How to Take Star Pictures without a Telescope

[buckynance]

That looks like a Pentax K-1000. That was my first camera and I have had it for 25 years. IT STILL WORKS TODAY!!!

I use a dark towel to cover the lense and have used tape to hold the shutter open and hold the button down. It works just as well as the extended release.

[epicfantasy]

@buckynance Yup, I love that camera. Pentax K-100. Solid as a rock. Nice improvising! Send me pics :) Would love to see them, post them to my site.

[OnlyForComments1001]

Almost sounds like Lou Ferrigno

[ilichxtrm]

Thank you so much!!... your tip its very usefull!!

[exaroth912]

very informative, thank You :)

[mattfox14]

This might be stupid, but if your going to leave the shutter open for 4 hours, wouldnt the stars of moved, sort of giving you long streaks on the image?

[epicfantasy]

@mattfox14 yes, you are exactly right. If you leave the shutter open for long period of time the stars leave trails. It's rather neat looking.

[tommi32]

thanx man,,,,,helpful video

[traktap]

Awesome!!! You are simply great ... Thanks for sharing 

[Marist83USA]

Thanks for the tutorial. I just borrowed a friend's old Praktica TL1000 for a trip. Can you tell me more about the lenses? The camera came with 3 lenses, & I don't know anything about them. It has the Bulb(B) setting like what you're talking about on this video. We'll be 10,000 feet above a crater & would like to take photos of stars. I appreciate any advice you can give.

[Euph0ria74]

I used to use the bulb/rubber band setting back when I was in 9th grade to take photos during a lightning storm. Most narrow Fstop with 100iso film, which works out great because the lightning is so bright, and the slow film and tiny aperture allows for long exposure times for ambient light between lightning strikes, and very crisp photos. Also used the "cover the lens" trick. :)

[alphacrucis1]

He forget to mention the equatorial mount. To take photos with long exposion (over 15 seconds), you have to use one because of the earth rotation, that cause deformation on the stars.

I'm from Brazil, and I also take photos of the sky using a sony dsc h20 + tripod. I have a telescope too (newtonian 135mm, home made), but I can't take pics of DSO with it. But I already start to work in my equatorial mount.

[vravon]

Great idea using the hat! Hats off to you!

Vince Ravon.

[kodykills]

Great video, thanks for posting this!

[wjj4832]

Hey, thanks for the hat trick! Really helpful!

[szaki]

... and make sure you take it at a dark site, not in the back yard next to street light.

otherwise picture gets over exposed !

[snowboarderr1234]

is that a cannon ftb, first gen? looks like it. also you can lock the mirror so only the shutter moves when you take the picture, but i hadn't though of putting something in front of the camera to block the light, great idea. Good video!

[epicfantasy]

thanks and thanks for watching. It's a Pentax K-1000 camera. if you take any pics send em to me; would love to post them to my telescope nerd websie!

[mike20021969]

the photo at 2m58s is out of focus.

moving the camera causes trails not blobs.

[willssonglist]

Thanks! I am definitely learning as I go! Was fun to do though. If you have any sky/astronomy photos I would love to put them on my website! telescopenerd. I have more pictures coming though. Winter skies here in new england are clear and crisp!

[garryyL]

he's talking about movement from just holding it up.. not a drastic movement that one would do purposefully for an effect or something.

[tropicallanterns]

@mike20021969 you are wrong, shaking a camera on a tripod WILL cause blobs because the camera movement is more circular than linear

[TheMusicPiper]

@tropicallanterns but the sort of blobs he's showing us are out of focus blobs

[duckling2405]

Brilliant epic, can it get any better? Well knowing you it will!