@Plank WithANailIn An ineffective attempt at disinformation given how easy it is to check prices online. FYI, the entry level for Astrotracer currently is about $700US for a K-70 body (APS-C) and the O-GPS1 GPS accessory for the hotshoe. Add a 18-135mm kit lens for another $250 or choose from many perfectly good vintage Pentax primes for around $100 each. Not exactly what I would call expensive.
Pentax cameras are the best for capability for the price. In no way could you consider Pentax expensive. I’ve owned three Pentax flagship dSLRs, and they were considerably cheaper than any alternatives while offering features unavailable elsewhere (sensor stabilization, weather sealing, and astro tracer).
They don't do almost no marketing/advertising and unfortunately the quality and quantity of marketing is more important than the quality of the actual product itself to get attention of buyers. If one actually searches for what's best for one's needs rather than just checking out what is advertised, the Pentax cameras in many cases turn out to be the best choice. Before buying my first DSLR I didn't even know Pentax made them. I thought it was just Nikon, Canon, Sony, Minolta and some others of which I had seen adverts. However when I actually searched for all brands of SLR and compared the Pentax came out as a clear winner. I was looking mainly for low noise but also features and it surpassed cameras costing 3 times as much back then. The areas where Pentax are surpassed by some other brands are video and action photography which I think Pentax doesn't even put much effort into. For anything else it is difficult to surpass, such as landscapes, product photography, architecture, low light, macro - indeed anything that does not need to be done in a hurry. That said, it is still way better at action photography than many on the internet would have you believe. It is actually still very good, just not among the best.
This week I photographed the Pleiades using astrotracer on my Pentax KP (300mm f:4 lens). At 90 second exposure the stars came out nice and round and the nebulocity was obvious. Thanks for this introduction Cuiv, it reminded me that I should use astrotracer more.
I purchased a k70 and hope to do night time landscapes with starry skies. Long time photographer but new to this night time stuff. Should be fun since I live at the ocean with plenty of darkness.
I sold my scope back in september - for which I got a buyer unexpectedly fast - to buy a new one which is since back ordered -.- thanks for all the great videos I can watch in the mean time
Great! I have used O-GPS1 with my KP. Now I have a K3-III and I use it's Astrotracer mode 3: the GPS is no longer required, and NO calibration! Works perfectly with my excellent Sigma 18-35mm f/1.8.
I use this facility with my KP and my K3 (both need the GPS module) and can confirm that it works! Great for the Milky Way or simple astrophotography targets such as the Orion Nebula.
Nice introduction to Pentax astrotracer, I'm looking forward to seeing the results you get with this system. Pentax allows the use of the internal intervalometer, with astrotracer, on the Kp, hopefully it will be available on future models too. Have fun with your new system.
You addressed the exact small oversight from Pentax on astrotracer without interval shooting. Else, it is a fantastic camera feature. I am yet to explore two options on this interval shooting. 1. Use a standard equitorial mount and use non bulb mode and set interval settings. The eq motor does the job for the camera. 2. Use an external intervalometer and compose multiple images upto the limit of astrotracer (2 mins?). Say 10 images with 2 secs of gap between each shot. Did you also know that Pentax accepts Canon's intervalometer? So honest, to make it simple and eco friendly.
I heard that the K-3 II (and the upcoming APS-C flagship) actually have the intervalometer working with Astrotracer! Which is good news, but doesn't help me. I ended up getting an external intervalometer...
seems quite useful for those wanting to get a bunch of compositions in one night but shoot longer than like 15seconds per frame. really a sleeper feature. kinda want to rent one and compare it to my 6Ds
That is super cool. Lots of potential for all brands and devices, especially gimbals. I wonder what the mechanical accuracy of a common gimbal is when properly controlled.
I was looking at a K3 ii, as I am in the market for a new camera. I'm just on the fence on whether I should go mirrorless or the K3. I am not heavily invested in any particular brand so no issues there.
The issue with buying a Pentax DSLR is the lens selection. Some of the best lenses for AP are not available in K-mount. However, that never affected me personally because I can't afford those lenses anyway. I just use vintage Pentax primes which in most cases are available on eBay for around $100US. If you want mirrorless, you could wait for Canon to release a mirrorless with sensor-shift shake reduction and an Astrotracer-like function. They do have a patent but have not acted on it.
Consider the Pentax kp instead of the K3ii. No, it isn’t the flagship model. But, it is much newer (better sensor), and is cheaper. When my much loved K5 shattered on a hard fall in granite, I replaced it with the kp.
If you're looking at a DSLR for general photography, I would say that as Alen mentions, I'd probably go the Canon or Nikon or Sony way because lenses and innovation (Pentax is stagnating). I went Pentax ONLY because of Astrotracer - and I was planning on getting the KP that Daniel mentions before the K-1 sorta fell on my lap...
Cuiv, The Lazy Geek : I can’t disagree With your recommendations. You’re technical enough: check out Sigma cameras. There’s some real special magic going on. 👍🏻
Is the Pentax Astrotracer in the K-1 somehow limited in its functions compared to a proper skytracker mount? I consider to buy a new camera, and started to look closer to the Pentax K-1 when I noticed it has a built in Astrotracer. I am using a Pentax K10D since 2010, its still working fine. I´m really flashed at the moment concerning to milkyway and deepsky photographie. Usually I was looking for a new camera which has better filming abilities, and didn´t look for Pentax anymore, as we all know Pentax camers still are not good for taking videos. But the Astrotracer function really got me back to Pentax. But somehow I think I maybe expect to much from this Astrotracer function.
Yes Pentax very good! I own a K5 + Astrotracer easy 1min capture MW , also wide field DSO in 80-200mm range in 16sec , maybe K1 can do better job! Astrotracer have limited time tracking before light banding on one corner in the frams.
Hi i wonder if you could advice i need to cancel INT mode in my Pentax k1 but failed any idea how to do it? i switched cam off but did not work INt still there when ever i click shutter will appreciate your support.
👏.Hi I live close to equator in Northern hemisphere . I would like to know how to do polar alignment with or without polar scope.How do I find the direction of celestial pole axis.
Well I'm not sure... I assume you don't have visibility of Polaris as it would be very low on the horizon. If so, you need to try PHD2 drift alignment, or NINA's polar alignment routine...
Hi! You have mentioned tilt as an issue. Do you mean that the sensor is not moving in the same direction as a regular tracker and how would that show in the final image? I am considering a K-1 for deep sky photography and would like a simple setup that would still allow me to take high quality images of orion nebula for example.
I am new to astrophotography and am looking at a pentax K70, what is the best lens to use for astrophotography and is the O-GPS1 GPS unit easy to use, does it run on its own battery supply or the cameras, does it need to be replaced after so many uses?
I'd love to see more sample shots using this feature. Not gonna lie, I'm a bit skeptical, but willing to change my mind once I see the results :) What about very long exposures, say more than 2 minutes? Is there enough sensor movement range for that? Does it account for field rotation? If not, widefield exposures are going to have blurry stars near the edges of the field.
The sensor shift has enough range for up to five minutes with a 50mm lens. Shorter FLs would allow longer exposures but the camera limits to 5 min max. However, other factors limit exposures below the theoretical limits. I use K-3II (APS-C) and I don't usually go beyond 2min from 28mm up to 50mm, 60s for 100mm, 30s for 200mm or 20s for 300mm. Multiply by 1.5 for FF. The sensor shifts and rotates, so there is no field rotation during exposures. However, since the sensor moves under the lens, rectilinear distortion causes trailing at frame edges with wide-angle lenses, again limiting exposure times: on APS-C 30s is okay at 18mm. Internet searches will find many Astrotracer images. A few of my own are here: www.astrobin.com/users/AlenK/
I used Astrotracer last night on M31 which for me (Australia 34degS) peeks over the horizon in the north for only a couple of hours. I was surprised I was able to do over 2mins with a 300mm lens. If pointing closer to the celestial equator the movement will exceed the range of the sensor in a much shorter time. I found It works best for wide field 15 - 50mm with no trailing on 3-5min exposure depending on the direction. ( the camera calculates a maximum time based in the focal length and your orientation and position on the planet.) Maximum exposure time reduces for longer lenses but I have had some sucess with 70, 100, 135 and up to 300mm lenses. Field rotation is compensated for but again limited by the range of travel of the sensor. An ultra wide (Sigma 8-16 @8mm was a little disappointing but i think is effected by field curvature rather than field rotation. One caveat is that the sensor obviously resets position after each sub. If shooting a specific target with a longer lens, your target keeps moving so will drift out of the frame requiring manual adjustment of ball head/tripod. That is not the case for an EQ mount which will keep tracking and centred on the target. For wider field Milky Way shots the Astrotracer is an effective solution and can be used for some larger(easier?) targets eg M31, M42 etc within limits. Disclaimer: I have been a Pentax user since the 80's and bought the O-GPS module before the learning about star trackers. I don't think I would necessarily buy a Pentax specifically for this feature instead of a small EQ mount or startracker if already invested in another system but it is certainly a clever and useful feature if you already have a compatible Pentax.
@ Steve Allan. It sounds like you are reaching or getting near the maximum theoretical tracking times with your lenses. You are fortunate. Whatever you are doing right, keep it up. The exposure times I quoted, btw, were for pixel-accurate round stars for 100% of the subs. I can go longer if I am willing to throw some subs out but that is not a wise strategy when doing large stacks (I rarely do single exposure images).
I tried astrotracker with my 500mm lens I can go around 15 seconds before star trails. I mount the lens to tri- pod and calibrated the camera without the lens on the camera I then attached the camera to the lens it worked fine . I got pictures of stars I could not see with my naked eyes . I had to count the beeps to get the exposure time and yes not being able to use the intervolumter is just plain stupid what was Pentax thinking ?
15 seconds with 500mm is doing great. Re the intervalometer not working with Astrotracer, yes, it seems like an unfortunate oversight. However, apparently the intervalometer on the KP does work with Astrotracer. I expect they will also work together on any future models, such as the upcoming K-3II replacement.
I didn't know that about the KP! It would be really neat if we could get a firmware update for other cameras to do that... Actually looking at the K-1 manual it tells me it should be available, so now I'm confused!
@@CuivTheLazyGeek The table "Restrictions on the Combinations of Special Functions" on page 107 in the K-1 manual shows an "X" at the intersection of the "Astrotracer" and "Interval Shooting" functions, i.e., they can't be used together. The same table in the KP manual shows a hashtag, which means they can be used together but with a restriction, in this case "Only when the timed exposure is set."
Cuiv, how have you been getting on with the Pentax K1 and astro tracer since this tutorial video first aired? It would be good to get an update, i've got the K1 and a few fast lenses but, haven't used it in astro tracer mode yet.
Still haven't really used it in the field, I am thinking about getting the Samyang 135mm f2 lens and getting the camera astromoded. But like finding the right lenses is difficult!
With excellent intervalometers available for about $30, that Astrotracer doesn't support the internal function is irrelevant. If you are using the camera for other than astrophotography, you should have a cable release as part of your kit, anyway. The K70 has an intervalometer function internally, but you need a cable release to properly use the bulb function - touching the camera to initiate and terminate bulb is a big no-no. The self timer method of shutter release isn't always appropriate, either - sometimes you want mirror lockup, and the intervalometer/cable release allows that without touching the camera.
Hi Cuiv, wow do you live on a different planet? surely you don't have 2 hour days and you can't have so many clear nights to do all of this? For me in UK last two weeks plus have been washouts including a flood alert ! thanks for this as always for highlighting something that is new. oh you have clouds in your planet too! are they as frequent as planet England? Would you believe, because of the clouds I started to do a Tamiya model and to pain it you need preferably sunny days without much clouds so the paint can dry well. So the next hobby to try is to learn about clouds now. There certainly were less clouds during full lockdown. I am sure this is global warming thing. Part of the ice that is melting is endling up in the skies above. In the near to not too distant future we may not have enough sunny days, I reckon. hmm...
I definitely have had terrible weather... this video was taking very quickly during an early evening where stars were visible for a few seconds through the clouds! I actually am studying clouds since I paraglide :D
You don't need to walk away from the tripod when you're calibrating the adtrotracer. You need to stay away from strong magnetic fields, or easily magnetizable materials such as iron. Most tripods are made of aluminum so it's not a problem.
So happy to see your video on Pentax’s astro tracer! For reasons I do not understand, Pentax cameras do not get the attention they deserve.
Its because the models the offer are either expensive or really expensive so are very niche, its really not that hard to understand.
@Plank WithANailIn An ineffective attempt at disinformation given how easy it is to check prices online. FYI, the entry level for Astrotracer currently is about $700US for a K-70 body (APS-C) and the O-GPS1 GPS accessory for the hotshoe. Add a 18-135mm kit lens for another $250 or choose from many perfectly good vintage Pentax primes for around $100 each. Not exactly what I would call expensive.
Pentax cameras are the best for capability for the price. In no way could you consider Pentax expensive. I’ve owned three Pentax flagship dSLRs, and they were considerably cheaper than any alternatives while offering features unavailable elsewhere (sensor stabilization, weather sealing, and astro tracer).
They don't do almost no marketing/advertising and unfortunately the quality and quantity of marketing is more important than the quality of the actual product itself to get attention of buyers.
If one actually searches for what's best for one's needs rather than just checking out what is advertised, the Pentax cameras in many cases turn out to be the best choice.
Before buying my first DSLR I didn't even know Pentax made them. I thought it was just Nikon, Canon, Sony, Minolta and some others of which I had seen adverts. However when I actually searched for all brands of SLR and compared the Pentax came out as a clear winner. I was looking mainly for low noise but also features and it surpassed cameras costing 3 times as much back then.
The areas where Pentax are surpassed by some other brands are video and action photography which I think Pentax doesn't even put much effort into. For anything else it is difficult to surpass, such as landscapes, product photography, architecture, low light, macro - indeed anything that does not need to be done in a hurry. That said, it is still way better at action photography than many on the internet would have you believe. It is actually still very good, just not among the best.
This week I photographed the Pleiades using astrotracer on my Pentax KP (300mm f:4 lens). At 90 second exposure the stars came out nice and round and the nebulocity was obvious. Thanks for this introduction Cuiv, it reminded me that I should use astrotracer more.
I purchased a k70 and hope to do night time landscapes with starry skies. Long time photographer but new to this night time stuff. Should be fun since I live at the ocean with plenty of darkness.
I sold my scope back in september - for which I got a buyer unexpectedly fast - to buy a new one which is since back ordered -.- thanks for all the great videos I can watch in the mean time
Hope that scope arrives soon!
Great! I have used O-GPS1 with my KP. Now I have a K3-III and I use it's Astrotracer mode 3: the GPS is no longer required, and NO calibration! Works perfectly with my excellent Sigma 18-35mm f/1.8.
Their mode 3 is so ingenious!
This tool is very amazing. It works with the K5 as well.
I use this facility with my KP and my K3 (both need the GPS module) and can confirm that it works! Great for the Milky Way or simple astrophotography targets such as the Orion Nebula.
Nice introduction to Pentax astrotracer, I'm looking forward to seeing the results you get with this system. Pentax allows the use of the internal intervalometer, with astrotracer, on the Kp, hopefully it will be available on future models too. Have fun with your new system.
I didn't know that about the KP! It would be really neat if we could get a firmware update for other cameras to do that... Thanks!
This is a great starting point on how to get it setup (I've got the Pentax K-3 ii). Can't wait till the sun goes down! WHoop!
You addressed the exact small oversight from Pentax on astrotracer without interval shooting. Else, it is a fantastic camera feature.
I am yet to explore two options on this interval shooting.
1. Use a standard equitorial mount and use non bulb mode and set interval settings. The eq motor does the job for the camera.
2. Use an external intervalometer and compose multiple images upto the limit of astrotracer (2 mins?). Say 10 images with 2 secs of gap between each shot.
Did you also know that Pentax accepts Canon's intervalometer? So honest, to make it simple and eco friendly.
I heard that the K-3 II (and the upcoming APS-C flagship) actually have the intervalometer working with Astrotracer! Which is good news, but doesn't help me.
I ended up getting an external intervalometer...
seems quite useful for those wanting to get a bunch of compositions in one night but shoot longer than like 15seconds per frame. really a sleeper feature. kinda want to rent one and compare it to my 6Ds
Great video! We certainly have a most weather related hobby.
For sure!
That is super cool. Lots of potential for all brands and devices, especially gimbals. I wonder what the mechanical accuracy of a common gimbal is when properly controlled.
Yes, it would be so cool to have an open source astrotracing gimbal with GPS.... Mmmh maybe I should do a kickstarter :p
I was looking at a K3 ii, as I am in the market for a new camera. I'm just on the fence on whether I should go mirrorless or the K3. I am not heavily invested in any particular brand so no issues there.
The issue with buying a Pentax DSLR is the lens selection. Some of the best lenses for AP are not available in K-mount. However, that never affected me personally because I can't afford those lenses anyway. I just use vintage Pentax primes which in most cases are available on eBay for around $100US.
If you want mirrorless, you could wait for Canon to release a mirrorless with sensor-shift shake reduction and an Astrotracer-like function. They do have a patent but have not acted on it.
Consider the Pentax kp instead of the K3ii. No, it isn’t the flagship model. But, it is much newer (better sensor), and is cheaper. When my much loved K5 shattered on a hard fall in granite, I replaced it with the kp.
If you're looking at a DSLR for general photography, I would say that as Alen mentions, I'd probably go the Canon or Nikon or Sony way because lenses and innovation (Pentax is stagnating). I went Pentax ONLY because of Astrotracer - and I was planning on getting the KP that Daniel mentions before the K-1 sorta fell on my lap...
Cuiv, The Lazy Geek : I can’t disagree With your recommendations. You’re technical enough: check out Sigma cameras. There’s some real special magic going on. 👍🏻
I have the K-70 and bought the gps module. Astro tracking does work but it is tricky to use.
Is the Pentax Astrotracer in the K-1 somehow limited in its functions compared to a proper skytracker mount? I consider to buy a new camera, and started to look closer to the Pentax K-1 when I noticed it has a built in Astrotracer. I am using a Pentax K10D since 2010, its still working fine. I´m really flashed at the moment concerning to milkyway and deepsky photographie. Usually I was looking for a new camera which has better filming abilities, and didn´t look for Pentax anymore, as we all know Pentax camers still are not good for taking videos. But the Astrotracer function really got me back to Pentax. But somehow I think I maybe expect to much from this Astrotracer function.
Yes Pentax very good! I own a K5 + Astrotracer easy 1min capture MW , also wide field DSO in 80-200mm range in 16sec , maybe K1 can do better job! Astrotracer have limited time tracking before light banding on one corner in the frams.
I have taken many, many Astrotracer images over the last two years and have not encountered any light banding. Perhaps there is another explanation.
Cloudy nights are great to create your channel's intro and outro. 😏
I know I should! But I am terrible at creating such things...!
Hi i wonder if you could advice i need to cancel INT mode in my Pentax k1 but failed any idea how to do it? i switched cam off but did not work INt still there when ever i click shutter will appreciate your support.
👏.Hi I live close to equator in Northern hemisphere . I would like to know how to do polar alignment with or without polar scope.How do I find the direction of celestial pole axis.
Well I'm not sure... I assume you don't have visibility of Polaris as it would be very low on the horizon. If so, you need to try PHD2 drift alignment, or NINA's polar alignment routine...
@@CuivTheLazyGeek Thank youfor the reply
Hello I ve have problem whith the astrotracer calibration. Could you help me?
Hi! You have mentioned tilt as an issue. Do you mean that the sensor is not moving in the same direction as a regular tracker and how would that show in the final image? I am considering a K-1 for deep sky photography and would like a simple setup that would still allow me to take high quality images of orion nebula for example.
I am new to astrophotography and am looking at a pentax K70, what is the best lens to use for astrophotography and is the O-GPS1 GPS unit easy to use, does it run on its own battery supply or the cameras, does it need to be replaced after so many uses?
I'd love to see more sample shots using this feature. Not gonna lie, I'm a bit skeptical, but willing to change my mind once I see the results :)
What about very long exposures, say more than 2 minutes? Is there enough sensor movement range for that? Does it account for field rotation? If not, widefield exposures are going to have blurry stars near the edges of the field.
Maybe that answers some questions of yours: milkywayphotographers.com/article/2019/04/26/pentax-astrotracer-guide-what-it-is-and-how-to-use-it/
A single 50sec shot of the M51, Pentax K-70/O-GPS1 with an old M200mm f4 lens: flic.kr/p/2hHh2BE
The sensor shift has enough range for up to five minutes with a 50mm lens. Shorter FLs would allow longer exposures but the camera limits to 5 min max. However, other factors limit exposures below the theoretical limits. I use K-3II (APS-C) and I don't usually go beyond 2min from 28mm up to 50mm, 60s for 100mm, 30s for 200mm or 20s for 300mm. Multiply by 1.5 for FF.
The sensor shifts and rotates, so there is no field rotation during exposures. However, since the sensor moves under the lens, rectilinear distortion causes trailing at frame edges with wide-angle lenses, again limiting exposure times: on APS-C 30s is okay at 18mm.
Internet searches will find many Astrotracer images. A few of my own are here: www.astrobin.com/users/AlenK/
I used Astrotracer last night on M31 which for me (Australia 34degS) peeks over the horizon in the north for only a couple of hours. I was surprised I was able to do over 2mins with a 300mm lens. If pointing closer to the celestial equator the movement will exceed the range of the sensor in a much shorter time. I found It works best for wide field 15 - 50mm with no trailing on 3-5min exposure depending on the direction. ( the camera calculates a maximum time based in the focal length and your orientation and position on the planet.) Maximum exposure time reduces for longer lenses but I have had some sucess with 70, 100, 135 and up to 300mm lenses. Field rotation is compensated for but again limited by the range of travel of the sensor. An ultra wide (Sigma 8-16 @8mm was a little disappointing but i think is effected by field curvature rather than field rotation.
One caveat is that the sensor obviously resets position after each sub. If shooting a specific target with a longer lens, your target keeps moving so will drift out of the frame requiring manual adjustment of ball head/tripod. That is not the case for an EQ mount which will keep tracking and centred on the target.
For wider field Milky Way shots the Astrotracer is an effective solution and can be used for some larger(easier?) targets eg M31, M42 etc within limits.
Disclaimer: I have been a Pentax user since the 80's and bought the O-GPS module before the learning about star trackers. I don't think I would necessarily buy a Pentax specifically for this feature instead of a small EQ mount or startracker if already invested in another system but it is certainly a clever and useful feature if you already have a compatible Pentax.
@ Steve Allan. It sounds like you are reaching or getting near the maximum theoretical tracking times with your lenses. You are fortunate. Whatever you are doing right, keep it up. The exposure times I quoted, btw, were for pixel-accurate round stars for 100% of the subs. I can go longer if I am willing to throw some subs out but that is not a wise strategy when doing large stacks (I rarely do single exposure images).
Does this work with the Pentax K-70? 🤔
Yes! Although you do need the O-GPS1 module for your K-70!
I am seriously considering purchasing a K-1. How do you calculate exposure length using Astrotracer?
I tried astrotracker with my 500mm lens I can go around 15 seconds before star trails. I mount the lens to tri- pod and calibrated the camera without the lens on the camera I then attached the camera to the lens it worked fine . I got pictures of stars I could not see with my naked eyes . I had to count the beeps to get the exposure time and yes not being able to use the intervolumter is just plain stupid what was Pentax thinking ?
15 seconds with 500mm is doing great. Re the intervalometer not working with Astrotracer, yes, it seems like an unfortunate oversight. However, apparently the intervalometer on the KP does work with Astrotracer. I expect they will also work together on any future models, such as the upcoming K-3II replacement.
I didn't know that about the KP! It would be really neat if we could get a firmware update for other cameras to do that... Actually looking at the K-1 manual it tells me it should be available, so now I'm confused!
@@CuivTheLazyGeek The table "Restrictions on the Combinations of Special Functions" on page 107 in the K-1 manual shows an "X" at the intersection of the "Astrotracer" and "Interval Shooting" functions, i.e., they can't be used together. The same table in the KP manual shows a hashtag, which means they can be used together but with a restriction, in this case "Only when the timed exposure is set."
C’est dommage que ce genre de tech ne soit pas dans d’autres cameras. Ca pourrait dépanner parfois, surtout pour du astrolandscape
Is the Astrotracer something that needs to be installed in the Pentax or is it something that already comes with the camera? Thanks
It comes with the K-1, K-1 II, and K3-II, but requires the pentax o-gps1 unit for other Pentax cameras
Cuiv, how have you been getting on with the Pentax K1 and astro tracer since this tutorial video first aired?
It would be good to get an update, i've got the K1 and a few fast lenses but, haven't used it in astro tracer mode yet.
Still haven't really used it in the field, I am thinking about getting the Samyang 135mm f2 lens and getting the camera astromoded. But like finding the right lenses is difficult!
What if you are using Astrotracer on a GoTo mount? Does the dual movements conflict and mess up the images?
Yeah they won't talk to each other so that would mess up the images
Would there be any point in getting the star tracker adventurer with a pentax k70??
Yes, to keep exposing for longer without having to reframe the target :-)
couldn't get it working tonight but maybe its due to being half frozen with a head-splitting headache😅
Cool. Enjoy
With excellent intervalometers available for about $30, that Astrotracer doesn't support the internal function is irrelevant. If you are using the camera for other than astrophotography, you should have a cable release as part of your kit, anyway. The K70 has an intervalometer function internally, but you need a cable release to properly use the bulb function - touching the camera to initiate and terminate bulb is a big no-no. The self timer method of shutter release isn't always appropriate, either - sometimes you want mirror lockup, and the intervalometer/cable release allows that without touching the camera.
Hi Cuiv, wow do you live on a different planet? surely you don't have 2 hour days and you can't have so many clear nights to do all of this? For me in UK last two weeks plus have been washouts including a flood alert ! thanks for this as always for highlighting something that is new. oh you have clouds in your planet too! are they as frequent as planet England?
Would you believe, because of the clouds I started to do a Tamiya model and to pain it you need preferably sunny days without much clouds so the paint can dry well.
So the next hobby to try is to learn about clouds now. There certainly were less clouds during full lockdown. I am sure this is global warming thing. Part of the ice that is melting is endling up in the skies above. In the near to not too distant future we may not have enough sunny days, I reckon. hmm...
I definitely have had terrible weather... this video was taking very quickly during an early evening where stars were visible for a few seconds through the clouds!
I actually am studying clouds since I paraglide :D
I'll just wait for them to back port this to my K1000. (joking, of course) :)
You don't need to walk away from the tripod when you're calibrating the adtrotracer. You need to stay away from strong magnetic fields, or easily magnetizable materials such as iron. Most tripods are made of aluminum so it's not a problem.
Thanks!
Thank you so much!