Hey everyone, I’m in need of help. I’m a long time landscape photographer on a hiatus. I’ve been looking into astrophotography and it is getting me really excited to get back at it while learning a new skill and enjoying a new aspect of photography. I’ve always enjoyed seeing the Milky Way and viewing the beautiful photos of nebula.

I would like some help selecting a star tracker. I have a Canon 5D Mk3, TSE 24mm f/3.5L, 70-300mm f/4-5.6L, and a 300mm f/2.8L. With the 300mm mounted to the camera it weighs 9lb-1.6oz. I’ve got what seems like to me a pretty decent view from the roof of my house for photographing nebulas but also have a great spot less than a 10min walk from my house to get the Milky Way over the mountains.

I’m thinking of getting either the Sky-Watcher EQM-35 or the Sky-Watcher Star Adventurer GTi. I like the idea of having a portable battery powered star tracker (GTi) but it’s payload is 11lbs and my large lens with camera is 9lb-1.6oz which is pretty close to its max. Would that be okay or is it too heavy to work well? The EQM-35 has a 22lb payload but is far less portable, though I suppose I could hook it up to a portable lithium battery pack. Overall I think I would prefer the GTi for its portability and cheaper price but am worried about being so close to the weight capacity.

Whatever suggestions you all provide please keep these constraints in mind. I use Linux and absolutely will not install any apps on my phone for functionality unless they are FOSS with no trackers. I have found that the program KStars can control cameras and mounts via the protocol INDI as well as Sky-Watcher has a SynScan hand controller accessory.

I appreciate any help given and am looking to go to a local Star Party to meet people but sadly am busy during the next one. Thanks!

Celestron C90, Sony A7R2

Vaonis Vespera II. 350 images or so over ~1.75 hours, stacked by the scope software. .

If you zoom in you can see some steaking and lines. Is that clouds or condensation?

~~We got a lucky shot of Andromeda with a meteor crossing our view.~~ Apparently we shot a satellite flare next to Andromeda.

Images:

• Samyang 135mm @2.8
• Fuji X-T5
• Star Adventurer 2i
• 465 x 30s
• ISO 200

Processing:

• stacking, stretching, background extraction and star separation in Siril
• final composition in Photoshop

Some amazing shots in here, and inspiration for shooters I'm sure

This isn’t a great photo. I was sitting outside in Moab, UT playing with the night sky app. The bright dot right above the hilltops is the ISS. Taken with an iPhone 15 Pro on default settings (3 second exposure in the dark) so it’s not that far off from the actual view.

I live in a city but I’m near a dark sky site right now so I’ve been having a ball with just my binoculars and a camera phone.

Does anyone know of a modded pixel camera app that would allow me to use astrophotography mode without the requirements being met (camera stability and light level)? I've been searching for awhile but haven't found one yet.

Edit: Per the recommendation of @[email protected] I have downloaded the BSG camera mod (specifically the ENG version) and it has this exact feature!

https://www.celsoazevedo.com/files/android/google-camera/dev-bsg/f/dl216/

Although the seeing was not great we managed to get our first shot of the region around Sadr.

Equipment:

• Samyang 135mm
• Fuji X-T5
• Star Adventurer 2i
• STC Clip In filter (multi narrowband)

Images:

• 296x 30s
• ISO 800
• f2.0

Editing:

• stacking and stretching in Siril
• BXT
• gradient removal and denoise in Graxpert
• final editing in PS

Full resolution and more infos: https://telescopius.com/pictures/view/192523/deep_sky/crescent-nebula/NGC/6888/diffuse-nebula/by-maxi_franzi

Equipment:

• Samyang 135mm
• Fuji X-T5 (unmodified)
• Star Adventurer 2i
• STC Clip In Filter

Images:

• 318 x 30s
• ISO 800
• f2.0

Editing:

• Siril for stacking and stretching
• Graxpert Background removal & denoise
• BXT
• Photoshop for final editing

Full resolution and more info: https://telescopius.com/pictures/view/192387/deep_sky/omega-or-swan-nebula/M/17/diffuse-nebula/by-maxi_franzi

I have a Sigma 14mm f/1.4 (Sony aIV) that I got recently but I'd also have to backpack it in 8 miles with 2000 feet elevation.

Good news: I will be going to Vogelsang Lake in Yosemite and Milky Way is expected to be right in between the two mountain peaks (SouthEast) that loom over the lake.

Bad news: Last light is supposed to be 9pm. Full moon (one day past technically) is supposed to be right below the horizon and rise above the horizon by 10pm.

Will the light pollution from the lake make the milky way not photographable? Any advice appreciated. Thanks!

500,000 stars in that ball.

Taken with Vespera 2 smart scope. 104 stacked images over 17 minutes. Processed by the scope and Singularity app.

Taken with Vespera 2/Singularity. 322 images captured over 54 minutes.

Taken with Vespera 2 smart scope. 272 stacked images over 45 minutes (10 seconds per image).

This is one of my first shots and I think it came out great for having very little idea of what I'm doing. The scope does all the work and processing.

Whirlpool galaxy shot at 135mm.

Equipment:

• Samyang 135mm f2.0
• Fuji X-T5

Images:

• 723 x 60s
• ISO 400

Full resolution: https://telescopius.com/pictures/view/188842/deep_sky/whirlpool-galaxy/M/51/galaxy/by-maxi_franzi

Wide field shot of the virgo cluster.

Equipment:

• Samyang 135mm
• Fuji X-T5
• Star Adventurer 2i

Images:

• 387 x 30s
• ISO 400
• f2.0

Full resolution and more info: https://telescopius.com/pictures/view/188443/deep_sky/markarian-chain/galaxy/by-maxi_franzi