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High apertures are very important for this shooting condition since you will be photographing in the dark. A fast lens where it’s maximum aperture is f/2.8 or faster is recommended. To allow more starlight entering the lens from the darkness, a very high aperture setting is required. Lenses with maximum aperture of f/1.4 or f/2.0 are preferred. You could use f/2.8 lens, however you would have to increase the ISO sensitivity a little bit instead of decreasing the shutter speed.

f/1.4 or f/2.0 lenses are recommended , lenses with variable aperture such as f/3.5-5.6 are not recommended due to their low maximum aperture. Low maximum aperture will affect the shutter speed to be slowed down. However, it will require much higher ISO sensitivities than when used with f/2.8 lens. If you do not mind very grainy photographs, you can continue using f/4.0 lens but at very high ISO sensitivity.

Here is a helpful chart of NIKKOR & ZESSIS for the best useable high apertures that are free of chromatic aberration.

Note: Do not use glass filters now, use lens hood.

Choosing the shutter speed will require some experimentation; as long as it does not exceed 20s (seconds) shutter speeds. If using shutter speeds slower than 20’s it will result in small star streaks. It depends entirely on what aperture you set. It depends entirely on what aperture you set. For example, using a f/1.4 lens at f/2.0, it will require shorter shutter speeds. If using a f/2.8 lens at f/4.0, it will require long shutter speeds, however it is not recommended. We will discuss why in the next chapter.

Even with a slow shutter speed at very high aperture setting, the camera will still not get enough light to create a photograph. In order to brighten the photograph, a higher ISO sensitivity is required. Do not be afraid of using higher sensitivities.

When using f/2.8 lens at f/4.0 it will require much slower shutter speeds. The reason why we do not recommend using slower shutter speeds is because it will cause the star to leave streaks. Instead of using slower shutter speeds, simply increase the ISO sensitivity. FIGURE

Based on our experience, these suggested exposure settings may or may not help you to accomplish the result as desired. Give one or two of the exposure settings a try.

If the photograph is underexposed, slightly lengthen the shutter speed or increase the ISO. If the photograph is overexposed, slightly shorten the shutter speed or decrease the ISO. Remember not to exceed 20s shutter speed and using much higher ISO will add more grain. 887

We will now go in to the shooting and custom setting menu to make tweaks to some of the settings. If your camera does not support one or more features, simply ignore it. Watch this short video for settings

A quality sturdy tripod legs a head combination is recommended Gitzo or Manfrotto brand tripod legs and heads for their steadiness. We do not recommend using a cheap and low quality tripod because they are not rigid enough to prevent the camera from wobbling the tripod as the shutter mirror raises or drops.

Unfortunately, even with a top of the line tripod legs and head combination, it does not hold the camera perfectly still when triggering. A heavy weight sandbag placed on the top of the camera and lens setup on the same axis with the tripod head is recommended to absorb the vibration that is caused by the camera’s shutter mirror, as it is being raised and dropped. By helping the camera stay still, it will dramatically improve overall sharpness. The sandbag must weight greater than the weight of camera and lens.

The ball head or geared (tilt/pan) head must have a weight capacity that is greater than the weight of camera and lens setup and sandbag.

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Before getting started, disable the lens and camera auto focus engine then get the star in focus by simply setting the focus distance for infinity. If your lens has an AF-S focusing engine, it is required to fine tune the focusing distance for infinity. The infinity must be set in middle of the arrow. Otherwise the image will be out of focus.

Picture focus setting

If your lens does not have a focusing panel, Rotate focusing ring all way to the right until you feel the focusing ring almost clicking. Then rotate the focusing ring very little to the left by two or three millimeters.

Once you get your subject in focus, lower the viewfinder cover into position. When doing long exposure, blurriness that is caused by camera shake is more noticeable due to slow shutter speeds. Sharpness is more critical when doing long exposures. There are several ways to trigger camera without resulting in camera shake. For example, using a remote cable in single shot, self timer, and mirror up then let the camera sit untouched for 30s or using a remote cable in mirror up. Either way you prefer to trigger the camera, a sandbag is recommended.

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