Canon 400D basic setup for Astrophotography?

[comm64]

Hi all,

Inspired by the Comet McNaught, its been nearly a year now since it flew pass us.. Would love to start learning photography at night.. I have a Canon 400d was wondering if there's a Telescope i can buy that will attached the camera to it? So far when i attach it to the tripod.. it shows trails unless im setting it up wrong for night shots..

What would be the cheapest Setup (telescope/adapters) - I am located near Melbourne so any direction to a shop would be great..

And which settings on the Canon 400d you guys usually have it set on? I'm using Bulb setting on about 400iso - i have a remote which i take about 10-30 sec shots - images are ok.

I've read on the internet you will need to 'stack' the photos in photoshop to reduce noises and get a better pic altogether? is this correct??

Cheers everybody..

[iceman]

Hi there and :welcome: to IceInSpace!

You're right - on a fixed tripod, with a long exposure (anything over 10-15s depending on the focal length), you'll get star trails. To avoid that, you need a tracking mount (ie: an EQ mount).

For a plain camera/lens widefield setup, something like an EQ1 through to an EQ4 would do the job. If you want to put a telescope on it with teh camera attached to it (for even longer focal lengths (ie: > 500-600mm)) then you'll probably want an EQ5 or higher.

You can go to Bintel in Melbourne - they have a large range of stuff and sell what you would need.

Be aware though, astrophotography is a slippery slope! It's a long learning curve and a money pit too, if you let it take hold :)

And yes - multiple images and stacking is the best way to increase signal and reduce noise. You can do it in photoshop, or other specially designed programs like Deep Sky Stacker (free) or many other commercial products.

Typical settings for the 400D - I'd go with ISO800, f/3.5 or so, and you'll want exposures in the range of 1-5 minutes depending on your sky quality.

[comm64]

Fantastic thanks for that.. will look up bintel..

Couple of nights ago i tried to get a nice view where i believe there's two comets currently located - and not gettting much luck.. but of course its early days for me.

Has anybody here have a 400d Camera and have some trick/tips for night shooting? Really interested how everybody use their cameras.

[tonycynic]

Would signal noise be a problem at 800iso. Thinking 100 instead.
Also what are EQ1 and EQ4?
Have found the star tracks can look inpressive with a good subject in the fore-ground, best when facing south, or straight up thru trees with a small flash to fill in. A torch works well.

[iceman]

Hi Tony

Yes there's more noise at ISO800 (compared with ISO100), but you would need to expose for much, much longer to get the same amount of light in.

By taking dark frames, and stacking multiple images, we reduce the noise that way.

[comm64]

Iceman, I have attempted to do the night shots again tonight - clear sky, can light pollution affect the overall image? I'm picking up stars but no milky way.. =o(

The image is a bit blueish - is this normal? im beginning to wonder if my camera is faulty.. or is this something i need to do in photoshop 'stacks' - How do you guys do your stacks? is there individual exposures you mix the photos with or 5 or so images all stacked together like HDR photography? or just a bunch of the images with the same exposure etc..?

I can't seem to upload an image so i can show you what my results are..

[dannat]

comm64 -
here is a link that gies you some basic info how t get started with a canon dslr - t might explain a few things for you
http://www.covingtoninnovations.com/dslr/EOS300Dastro.html
this next link has a whole lot of tips/techniques for all cameras - and gives a comparison of canon vs nikon
http://www.astropix.com/HTML/I_ASTROP/TOC_AP.HTM
hope this helps.
ps - this is a member's website with some basic instrucions of things to considr when taking astro pics
http://www.asignobservatory.com/AstrophotographyGuide.aspx

[Jeff]

Hi Craig,

Let me know if you want to drop over one Fri or Sat evening for a brief imaging session with your 400D. Would be intersted to know if you still have the little ETX80 also.

Cheers,
Jeff