36 image, 3 hour star trail shot.

Out of interest what ISO were they shot at Julian? The stars seem pretty bright for f/8 if you had a low iso (100-200).

A lot of those photos need things cloning out however, there are aeroplain trails in a lot of them. :)
 
I'm so going to have a go at this :D. I think my main problem will be finding a decent foreground object and a non cloudy night. I assume any cloud at all will ruin the shot? Its very rare there is a totally clear sky around here.
 
Cloud can be a pain, however it can also be used as a feature depending on how much there is. It just so happens I was writing a guide on this last night... (honest lol), hopefully ill finally get it finished (I have been meaning to write it for ages) tonight or tomorrow. It's pretty easy however. :)
 
It just so happens the sky is perfectly clear and the stars are out in force :cool:. Might go and give this a quick go.

I have a cheapo remote shutter release, so will i just have to sit there for 45 mins taking a shot every 30 seconds?

Also is a lower ISO better for this? Ive seen some people have used ISO 400 but on my D80 there would be a fair amount of noise present at that setting.
 
Ahh. Must back-track slightly. Just checked the exif data and for the last shot (with the concentric circles) it was f3.2 at ISO 200. I took about 90 shots at 30seconds each by locking the remote on. I also to a further 30 second shot at the end with the lens cap on as the program uses that for noise reduction.
 
Mark A said:
It just so happens the sky is perfectly clear and the stars are out in force :cool:. Might go and give this a quick go.

I have a cheapo remote shutter release, so will i just have to sit there for 45 mins taking a shot every 30 seconds?

Also is a lower ISO better for this? Ive seen some people have used ISO 400 but on my D80 there would be a fair amount of noise present at that setting.
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Yeah lower ISO is better, I would suggest something like f/4 and ISO200 and the expose for a couple of minutes (depending on how much ambient light there is, you'll need to test this with a tester shot or two).

julianhj said:
Ahh. Must back-track slightly. Just checked the exif data and for the last shot (with the concentric circles) it was f3.2 at ISO 200. I took about 90 shots at 30seconds each by locking the remote on. I also to a further 30 second shot at the end with the lens cap on as the program uses that for noise reduction.
Click to expand...

Ah, that sounds more like it, they looked way too bright for f/8.:D
 
Amp34 said:
Yeah lower ISO is better, I would suggest something like f/4 and ISO200 and the expose for a couple of minutes (depending on how much ambient light there is, you'll need to test this with a tester shot or two).
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Sorry for all the questions. On the tester shot am i just looking to see the sky is black and not too light and the stars are visible?
 
Mark A said:
Sorry for all the questions. On the tester shot am i just looking to see the sky is black and not too light and the stars are visible?
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Yeah, pretty much. I use it as a way to check what the longest exposure I can get is (or at least that 5 minutes won't make the sky too bright).

You can also check your composition too, which is always useful.
 
Concorde Rules said:
The lightness isn't pollution, its just residual light from the sunset.

Its pretty minimal light pollution here.

However im heading back to Bristol soon and hopefully find some place to do one of the Clifton Suspension bridge.

Going to need two good batteries to do my planned 5 hours!
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Does the camera have an AC in at all? If so then just get a super long extension cable and hope it doesn't rain ;)
 
Just make sure your tripod head doesn't cover the battery compartment (although this probably isn't a problem with a grip?). I had that problem for a while, however a small ball head I bought for my travel tripod has solved all that! :D
 
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