whatever you do dont shoot negs, shoot trannies

myself i would use velvia 100 or perhaps 64 if doing more star trails or longer exposes

the grain of velvia should be pleasing for such a task,

go onto flickr perhaps and search some astro film shots and see what those turkeys are using

What are the best cameras, lenses and tripods you would recommend for astrophotography without using a telescope?

First I would like to start with planets, and then try nebulae.

And also, are there any specific brands that are best for this, and why?

Thanks for any advice

Most astrophotographers lean towards Canon DSLRs, though for serious astrophotography these need to be modified. I’ve recently bought a Rebel XT, which I think will do for my purposes.

Planets are too small to be photographed without a fairly powerful astronomical telescope, needing at least 2000 mm focal length. Deep sky objects can be photographed using any lens, depending on their size. Single focal lengths prefered over zooms. The Nikon 180mm is highly regarded by many astrophotographers; you can buy an adapter to use it on a Canon body.

Unless you’re content with star trails, you will need some sort of powered mount in order to track the sky as the Earth rotates; you can build a simple "barn door tracker" yourself, A serious equatorial mount will cost you at least a thousand dollars.

Astrophotography is by far the most expensive and technically difficult aspect of amateur astronomy. I’d strongly recommend doing some reading before venturing any further. Terence Dickinson’s books, NightWatch and Backyard Astronomer’s Guide, both have good sections on astrophotography (be sure to get the latest editions for digital camera coverage), as is Michael Covington’s book.

[Edit] Nobody is using 35mm astronomically nowadays; digital is the only way to go. Astrophotography is difficult enough to learn, without tying yourself to slow and obsolete technology.

http://www.slas.us/gallery2/main.php?g2_itemId=2043

I have learned many of these techniques from various places online, and from tips from very good DSLR astrophotographers. I will not say these are the best methods for processing astro photos, and any tips are welcome. These methods have worked best for me, and I am always learning new tricks.

This is two photos of M42, the Great Orion Nebula. Image Info :

Shot the night of 11.25.09 from Southern UT

Image Info:
Scope : Orion 10″ F4.7 OTA
Camera : Canon Rebel XSi, (Self Modified)
Corrector : Baader MPCC
Mount : Orion Atlas EQ-G (EQMOD)
Images : 18 Lights @ 180sec ISO 800 – 12 Lights @ 10sec ISO 800 (core data)
9 Darks
10 Bias
Software : Subtraction in Iris, Registration stacking in Registar

If you not sure what any of the above means, google it

I plan on doing another series as well that goes over the basics of astrophotography, how to aquire the shots, the equipment needed, and how to get them ready for processing. This series is mainly for people who have already stacked an image, and are looking for good methods to stretch and process it for the final result.

In This Video:

I start with two photos, the first is a series of photos stacked to bring out the fainter part of the nebulae, the second is a series stacked to bring out the bright core. This video will show how to composite the “Bright” data with the “Core” data to bring the core data back in the bright image. This is one with a simple layer mask.

Enjoy!

Duration : 0:3:28

[youtube tIg9KNpN6uA]

Song: Meeting in the Aisle – Radiohead

To see more of my astrophotography, please visit:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/capella_891/

Featured images:
1 – 47 Tucanae
2 – Barnard’s Galaxy (NGC 6822)
3 – Bubble Nebula (NGC 7635)
4 – Crescent Nebula (NGC 6888)
5 – Christmas Tree Cluster/Cone Nebula Region
6 – The Running Chicken (IC 2944)
7 – Dumbbell Nebula (M27)
8 – Outburst of Comet 17P/Holmes – 11-20-07
9 – Cocoon Nebula (IC 5146)
10 – Crab Nebula (M1)
11 – Eagle Nebula (M16)
12 – Trifid Nebula (M20)
13 – IC 342
Video 1 – Comet 8P/Tuttle and M33 – 12-30-07
14 – Lagoon Nebula (M8)
15 – Helix Nebula (NGC 7293)
16 – The Pleiades (M45)
17 – Silver Coin Galaxy (NGC 253)
18 – Double Cluster (NGC 869/884)
19 – Omega Nebula (M17)
20 – Pinwheel Galaxy (M101)
21 – Pelican Nebula (IC 5070)
22 – Veil Nebula (NGC 6992)
23 – Whirlpool Galaxy (M51)
24 – Omega Centauri (NGC 5139)
25 – Eta Carinae Nebula (NGC 3372)
Video 2 – Flyby of NEO asteroid 2007 TU24 – 1-29-08

Duration : 0:3:13

[youtube 1HzoFbxJrw0]

Photo’s in order of appearance:

-Evostar 120 telescope attached to point and shoot camera
-Moon (Alpine and Apennine Mountains)
-First quarter moon closeup
-9 day old moon
-Partial solar eclipse March 2006
-Telecsope and DSLR camera pointing at eclipsed moon
-Andromeda galaxy core
-Crescent moon
-Comet Holmes
-Eclipse of the moon (March 2007)
-Saturn
-Jupiter
-Albireo double star
-The Crab Nebula
-Deep sky imaging setup
-The Whirlpool Galaxy
-The Leo Triplet Galaxies
-The Pleiades (7 sisters)
-The Hercules Globular Cluster
-M81 Galaxy
-Andromeda Galaxy
-Saturn (2008)
-The Pinwheel Galaxy
-Moon/Saturn occultation
-Copernicus crater on the moon
-NGC4565 edge on galaxy
-The Orion Nebula
-The Western Veil Nebula
-Milkyway (Summer triangle)
-Milkyway Horizon (taken near Slapton, Devon)
-The Moon, Venus and St Mary’s Church, Bridgwater

Duration : 0:2:36

[youtube ClC8zkzzM6Q]

Duration : 0:7:0

[youtube FYeAzrE9I7E]

http://www.stellarium.org/
http://www.youtube.com/user/SiriusStargazing
http://www.britastro.org/dark-skies/index.html

Duration : 0:5:35

[youtube yr0HqPOgh5k]

Duration : 0:3:17

[youtube bMGZ5X0itt8]

Duration : 0:3:15

[youtube HAjrW8g498Y]

Duration : 0:9:59

[youtube yWLhgt_ET6I]