Shooting the night sky.

[He-Man]

Originally Posted by One

I'd recommend a wide (20mm or less) and quick (f2.8 or lower) lens, high ISO setting and somewhere away from light pollution.

Got a 35mm and a 18-55. High ISO? Read somewhere else I should switch NR off.

[One]

Originally Posted by He-Man

Got a 35mm and a 18-55. High ISO? Read somewhere else I should switch NR off.

Yeah you want the NR off. The NR will 'think' that the stars are noise so it'll try and get rid of them. The high ISO will make the sensor more sensitive to light, therefore picking up more stars.

[smoker]

1. Go somewhere dark
2. Use a shutter release cable
3. Use a fast lens (eg f2.8)
4. Use a fixed tripod or an equatorial tracking mount - you cannot take astro shots hand-held
5. Set the lens to widest aperture
6. Use a high ISO that isn't too noisy (eg 800 or 1600)
7. Focus on a bright star using test shots (eg 10secs ISO3200) or live view - try to get the star as small as possible.
8. Exposure length should be as long as possible - if using a fixed tripod, the maximum exposure will be 600/F (where F is the focal length) before motion of stars (relatively speaking) will show up in your pics. To this end, it is generally better to use a wide lens if you do not have a tracking mount

Post your pics up