Astro Photography and the SL3

[eab]

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Hi Everyone,

I am going to try my hand at a little astro photography and was hoping for some tips on the best way to setup the SL3 for this.  My first attempt last night was okay but i did have a hard time manually focusing.  I don’t think I have optimized the EVF settings and was hoping someone who had some experience might be able to point me in the right direction.  I am using the Sigma 14-24 f2.8.

 

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[hoolyproductions]

I haven't done much astro with my SL2-S, but a little, mostly with the 24-90mm lens at 24mm (and some with Panasonic 17mm, f4).

Manual focus on a star can be tricky indeed. I use auto AF to get in the ball park and then use zoom/magnify until I can get a brighter star in the center of the finder. Then I fine tune the focus until the star is sharp/least blurry. One setting I would recommend to change in the MF settings is how the focus responds when adjusting the lens - by default the focus changes by a variable amount depending how quickly you turn the lens. You can adjust it to a fixed amount (e.g. 180 or 220 degrees) and I find this much easier/more predictable.

Others with more experience might have better tips for you

[Simone_DF]

You could try a Bahtinov Mask. 
Google it, a few options on the market. 
Lonely Speck has one for sale and a video on how to use the tool. 

[beewee]

18 hours ago, eab said:

Hi Everyone,

I am going to try my hand at a little astro photography and was hoping for some tips on the best way to setup the SL3 for this.  My first attempt last night was okay but i did have a hard time manually focusing.  I don’t think I have optimized the EVF settings and was hoping someone who had some experience might be able to point me in the right direction.  I am using the Sigma 14-24 f2.8.

 

My astro setup/settings (for tripod shooting) are:

• 2s timer
• enhanced live view enabled
• disable EVF and use LCD only so that it doesn’t switch to EVF if a strap or my hand gets near the EVF
• ISO 6400-12500 (on SL2-S)
• f/2.8 for 14-24mm DG DN or f/1.4 for 14mm DG DN
• MF - half press shutter and us hyper focus by turning focus ring and looking at the top LCD panel and bring the focal plane to the closest point while ensuring far focus distance is still at infinity.

[leicam62003]

It is also important - but you probably already know this - that you do not exceed the maximum exposure time for your focal length. Otherwise you will get star trails. You can also use the Kelvin setting to influence the color of the sky and the objects. It is best to experiment a little and write down the settings.
I don't have an SL3 but I do have a camera with which it is possible to overlay long exposure times without overexposure. Good luck and have fun with star photography.

 

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[FlashGordonPhotography]

On 7/24/2024 at 10:45 PM, Simone_DF said:

You could try a Bahtinov Mask. 
Google it, a few options on the market. 
Lonely Speck has one for sale and a video on how to use the tool. 

That’s not going to work on the 14-24’s bulbous front element, unless you find a creative way to mount a large one.

****************

On the SL2 and SL3 if you half press the shutter while manual focusing you’ll get a focus scale on the top LCD that displays focus point and near/far DoF. Just use that to find infinity. YOu might need a red torch at night to read the LCD.

It would be an excellent feature to have the camera have a *jump to infinity/jump to a user set distance* feature in manual focus.

Gordon

[rcusick]

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My quick attempt.  Ve 24-90. 10s exposure. 
 

 

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[eab]

On 7/24/2024 at 8:33 AM, hoolyproductions said:

I haven't done much astro with my SL2-S, but a little, mostly with the 24-90mm lens at 24mm (and some with Panasonic 17mm, f4).

Manual focus on a star can be tricky indeed. I use auto AF to get in the ball park and then use zoom/magnify until I can get a brighter star in the center of the finder. Then I fine tune the focus until the star is sharp/least blurry. One setting I would recommend to change in the MF settings is how the focus responds when adjusting the lens - by default the focus changes by a variable amount depending how quickly you turn the lens. You can adjust it to a fixed amount (e.g. 180 or 220 degrees) and I find this much easier/more predictable.

Others with more experience might have better tips for you

Thanks for the tip on changing the focus in MF, I will try this.

[eab]

19 hours ago, beewee said:

My astro setup/settings (for tripod shooting) are:

• 2s timer
• enhanced live view enabled
• disable EVF and use LCD only so that it doesn’t switch to EVF if a strap or my hand gets near the EVF
• ISO 6400-12500 (on SL2-S)
• f/2.8 for 14-24mm DG DN or f/1.4 for 14mm DG DN
• MF - half press shutter and us hyper focus by turning focus ring and looking at the top LCD panel and bring the focal plane to the closest point while ensuring far focus distance is still at infinity.

Thank you beewee very helpful.  It is pretty cloudy tonight but hopefully tomorrow will be better.  We are at 14000ft tonight with very little light pollution, it would have been a good night to try again.  Thanks again.

 

[eab]

2 hours ago, FlashGordonPhotography said:

That’s not going to work on the 14-24’s bulbous front element, unless you find a creative way to mount a large one.

****************

On the SL2 and SL3 if you half press the shutter while manual focusing you’ll get a focus scale on the top LCD that displays focus point and near/far DoF. Just use that to find infinity. YOu might need a red torch at night to read the LCD.

It would be an excellent feature to have the camera have a *jump to infinity/jump to a user set distance* feature in manual focus.

Gordon

Beewee suggested the same, I will give it a try tomorrow, if the weather is good.  Thank you.  By the way, I am really enjoying the SL3 on this leg of the trip.  If you remember I took the Sony last time but this time the SL3, the handling is great.  I wish there was less wobble in the viewfinder as it requires you to trust the AF….

[eab]

19 hours ago, leicam62003 said:

It is also important - but you probably already know this - that you do not exceed the maximum exposure time for your focal length. Otherwise you will get star trails. You can also use the Kelvin setting to influence the color of the sky and the objects. It is best to experiment a little and write down the settings.
I don't have an SL3 but I do have a camera with which it is possible to overlay long exposure times without overexposure. Good luck and have fun with star photography.

 

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Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members!

Thank you, I having been using a 20sec at 14mm

[leicam62003]

vor 3 Stunden schrieb eab:

Thank you, I having been using a 20sec at 14mm

If I am correctly informed, the formula for full format is: 500 : f
That means: 500 : 14mm = ~35 seconds. I would test it with 30 - 33 seconds.

[FlashGordonPhotography]

Depends on the potential print size. I usually err on the conservative side as well. Around 15 sec for 14mm on a large print. Or use a tracking mount.

Gordon

Edited July 26, 2024 by FlashGordonPhotography

[Eclectic Man]

I agree with hoolyproductions above, setting the MF to linear from the standard setting is essential for fine-tuning the focus.  The auto setting is hopeless unless you have something very bright like Venus or Jupiter in the sky and can use autofocus.

My technique (with SL2) is to use the highlighting of in focus points as red to get the optimum focus - the more red the better.  Turn the ISO up really high so that you can see stars in the viewfinder, focus manually, then set the exposure you actually want.  

A steady tripod is essential, as is a stock of fully charged batteries - long exposure times, manual focusing at high ISO with the eyepiece or rear screen and, if selected, long exposure correction does drain the batteries.

Good luck.

[BillCB]

Another solution for focussing is to use an "M" lens which has a hard stop at infinity - no focussing necessary. I use a Voigtlander 15mm Super Heliar with the SL-M adapter and it works fine. (Or even use an "M" camera!)

[jaapv]

If… the hard stop is infinity, which is not always the case. Some M lenses focus beyond infinity. Test first. 

[beewee]

For determining shutter speed to keep stars sharp, I suggest using an app like PhotoPills which account for focal length, sensor resolution, and location on the earth. Stars traverse the sky much more ‘quickly’ near the celestial equator than at the poles.

Edited July 27, 2024 by beewee

[helged]

10 hours ago, jaapv said:

If… the hard stop is infinity, which is not always the case. Some M lenses focus beyond infinity. Test first. 

+1. Its safest to consider the infinity mark as indicative; proper infinity focus can be set by focus magnification, with the lens pointing towards a bright star (or the Moon). To reduce flatness issues, put the focus point about 1/3 off the centre of the image/sensor.

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Hallo,

Look here: Leica L-Mount

[BillCB]

All my M lenses focus to but not beyond infinity - I've tested each of them.

[Eclectic Man]

My summilux R (old style, no retractable lens hood) focuses just beyond infinity.

Edited July 29, 2024 by Eclectic Man