Posted by Ken Smith on January 26, 2015 at 3:01 PM
I got a Vixen Polarie star tracker for Christmas. Last night it was mounted and tested for the first time. A couple attempts at eye-balling the North star was the most difficult task. This necessary task to align the tracker took about 10 min including reviewing initial exposures, then re-do’s. The tracker is about the size of a paperback book. Looking through a little peep-hole to sight it was made easier by the tall tripod used. Otherwise, I would recommend bringing a folding chair and having a seat (my back is not what it used to be…).
Once I felt ‘close-enough'…this shot was composed. Two sky shots merged together which were exposed around 7:15PM. The foreground was exposed around 5:30PM. And I was back home by 8:30PM…
My wife: why don’t you do ALL your sky night-shooting in winter so you don’t have to wait till 11PM? Good point.
I need to figure out what color tints suit these night shots. I have seen and composed a lot of blueish and seen some with golds and other tints. I’ll be experimenting.
Sky: F4, 195 seconds shutter, ISO 100, Zeiss 35mm.
Posted by Steve Kennedy on January 27, 2015 at 12:53 AM
As Will Smith said in Independence Day, "I gotta get me one of these!" That looks great. 195 seconds? 195 seconds! And no trails! Great detail too.
You did a real nice job with your blend (cloning). Good exposure on the mountain and the foreground.
Posted by Dennis Plank on January 27, 2015 at 8:39 AM
Very cool image, Ken. I've been thinking about doing some star scape stuff and this looks like a great accessory.
Thanks,
Posted by Allen Brooks on January 28, 2015 at 6:55 PM
For those interested in this type of photography you might also check out Sky Watcher Star Adventurer and iOPTRON Sky Tracker. The former has an optional equatorial mount and an 11.1 lb capacity; this seems to be a new addition to the field and it's hard to find a lot of reviews. The later is currently on sale (probably to compete with the Sky Watcher product and has a 7.7 lb capacity. All three are sold through B&H.
Discussion
3 repliesOnce I felt ‘close-enough'…this shot was composed. Two sky shots merged together which were exposed around 7:15PM. The foreground was exposed around 5:30PM. And I was back home by 8:30PM…
My wife: why don’t you do ALL your sky night-shooting in winter so you don’t have to wait till 11PM? Good point.
I need to figure out what color tints suit these night shots. I have seen and composed a lot of blueish and seen some with golds and other tints. I’ll be experimenting.
Sky: F4, 195 seconds shutter, ISO 100, Zeiss 35mm.
You did a real nice job with your blend (cloning). Good exposure on the mountain and the foreground.
Thanks,