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A few shots from my astro scope (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter Ultra Lite
- Start date
Fowl Mouth
Just a guy with dogs
Amazing shots for an 80mm APO, Ultra. The Cardy, in particular, is outstanding. :t:
Ultra Lite
Well-known member
Thanks for the kind reception of my work it's appreciated.
Gear:
It's Astro Tech 80mm cost $650.
Camera was a Pentax DL (6mp sensor) and a Pentax K20 (14.6 mp sensor). I think the only shot taken with the K20 was the first Cardinal pic full frame and it shows.
Here's a few more with a shot of my gear. The close up was barlowed to 2x. Hardly any of these are full frame and most are cropped a bit.
Note: in the pic of my gear it's setup for extreme closeup and I don't normally have that much extension on the scope.
Gear:
It's Astro Tech 80mm cost $650.
Camera was a Pentax DL (6mp sensor) and a Pentax K20 (14.6 mp sensor). I think the only shot taken with the K20 was the first Cardinal pic full frame and it shows.
Here's a few more with a shot of my gear. The close up was barlowed to 2x. Hardly any of these are full frame and most are cropped a bit.
Note: in the pic of my gear it's setup for extreme closeup and I don't normally have that much extension on the scope.
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David Ellsworth
Well-known member
These are gorgeous photos, great work! Over how much time did you take these?
I would like to see that Northern Cardinal full adult male with the red dialed back so that it is not saturated beyond the gamut, so that detail can be seen in the most strong red areas.
I used to use that Manfrotto gimbal, too... I switched to a Wimberley because it allows for fine-tuning in the vertical position (which I need on some of my lenses for perfect balance), and can be tightened so strongly that the camera can be removed without the lens flopping down. But the Manfrotto still has the advantage in fluidity of movement.
Your photos of the female Black-headed Grosbeak and American Goldfinch show a lot of chromatic aberration... was there anything different about how you took those shots than the others? The others show virtually no CA...
I would like to see that Northern Cardinal full adult male with the red dialed back so that it is not saturated beyond the gamut, so that detail can be seen in the most strong red areas.
I used to use that Manfrotto gimbal, too... I switched to a Wimberley because it allows for fine-tuning in the vertical position (which I need on some of my lenses for perfect balance), and can be tightened so strongly that the camera can be removed without the lens flopping down. But the Manfrotto still has the advantage in fluidity of movement.
Your photos of the female Black-headed Grosbeak and American Goldfinch show a lot of chromatic aberration... was there anything different about how you took those shots than the others? The others show virtually no CA...
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mooreorless
Well-known member
Excellent photos. I like the Zeiss classic.
Regards,Steve
Regards,Steve
Ultra Lite
Well-known member
Answers to some of the questions raised:
Over-saturation - that was the same file I sent to the newspaper editor. They like "punchy" otherwise it turns out too dull given the limitations of color printing for papers. The editors like punchy so I give them punchy.
CA - I have four scopes two of which are achromatics so it could be just a case of defective memory and confusion. Bad memory rather than bad glass. I know the triplet is clean.
BTW it's a female Rose-breasted Grosbeak. I'm way out of range for a Black-headed.
Exposure compensation - No problems. I like to underexpose a bit so it's usually at -.7 as a default. I have found that center-weighted metering rather than multi-segment or spot is the most accurate with long glass with my gear.
The Zeiss bins - my constant companion for over 20 years. They will be buried with me.
For you gearheads and pixel peepers;
I notice that none of the posted pics were done with the Pentax K20D but, rather, the old DL. So I'll throw this out without comment...
...what you can do with a 14.6mp sensor -
UL
Over-saturation - that was the same file I sent to the newspaper editor. They like "punchy" otherwise it turns out too dull given the limitations of color printing for papers. The editors like punchy so I give them punchy.
CA - I have four scopes two of which are achromatics so it could be just a case of defective memory and confusion. Bad memory rather than bad glass. I know the triplet is clean.
BTW it's a female Rose-breasted Grosbeak. I'm way out of range for a Black-headed.
Exposure compensation - No problems. I like to underexpose a bit so it's usually at -.7 as a default. I have found that center-weighted metering rather than multi-segment or spot is the most accurate with long glass with my gear.
The Zeiss bins - my constant companion for over 20 years. They will be buried with me.
For you gearheads and pixel peepers;
I notice that none of the posted pics were done with the Pentax K20D but, rather, the old DL. So I'll throw this out without comment...
...what you can do with a 14.6mp sensor -
UL
Attachments
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mooreorless
Well-known member
Wow! Is the Zeiss the 7x42. Thanks for any information.
Regards,Steve
Regards,Steve
FernandoBatista
Well-known member
Very nice work. Congrats
Fowl Mouth
Just a guy with dogs
That closeup is sick. Forget how good the K20 is for a second, that scope is ridiculously sharp!
Ultra Lite
Well-known member
Steve,
yes it's the 7x42. I looked through many other high-end bins through the years but the difference has been so marginal that I've never felt a need to replace the Zeiss.
Jason,
The triplet is perhaps the only glass I have that will out resolve the sensor on the K20 I think.
yes it's the 7x42. I looked through many other high-end bins through the years but the difference has been so marginal that I've never felt a need to replace the Zeiss.
Jason,
The triplet is perhaps the only glass I have that will out resolve the sensor on the K20 I think.
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