[gs2c]

K5 is stable at low temperature performance.Low temperature=Low noise!

[mikeSF]

That is some frozen gear. Glad the K5 is holding up. Your images are wonderful!!

[tempelorg]

gs2c,
I am looking at the tech sheet to your M78 image. So, you're using a 18cm newton mirror system, right?

But what does "Frames: 54x270"" mean? That you took 54 shots, each for 4.5 minutes? That's 4 hours of exposure. That can't be right.

Anyway, the images are great. However, this is a thread about the Astrotracer accessory for the Pentax, which you clearly have not used for your pictures

[gs2c]

Oh I'm sorry,I misread the titleOriginally wanted to publish it in"astrography by pentax" I have a ogps1.Tomorrow I will publish some graphy in here.

[sheld]

Which is better for an astro-photography beginner, the iOptron SkyTracker Camera Mount, or the Pentax astro-tracer? My primary lens would be the Pentax 55-300mm, as well as 70mm/2.4 and a fixed focus 135mm/2.8. I also have a 150-500mm Bigma.

[tempelorg]

@sheld, I have not used the SkyTracker, but reviews (e.g. iOptron SkyTracker camera mount | BBC Sky at Night Magazine) suggest that it's doing pretty well at 300mm. I and others have shown here that we can even use the Pentax AstroTracer at these focal lengths, but it's a bit of a game of luck with that setup. If you only plan to take wide angle shots (milky way etc.), the AstroTracer should be sufficient. Otherwise, get used to doing stacking and a lot of trial-and-error with the AstroTracer. So, if money is a concern and if you like having GPS coordinates on your images (could be great if you travel a lot), go with the cheaper AstroTracer for now. If you have plenty of money to spend, get the SkyTracker and show us some great deep space images! But keep in mind - the biggest challenge is not the equipment - it's finding clear nights and the time for it.

[mikeSF]

Hey is one I posted elsewhere, an example of the OGPS1 with the FA31 on the K5. 80 sec exposure for the stars.

I realize this looks soft displayed on the forum. A better display and some accompanying story here: https://www.flickr.com/photos/mikeoria/10130579043/

[SunValley]

@sheld, if you plan on getting serious with astrophotography get a SkyTracker or DIY for a fraction of the price. The O-GPS1 is a really neat gadget to bring along on camping trips where the sky is dark and trunk space is limited but if you have to drive an hour to your observing site and the thing doesn't let you track for very long it can be frustrating. Your primes should give you very bright images of the sky but I fear the zooms will be a bit too dark at the long end for nebula work. I had a set similar to yours and got myself a good but cheap (60$) smc Pentax M 200 mm f/4.0. I'm just starting to work with a tokina AT-X MF 80-200 mm f/2.8 (220 us$ on ebay).

Clear skies!

My astro album

[interested_observer]

Good Morning,

I have been reading a couple of these astro threads since they started. Well after thinking about it for a couple of years, I finally acquired the O-GPS1 unit a couple of weeks ago. I tried it out, and it calibrated right out of the box very easily. I somewhat mis-read the instructions and forgot / did not hit [start] via the menu to apparently tell the body to actually start the sensor tracking [astrotracking]. I'll actually test that out probably this evening as I have been in a class at work these last two weeks - just mind numbing.

you are most welcome, friends. Believe me, if you do a search with my name and O-GPS1, you will find at least a couple of threads full of my own frustrations in using the device, at least early on. I thought i would just stick it to the camera and go and find there is some technique involved. That said, definitely practice with it, IN THE DARK, before setting off for that once in a lifetime shot.

I have an assortment of lens that I have some specific plans for. I'm not that good at deep sky, but my A*300 to be really stable appears to need a rail with a Y to provide some support. The lens is just too heavy to be cantilevered off the body, without a lens collar/foot, when sitting on a tripod. However, an old M 150 that I happened across - is a feather weight.

I am mainly interested in Milky Way shots, with and without foreground.

[SunValley]

I'm not that good at deep sky, but my A*300 to be really stable appears to need a rail with a Y to provide some support.
I am mainly interested in Milky Way shots, with and without foreground.

Really looking forward to seeing some of those shots! Please get a collar for that A* lens and post the results here!

Best regards

[interested_observer]

Really looking forward to seeing some of those shots! Please get a collar for that A* lens and post the results here!

Best regards

I have an approach, but I keep backing off pulling the trigger. However, last night I came across a couple of vendors offering the same approach at about half the cost - same design, same material. I have to call B&H Tuesday, to make sure about the threading. I have to finish getting the toys, before I get put out to pasture.

The problem with the A* 300 for me is aiming. I do have to say that my knowledge of the star/constellations positionings are wanting. The other thing is that my ballhead (which I love), suffers from the same problem all ballheads have - and that is fine positioning. I have been looking for a Manfrotto 410 (a geared head), that would help in positioning in each axis independently. I am thinking that the O-GPS and the 410 would be a good combination.

We had clouds last night, so a no go getting any astrotracking shots. There is a fire up in Oak Creek Canyon (near Sedona). I was thinking of driving up there for the "foreground" scenery. I have another spot in mind out in Apache Junction - Superstition Mountain, but it depends on where the stars are - that and the light pollution is worse out there.

I designed and built a "small" star tracker 20 years ago, for another project. I see now that it has been replaced with a new design.

[Stone G.]

I am mainly interested in Milky Way shots, with and without foreground.

The problem with the A* 300 for me is aiming. I do have to say that my knowledge of the star/constellations positionings are wanting. The other thing is that my ballhead (which I love), suffers from the same problem all ballheads have - and that is fine positioning. I have been looking for a Manfrotto 410 (a geared head), that would help in positioning in each axis independently. I am thinking that the O-GPS and the 410 would be a good combination.

May I suggest that you get yourself a decent electronic star map, such as Cartes du Ciel/Sky Chart or Stellarium (both are freeware). That way you can plan your astrophotographic expeditions much better in advance (or verify what you have actually captured afterwards).

Since you are mainly interested in the milky Way, with and without foreground, and since you are only beginning to get to know your O-GPS1, I wouldn't start my tests with a 300mm lens. Something much wider can provide excellent Milky Way images - and the success rate in respect of calibration and tracking increases very much with decreasing focal length.

[interested_observer]

May I suggest that you get yourself a decent electronic star map, such as Cartes du Ciel/Sky Chart or Stellarium (both are freeware). That way you can plan your astrophotographic expeditions much better in advance (or verify what you have actually captured afterwards).

Since you are mainly interested in the milky Way, with and without foreground, and since you are only beginning to get to know your O-GPS1, I wouldn't start my tests with a 300mm lens. Something much wider can provide excellent Milky Way images - and the success rate in respect of calibration and tracking increases very much with decreasing focal length.

Morning Stone,

Thank you very much for the suggestions. I have a copy of Stellarium on my desk top that I use before going out, along with TPE for sun/moon rise/set times and directions. The 300 is at the end of my lens list for using. Its going to take me some time to get there. I am more interested in the 10-17, 8-16 and 12-24. I also have the 31 ltd and an old Contax (Zeiss) 28 along with a Voigtländer 20mm that I am wanting to use. I have ideas for each one. There are some really, really dark areas an hours drive away - Congress, AZ for one. Nothing around there - well down town, they do have a street light - I think. I need to load up the cooler (its getting hot out here) with ice tea and pepsi - and go on a road trip, this evening (gotta check the weather - Partly Cloudy, 98, all day/night with a tropical story off the California coast).

I have this little netbook (typing on it now) that I want to take out in the field, but it does not have a built in GPS and compass like the newer smart phones. I am thinking of perhaps getting an old smart phone for that and loading up a copy of Stellarium, so that I can just hold it up and wave it around the sky and see where I should point. All of that will come in due time. Actually, just downloaded Stellarium on this (the netbook) - something that I have been intending to do for some time.

I am just not adapt at finding my way around the heavens (...yet). I am more adapt (while sitting in an office chair) at clicking on M31 and having the coordinates pulled from the star database, having the trajectory automatically laid out across the mirror face and then having the instrument rotate in azimuth for the optimal set (beginning of observation through to the end of observation), rewinding the tracker to the initial tracking position and clicking on [start] (or engage).

[mikeSF]

here is one from last month down in Santa Cruz, CA, with the FA31 on the K5 and the O-GPS1

Night Passage

might view better on flickr: https://www.flickr.com/photos/mikeoria/13947113417/in/photostream/

[maxxxx]

here is one from last month down in Santa Cruz, CA, with the FA31 on the K5 and the O-GPS1

Night Passage

might view better on flickr: https://www.flickr.com/photos/mikeoria/13947113417/in/photostream/

Wow! That's really nice. Is this one exposure or several? That milky way looks great.