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DSLR Question...Please help



 
 
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  #1  
Old March 26th 06, 11:21 PM posted to sci.astro.ccd-imaging
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Default DSLR Question...Please help

After pondering the vaious Astro-photo options, I've decided the easiest way
to get what I'm after is buy a reasonable DSLR camera. I want good results
but am not looking for Hubble Quality. In fact, I really don't even want
color images---I want BW images but with some detail. I will do a lot of
lunar work, some solar too. I would like to capture DSOs as they appear in
the eyepiece with a decent telescope---and perhaps a better but color is not
important. Oh sure, I might occasionally play with color but really color is
not important. The reason for DSLR is that I do not want to drag a laptop
outside and all that is attendant with that mess. I now have a GM-8---the
tracking is excellent. Can you point me to website with some BW examples?

So---is there a DSLR that would achieve this without costing over $1,000 and
not needing to be modified? Minolta would be great as I have a TON of
Minolta stuff---all film.

Thanks for the help,

Doink


  #2  
Old September 11th 06, 08:33 AM posted to sci.astro.ccd-imaging
Anaxagoras
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Default DSLR Question...Please help

I got some pretty good results using the Nikon D-50 Digital SLR. It offers
a 6 Megapixel
CCD, automatic dark-frame subtraction to eliminate thermal noise, ISO
seetings of 200,
400, 800, 1600 ISO. The camera along with 2 Nikon lenses cost less than
$1000.00.
If you just want the camera body (no lenses) it will run about $550.00. I
got good results on some of the brighter Messier objects with about 10
minute exposures using a Celestron 11 SCT at f/10. If you are shooting from
the city, be prepared to do some processing to remove skyglow (it shows up
as an ugly orange/brown color, which can be removed by image processing
software). If you do decide to buy this model, be sure to purchase a remote
shutter release (wireless), which is needed to do bulb exposures that exceed
30 seconds. The wireless shutter release will run about $25.00 or so.

Hope this helps. And good luck in finding the right camera.


"Doink" wrote in message
...
After pondering the vaious Astro-photo options, I've decided the easiest
way to get what I'm after is buy a reasonable DSLR camera. I want good
results but am not looking for Hubble Quality. In fact, I really don't
even want color images---I want BW images but with some detail. I will do
a lot of lunar work, some solar too. I would like to capture DSOs as they
appear in the eyepiece with a decent telescope---and perhaps a better but
color is not important. Oh sure, I might occasionally play with color but
really color is not important. The reason for DSLR is that I do not want
to drag a laptop outside and all that is attendant with that mess. I now
have a GM-8---the tracking is excellent. Can you point me to website with
some BW examples?

So---is there a DSLR that would achieve this without costing over $1,000
and not needing to be modified? Minolta would be great as I have a TON of
Minolta stuff---all film.

Thanks for the help,

Doink



  #3  
Old September 11th 06, 03:19 PM posted to sci.astro.ccd-imaging
Chris L Peterson
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Default DSLR Question...Please help

On Mon, 11 Sep 2006 00:33:58 -0700, "Anaxagoras" wrote:

I got some pretty good results using the Nikon D-50 Digital SLR. It offers
a 6 Megapixel
CCD, automatic dark-frame subtraction to eliminate thermal noise..


Dark frames do not eliminate thermal noise. It is impossible to remove
any kind of noise from an image, other than by filtering operations that
also remove signal.

Bias, dark, and flat frames remove various sorts of fixed-pattern
systematic artifacts.

_________________________________________________

Chris L Peterson
Cloudbait Observatory
http://www.cloudbait.com
 




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