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Is nikon1 series j5 an ok camera for capturing the milky way?


Usman Mughal nottingham

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Nikons website states that the nikon 1 j5 is a good beginner astrophotography camera. Its a 1inch mirrorless system and its pretty affordable with the lens set it comes with. Im just wondering does any1 out here have a camera in this 200£ range which theyve used with 30sec exposure on 1600 or above to get a photo of the milky way? Does any1 have any comment for this considering a beginner whos hooked on seeing a mily way and capturing it with the least $ possible? 

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Nikons website states that the nikon 1 j5 is a good beginner astrophotography camera. Its a 1inch mirrorless system and its pretty affordable with the lens set it comes with. Im just wondering does any1 out here have a camera in this 200£ range which theyve used with 30sec exposure on 1600 or above to get a photo of the milky way? Does any1 have any comment for this considering a beginner whos hooked on seeing a mily way and capturing it with the least $ possible? 

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This website shows a few examples of moon shots and time lapses you can do with this camera and the right lens:

http://imaging.nikon.com/lineup/microsite/astrophotography/getstarted/camera/index.html

 

I've no experience with Nikon cameras so reluctant to comment other than to say I can't find any examples of MW shots with this camera. A large number of amateur astronomers use Canon cameras (including myself), and there is a vast number of accessories and adaptors available for astro photography use with Canon.

What I would say is astro cameras require very careful and well informed choice in order to not waste money - so don't jump in at the deep end until you know what you're doing, and do get lots of examples and recommendations before spending your hard earned cash. 

A good book to read is Making Every Photon Count by Steve Richards - easy to read and covers AP considerations pretty comprehensively. :)

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Hmm so which canon would you recomend which costs max 250. 

Also i dont intent to use the camera with a scope. Camera just by itself to capture milky way .

ive done a lot of researching and apparently the j5 is good enough but then again im not sure because cant find any pics or ppl who own it

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Yes - it's best not to rely too much on retailer or manufacturer reviews. Better to check out the astro community and see what they use. I'm not saying the Nikon is unsuitable - but if you can find someone who owns one and has done some milky way shots, then that's your best bet for advice for that particular camera.

I use a quite dated Canon 1000D which was superseded by the 1100D and 1200D - and even they are old hat now, but they sell around your budget or below as used items. Price depends on shutter count, condition, accessories, modifications, age, and working order. Brand new and other models will cost a fair bit more.

If you're not hooking up to a scope and just using a standard camera tripod with no tracking, then you'll certainly be able to do some basic time lapse photos and star trails - maybe even a moon shot or two. But the Earth spins and stars appear to move, so you'll be limited to very short exposures. Hth :)

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Could anyone out there suggest a camera fpr mainly milky way capturing and at an affordable price including lenses which they have used or have seen being used that would be great . 

 

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Personally I would use the  Canon 1000d and a 50mm F1.8 lens.  As you are not using a tracking mount you need speed so you need a quick lens. The canon 50mm F1.8 is pretty basic, but is a good lens with good glass and for the the money you are spending the quickest out there.

 

You will get star trails pretty quick, so keep those subs short and maybe stack the frames to get a cleaner shot. You will need dark skies, light pollution will really show otherwise.

 

Best of luck.

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The only dslr ive looked in as an option is the canon 100d also known as canon rebel sl1

? Could u plz check out the stats and tell me if this is a hood option with the included lens it comes with ??

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Most Canon's are sold in kit form, these often come with the 18-55 lens. The problem with this lens is it's F3.5 to F5.6 pretty slow for a len's and not really fast enough for astrophotography. You need to couple the DSLR with something like this.

 

Canon 50mm F1.8 Lens

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Like astronigel said. Are you doing unguided photos?. Please come to the next dark sky meet (belper or wymeswold) , you will see the milky way from these sites, and if you wish to photo it, that is possible too.

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Yes doing unguided photos

 

which camera is a better choice to take a single pic of milkyway from a really dark site

 

 

1)canon eos 100d(rebel sl1) kit

2) canon sx420is

3)nikon 1 j5 with its kit lens?

 

 

 

 

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The Canon 100, 1000, 1200d cameras are all capable of doing what you want and within your budget however the trick for catching the milky way shot from a fixed tripod is as Mick says down to the lens. The kit lenses wil be OK at 18mm end for catching views of the milky way but you will have to take lots of short shots to avoid star trailing. If your budget can stretch to a wide angle prime lens of say 18-24 mm at an f number of 1.8 or 2 then that will help because it's faster and catches more light than the kit lens in the same time.

However, beware lenses don't handle point sources like stars well wide open, unless you go for expensive glass. Most, including the 59mm f1.8 perform better stopped down to f3.5 or 4.

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Hmm i can afford the 50mm f1.8 lens for canon eos 100d 

 

will that be good enough to capture the milkyway with the eos 100d(rebel sl1) ??

Id love to get rokinon lens but theyre just over my budget atm. So will the canon 50mm f1.8 be good for milkyway single photo exposure of 15-30secs max at high iso's?

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Hi Usman. The 50mm f1.8 if a decent lens but might be too narrow angle of view for what you want. Just to try to give you an idea of fields of view here is a shot of Cygnus taken with a 28mm lens on a Canon 450D. The FOV is a little under half that of a 50mm.

cygnus shrop 2012 p1small .jpg

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Can i take a pic like that with the 50mm f1.8 on the canon eos 100d??

if its a yes then im deffo getting it

 

im new so the milkyway stars and all are very contagious to me personally

 

plz leme know so i can order asap ?

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Not exactly the same. Remember the photo above was taken with a 28mm lens hence the wider FOV. A 50mm lens won't capture as much.

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I think im still going to get it as either way even if i get 50percent of that i wont b dissapointed. Other lens rokinon etc r too expensiv i wish i cud afford em

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I agree Usman, I would get the Canon 1000d or similar model and a 50mm F1.8 lens. Connect it to a tripod and with a little bit of practice, and some darker skies you will get decent shots of the milky way.

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Hmm which 2 cameras out of these 3 would you personally buy?? 

 

 

 

I want to buy 2 cameras out of these 3 listed below and i will also put ehich lenses they will come with. Also note that price isnt a matter and my choices wont change so i just need help deciding which 2 cameras i should buy plz.
Also all of the 3 cameras are portable . I want one camera to be able to take pics of the milkyway , and one to be an all rounder eg for family pucs travel etc.
Theyre in no specific order listed below


Canon eos 100D with 50mm f1.8
Canon eos M with 22mm f2.0 stm
Sony rx100 II

Now please help and tell me which of these 3 should i get for begginer astro as i will be in a darkste for taking only single exposure of 20/30sec for milkyyway
And 1 camera for overall family pics trips??
To be honest i really want to get all 3 but thats pointless...

I know that canon eos m is capable of milkyway pics and the sony is too BUT im not sure if the canon eos 100D(rebel sl1) with the lens listed above can take a good shot of the milkyway .

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I really don't understand why you need two cameras.

 

Your list equals this:

 

1. Canon eos 100D with 50mm f1.8 =  £265 + £65 total £330

2. Canon eos M with 22mm f2.0 stm = £175 + £100 total £275

3. Sony rx100 II = Used £300

 

All these figures are taken from E-Bay.

 

So with these figures you are willing to spend around £600 on two camera set ups.

 

I would buy the following:

 

1. Canon 1200d with kit lens of 18-55mm for every day use. New £329 Amazon.

2. Samyang 14mm F2.8 Canon Fit lens for astrophotography. New £239 E-Bay.

 

You will have a good Canon camera and kit lens for holidays, photographing kids etc and at night a 14mm wide field lens capable of great astrophotography. But remember the Samyang is a manual focus lens only.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited by Doc
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Because i prefer to have 2 seperate cameras

 

1 will be for home family events etc

and the other will be specifically for astro

 

And yep i love ebay and cex for trading and purchasing goods.

 

i could get the 1200d but the only issue would be that id have one camera for astro and other uses. 

 

Why i want 2 is because Both cameras will be mine but one could be at home for mrs and family to use when im not there. 

 

Its like having a work phone and a personal phone. Or you could get a dual sim phone but to me thats no good is rather have 2 phones 1 for home and 1 for work (eg astro). 

 

Hope my example could give you a better explanation of what im trying to ask? 

And doc thanks anyways 

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I'd get a NIKON COOLPIX A10 Compact Camera for daytime and family use. Then spend the rest on a decent astro camera - Canon 1100D or 1200D and a lens. But then I'm biased cos I favour the night and have little use for daytime photography lol. :)

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Lol :facepalm:u never get a straight answer on this forum lol 

oh well everyone has their own brand and own choices but i love canons designs. I havea cute 3 year old boy so i have day and night lol.

hmm ill post soon which 2 i get

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As my previous post re the 50mm 1.8 it is a good lens and great value (I use one on a driven camera) but is too narrow a field of view for unguided/driven  shots of the milky way, plus it needs stopping down to f4 ish for the star shapes to behave. Go for wider angle.

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