro-camera. In the meantime, I have a nice full-frame camera for regular photos. The 6Ds out there are pretty old now. So, even though it's probably slightly better. I didn't want to take a chance.

[CyanBlues]

Originally Posted by SD-[Inc]

I was going back and for between used 6D and RP and decided to splurg and get the RP. I get so nervous with used cameras and decided I needed to treat myself. Got it with a basic kit lens for $1300. If my astrophotography ever takes off, I'll eventually upgrade to a dedicated astro-camera. In the meantime, I have a nice full-frame camera for regular photos. The 6Ds out there are pretty old now. So, even though it's probably slightly better. I didn't want to take a chance.

Grats, hope you like it as a regular cam too, I think it should be good enough, good thing about it is there is no mirror and I'm pretty sure you can go full silent mode which means no shutter shock to make those long exposure possibly blurry. Do you plan to go deep sky right away or play around with it with astro landscape of the galaxy etc first?

[SD-[Inc]]

Originally Posted by CyanBlues

Grats, hope you like it as a regular cam too, I think it should be good enough, good thing about it is there is no mirror and I'm pretty sure you can go full silent mode which means no shutter shock to make those long exposure possibly blurry. Do you plan to go deep sky right away or play around with it with astro landscape of the galaxy etc first?

I’ll probably just play around and just do some landscape scenes just to learn the camera. The kit lens that came with it isn’t exactly a lens I would pick for astrophotography. So, I’ll probably start shopping for a scope and mount next.

[CyanBlues]

new moon this weekend so would be a perfect time for some astro galaxy landscape, I was planning to go up north but there's still seems to be quite a bit of snow up there so I decided not to.

[SD-[Inc]]

My RP made it. Very nice build quality. The online manual is huge. Contains a lot of pictures but is still 612 pages. Been pouring into it. Great stuff. Here is my very first picture. Just pointed down at my desk while reading the manual.
Shot with a 12800 ISO, 1/60th shutter, F5 aperture with my lens designed for landscape outdoor shooting. This just random attempt got me pretty excited. Can't wait to get good with this thing!

(Didn't even set the camera to raw capture yet either):



My handwriting is so bad!!

[CyanBlues]

Originally Posted by SD-[Inc]

My RP made it. Very nice build quality. The online manual is huge. Contains a lot of pictures but is still 612 pages. Been pouring into it. Great stuff. Here is my very first picture. Just pointed down at my desk while reading the manual.
Shot with a 12800 ISO, 1/60th shutter, F5 aperture with my lens designed for landscape outdoor shooting. This just random attempt got me pretty excited. Can't wait to get good with this thing!

(Didn't even set the camera to raw capture yet either):



My handwriting is so bad!!

any attempts at astro? just curious, wanted to see some photos

[SD-[Inc]]

I am having a hard time finding a good base plate to work with my new tripod so I haven't tried yet. I think that probably is resolved this Weds. So maybe this weekend. I did rig up something in my backyard, in the middle of the city, with my landscape lights still on and a moon in the sky and got this shot. I was pretty shocked how many stars it pulled in considering I could barely see any from my viewpoint and how little effort I put into setting up this shot:




I can't tell you how exciting it is to have a camera that can do proper depth of field in a photo again too. I am still noobish but these kinds of pictures are fun to be able to shoot again:





Having a lot of fun with it so far. Still so much to learn!

[CyanBlues]

Originally Posted by SD-[Inc]

I am having a hard time finding a good base plate to work with my new tripod so I haven't tried yet. I think that probably is resolved this Weds. So maybe this weekend. I did rig up something in my backyard, in the middle of the city, with my landscape lights still on and a moon in the sky and got this shot. I was pretty shocked how many stars it pulled in considering I could barely see any from my viewpoint and how little effort I put into setting up this shot:




I can't tell you how exciting it is to have a camera that can do proper depth of field in a photo again too. I am still noobish but these kinds of pictures are fun to be able to shoot again:





Having a lot of fun with it so far. Still so much to learn!

this looks like it'll be a great location for astro

[SD-[Inc]]

Originally Posted by CyanBlues

this looks like it'll be a great location for astro

Better than my backyard. But, it’s surrounded by city lights on all sides. I have a couple of other sites that might work also. Maybe this weekend I’ll get a chance. The moon is favorable early on.

[CyanBlues]

I wanted to go up north this weekend because of new moon but looks like we're getting cloudy sky's and rain all weekend -_-

[SD-[Inc]]

Originally Posted by CyanBlues

I wanted to go up north this weekend because of new moon but looks like we're getting cloudy sky's and rain all weekend -_-

I tried last weekend and the sky I tried was disappointing. Not sure much Milky Way is visible right now.

[CyanBlues]

interesting scope/lens, I think this might actually get me into deep sky