Minota Dynax 7000i and 5000i

they are slr cameras but not digital. they can take exposures up to 30 seconds. 

are they ok, cus ive been given those 2 cameras.

Symphon wrote:

Minota Dynax 7000i and 5000i they are slr cameras but not digital. they can take exposures up to 30 seconds.  are they ok, cus ive been given those 2 cameras.

There is nothing that says you have to use digital for astrophotography. Film still works, and I am one that still uses it quite often.  

I reviewed the manual for the 7000i and can tell you the answer to your question is yes. It has a (b)bulb setting so you can use exposures longer than 30 seconds. 

You can find the manuals for both those cameras at the bottom of this web page.

http://ca.konicaminolta.com/support/manuals/film-cameras

You will need a shutter remote cord to lock the shutter open.  Then you will need the appropriate T-ring to replace the lens if you want to do any prime focus photography. But I would recommend you start with simple star trails then step up to wide field piggy back. This way you will learn the limitations of your equipment, the films you can use and the sky over your location. i.e. sky glow limit/reciprocity failure limit of the films, exposure times that many objects/or the dark skies require.  Once you have that down pretty good and if you have the equipment to do it with step up to prime focus. 

Keep a log of what you do, each picture you take, The object, the sky conditions, the Lens or telescope used. Focal length, f/stop and the length of exposure. Anything you think may be important to remember.   You won't know what works until you see the results when you get the film back from processing.  Keeping records will help you learn what works and what doesn't and under what conditions.  You will also find that some of the best films for astrophotography of any kind is slide film.  Fuji provia 200 or 400F or Kodak EChrome or Elite chrome. Each will have different color sensativities and reciprocity limits. Print films work, but image quality is often not as sharp and clear as slides.  

For deep sky photography you will need a sturdy and acurate mount.  For lunar and planetary photography the mount isn't as critical, However, doing lunar and planetary photography with a film camera can be quite difficult with any method of photography. Planetary more-so than lunar. Most often you will end up with over exposed blobs or underexposed blobs when trying either afocal, prime focus or EP projection photography of the planets.  

Here is a little reading if you're desire is to try your hands at astrophotography.

http://www.astronomy.com/ASY/CS/forums/302121/ShowPost.aspx#302121

 

Have A Nice __________

 

 

i think your better off with an older pentax K1000/ ME or olympus OM1- they have bulb exposures and built like cameras 'should' be built- the best image i ever got of orion was with 35mm film!- matter of fact, if your interested in a ME super astro set-up, email me

Since you already have them there is no reason not to try!

One thing to watch for is they are rather heavy. A camera like the Pentax ME quoted earlier is much, much smaller and lighter. The K1000 is heavier. This is only a problem, however, if you have a small and lightweight telescope or focuser and the mount is not up to swinging the extra weight and staying balanced.

Another thing that can bite you is the electronic shutter. Check the manuals Tim found for you to see if while on B the shutter is still held open electronically. If so, then the battery will be discharging all the time the shutter is opened. The power circuits in these cameras is designed for momentary application, not constant-On, so the batteries will drain quickly on longer exposures.

chipdatajeffB wrote:

Another thing that can bite you is the electronic shutter. Check the manuals Tim found for you to see if while on B the shutter is still held open electronically. If so, then the battery will be discharging all the time the shutter is opened. The power circuits in these cameras is designed for momentary application, not constant-On, so the batteries will drain quickly on longer exposures.

Yes that is true, I forgot to mention that. But It won't prevent you for using the camera for long exposure photography. It can certainaly ruin a picture when you expect the shutter to remain open for an expected length of time.  Those batteries will drain even faster in the cold weather of the winter months.  

After a while you will learn how long the batteries can last under certain conditions. Then you can start to plan you expsures accordingly.

My Pentax uses batteries to operate the shutter. It takes two small A76 batteries. In the warm months I can take up to about 12 hours of exposure time on one set of batteries. Sometimes even a little more.  In the winter months that is reduced to less than half, sometime only a quarter that amount of time. 

I stock up on those little batteries whenever I see them on sale. Not only do I use them for my camera, but for my illuminated guiding eyepiece also which stays on just as long as I have the shutter open on the camera. Many times I forget to turn it off between pictures.   

 

Have A Nice _________ 

well all i can say is, thank you for the replies.

Once i have a clear night again i will be out trying everything you have said, i will log it, and i will let you know how it all works out when i get the films developed.

 

thank you once again

Symphon! 

Symphon,

I alo Use my 35 mm Pentax ME from time to time, but one thing that I did not see mentioned, is the ability to lock up your Mirror, this will decrease any vibrations induced when the mirror flips up, One way around this problem is to simply mask your objective, until you open the shutter with your cable release, you then just slide the Mask off.

I started astrophotography with film, one of my favorites is the fuji ASA1600, its hard to find,  and may be a tad to grainy, for most people but I find that it is accecptably sensitve in red, and cutting your exposure times reduces the possibility of Sky glow washing out your shots.

Here is a link to my shot of M-42 taken quite a while ago with the set up I mentioned, http://www.extremeastronomy.com/gallery/showimage.php?i=42&catid=member&imageuser=71

My focus was a little off, aother thing to mention is you focusing screen may need to be changed as you can see mine sure does!

Dennis :)