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09-03-2010, 02:00 PM - 1 Like   #1
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Astrophotography

Does anyone know if a K200D would be any good for astrophotography? I'm interested of taking pictures of the milky way and other deep space imagery. What lense(s) would I need?

09-03-2010, 04:08 PM   #2
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QuoteOriginally posted by iClick Quote
Does anyone know if a K200D would be any good for astrophotography? I'm interested of taking pictures of the milky way and other deep space imagery. What lense(s) would I need?
I've never done it but looked into Astrophotography. I think most people get a t-mount adaptor and put that on a telescope and attached the body straight to the telescope. You also need a way to smoothly track or else you get smearing.

I've seen decent results of nearer stuff with a 75-300mm. <----link to the photo.

They used an old 8mp Rebel 350d. The k200d runs circles around that camera so you should be fine with your k200d.
09-03-2010, 05:31 PM   #3
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Astro = how deep are your pockets. None of the even OK stuff is cheap. Just saying.
Surely bunch of experts will chime in.
"Lenses" is one thing, what really matters in long exposures is the mount and its ability to track smoothly. And BTW, almost any camera will do.
And there is lot more to it. Alignment and atmospherics come to mind to start with.

Mike.

Last edited by Ex Finn.; 09-03-2010 at 05:42 PM.
09-03-2010, 05:34 PM   #4
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QuoteOriginally posted by iClick Quote
Does anyone know if a K200D would be any good for astrophotography? I'm interested of taking pictures of the milky way and other deep space imagery. What lense(s) would I need?
The Cloudy Nights forums have all the information you need to get started.

Telescope Reviews: Viewing forum: Beginners Forum

09-03-2010, 05:55 PM   #5
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Too bad the cn group does not have a Pentax section dedicated to people like me with limited funds..

Last edited by Ex Finn.; 09-03-2010 at 07:13 PM.
09-03-2010, 06:15 PM   #6
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I do see images on the internet taken with short to medium telephotos. If you keep an eye out for long enough, you can find someone unloading all of their telephoto equipment on places like Craigslist. I have a Pentax SDUF II scope coming and it should be here on Tuesday or so and their are others on the forum using other scopes with their Pentax cameras. The telescope are usually around 1000mm as most of the magnification is via the eyepiece. The SDUF II tube is only 400mm, so I'll need to figure out how to add a lens to the setup. The nice thing about the Pentax scopes is that they were designed with Astrophotography in mind and will use K mount, 645 and 67 gear.

Cheers,
Steve
09-03-2010, 07:24 PM   #7
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QuoteOriginally posted by smc Quote
I do see images on the internet taken with short to medium telephotos. If you keep an eye out for long enough, you can find someone unloading all of their telephoto equipment on places like Craigslist. I have a Pentax SDUF II scope coming and it should be here on Tuesday or so and their are others on the forum using other scopes with their Pentax cameras. The telescope are usually around 1000mm as most of the magnification is via the eyepiece. The SDUF II tube is only 400mm, so I'll need to figure out how to add a lens to the setup. The nice thing about the Pentax scopes is that they were designed with Astrophotography in mind and will use K mount, 645 and 67 gear.

Cheers,
Steve
You landed one of the multi thousand dollar, legendary, Pentax SDUF refractors?. Please post some images when you have a chance.

Cheers, Mike.

09-03-2010, 07:47 PM   #8
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Will do. Someone unloaded their whole kit, including tripod, counterweights, electronic focus, a clock drive, bunch of tubes etc.

I was trying to find some shots on here where people took some terrific pics with standard telephotos. I can't find them right now but they are here somewhere...
09-03-2010, 10:13 PM - 3 Likes   #9
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QuoteOriginally posted by iClick Quote
Does anyone know if a K200D would be any good for astrophotography? I'm interested of taking pictures of the milky way and other deep space imagery. What lense(s) would I need?
iClick,
I'm sorry but you are getting some advice that might be discouraging here. You don't need deep pockets and telescopes to do modern astrophotography. All you need is some knowledge of the latest techniques, and some patience. The key is "stacking" You can read a lot about it online if you search. There is even free software to help you. I also recommend an excellent reference: "A guide to Astrophotography with Digital SLR Cameras" by Lodriguss. It is worth the small fee. You can easily start with your k200d and get some great shots as you learn the direction you really want to go in.

Here is a quick shot of Saggitarius in the Milky Way, I took using nothing more than a K-7 and an FA35 f/2 lens, no tracking. It is 8 images at 3200 ISO, "stacked." The k-7 is not known for good high-ISO but using the stacking technique, I could get acceptable shots. You will be able to do the same with your k200d.


Last edited by PentaxPoke; 09-03-2010 at 10:23 PM.
09-03-2010, 10:52 PM - 1 Like   #10
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QuoteOriginally posted by PentaxPoke Quote
iClick,
I'm sorry but you are getting some advice that might be discouraging here. You don't need deep pockets and telescopes to do modern astrophotography.
It's true. To be quite honest, if I can get a shot like that, I'd be lucky. This is one of the telephotos photos I was hoping to see. I'm very excited about what I have showing up and it was nice to see a post from someone with the same interests. Wasn't meant to cloud the issue. (no pun intended)
09-03-2010, 11:44 PM   #11
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Google something called registax, it's an excellent free stacking app. This is the moon using it, again K-7:



That's relatively easy, I'm just getting into this and I havn't tried what PentaxPoke did but surely it can't be long
09-04-2010, 08:15 AM   #12
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Moon with K-7 and 160-600 mm Vivitar @ 600mm

09-04-2010, 11:45 AM   #13
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"You don't need deep pockets and telescopes to do modern astrophotography"
True enough but is does not hurt to have some dough to throw at it.

Nice shot of the milky-way. I am stuck in middle of serious light pollution.

Last edited by Ex Finn.; 09-04-2010 at 02:29 PM.
09-04-2010, 02:12 PM   #14
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QuoteOriginally posted by Nass Quote
Google something called registax, it's an excellent free stacking app. This is the moon using it, again K-7:



That's relatively easy, I'm just getting into this and I havn't tried what PentaxPoke did but surely it can't be long
Nice shot Nass. You really don't need stacking for a moon shot. The reason is that the moon is considered a "daylight object" and as such you can use low ISO. Stacking is most useful for deep-space objects where in the past we would have to use very long exposures, tracking, and high ISO. Stacking simply is a way to increase the signal to noise ratio of your pictures. I will spare the details, but there are some excellent reference on it. For those that are new, I think this site is very helpful: http://www.astropix.com/
09-04-2010, 02:34 PM   #15
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Good link, nice images.
"Lens: Astro-Physics 130EDT f/8 Triplet Apochromatic Refractor "
And what is the current street on the new replacement for that AP triplett?. Cause I would not mind having one.
Money talks.

Last edited by Ex Finn.; 09-04-2010 at 02:43 PM.
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