christopher_osullivan Posted February 20, 2017 Share Posted February 20, 2017 Hi all, I've been getting into long exposures with my Mamiya RB67. Would any of you be able to give me pointers in terms of how to set a RB up to shoot nighttime starscapes? What film, what lens, how long, etc.? I have a 50mm and 90mm lens. Any info would be greatly appreciated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Silent Street Posted February 20, 2017 Share Posted February 20, 2017 "Starscape"? Static or moving?? I don't use my Pentax 67 for starscapes (or as we more commonly term them in Australia, startrails, because its battery will not hold out for the hours of exposure), but I often use my ancient Canon EOS 1N with intervalometer and 17-40mm zoom over a period 6-7 hours. Film: ISO100 to 200 is fine. Nothing fancy required; some people prefer ISO 400. Lens: A 50mm is a good starting point. Anything can be used. Set the aperture to one stop down from wide open Exposure: Bulb mode, for as long as you want. Plan on tripping the camera 2 hours after sunset and ending long before the first glimmer of dawn light. Impact: Fine a good "foreground anchor" for the shot to add interest. Vast skies with circles of millions of stars might be pretty, but they are also boring without a strong balacing focal interest e.g. an abandoned farm house or shed illuminated by a camping lantern. __________________________________________________________ The image (below) is over a 6 hour mid-summer period starting at 9.30pm. The stars are rotating around the South Celestial Pole (the 3,000th faintest star, if that is of interest...). The tree (and my tiny tent is at the very base of it, but not shown) is actually bolt upright but skewed comically because of the 17mm focal length. Exposure 6.5hr @f5.6; Provia 100 @ EI125 to add a bit of contrast. The diagonal 'stripe' is the International Space Station passing through! :) 1 Garyh | AUS Pentax 67 w/ ME | Swiss ALPA SWA12 A/D | ZeroImage 69 multiformat pinhole | Canon EOS 1N+PDB E1 Kodachrome, Ektachrome, Fujichrome E6 user since 1977. Ilfochrome Classic Master print technician (2003-2010) | Hybridised RA-4 print production from Heidelberg Tango scans Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
christopher_osullivan Posted February 20, 2017 Author Share Posted February 20, 2017 Great help, thanks a bunch! Ah, australia, love that place. Could go for a flat white right about now... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Silent Street Posted February 20, 2017 Share Posted February 20, 2017 Great help, thanks a bunch! Ah, australia, love that place. Could go for a flat white right about now... Choice of ... lemme see ... 1,600 cafés roundabouts here for flat whites and nibbles... :p I should have mentioned that the best nights for star trails is on or after a New Moon. Even silvery crescent moons can shed enough light over time to turn the star scape into daylight! And go far, far away from cities. We have the outback here, but it's a long, long way any which way that is chosen! I do not know if the RB67 is battery operated or all manual, and thus if battery operated you would need to determine the maximum amount of time the shutter could be held open without depletion. The EOS 1N mentioned earlier has a miniscule battery drain on Bulb. Garyh | AUS Pentax 67 w/ ME | Swiss ALPA SWA12 A/D | ZeroImage 69 multiformat pinhole | Canon EOS 1N+PDB E1 Kodachrome, Ektachrome, Fujichrome E6 user since 1977. Ilfochrome Classic Master print technician (2003-2010) | Hybridised RA-4 print production from Heidelberg Tango scans Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ed_Ingold Posted February 20, 2017 Share Posted February 20, 2017 If you wish to represent stars as points (round) of light rather than trails, the exposure time in seconds should not exceed 500 divided by the focal length in mm (for 35 mm). A "normal" lens would barely encompass most of the larger constellations. In general, the wider the better unless you are looking for deep space objects (nebulae, galaxies, etc.). You can by a motorized equatorial drive for under $300 which will allow much longer exposures, at the expense of a blurred foreground. There is software which will combine multiple sky exposures for noise reduction with foreground so that both are sharp (e.g., Starry Landscape Stacker for OS X). There are various ephemeris programs which will predict the location and phase of the moon (and sun) based on your current location (e.g., PhotoPills for iOS). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PapaTango Posted February 20, 2017 Share Posted February 20, 2017 One of the great things about the RB67 is that it is entirely mechanical--there are no batteries, electronics or solenoids to deal with! That said, long exposures are only limited by the stability (or lack thereof...) of the camera during the exposure. .... At one time, Mamiya made a cable release that had two plunger cables on one release. One connects to the camera the other to the lens. Halfway down stopped the lens--all the way released the shutter. This is very handy to preview your shot, and to minimize any vibrations. I never did star trails, but did quite a bit of experimentation with nighttime marine and highway shots. Most of what I was doing was with the 90mm. .... Good luck, and have fun. "I See Things..." The FotoFora Community Experience [Link] A new community for creative photographers. Come join us! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Silent Street Posted February 20, 2017 Share Posted February 20, 2017 One of the great things about the RB67 is that it is entirely mechanical--there are no batteries, electronics or solenoids to deal with! That said, long exposures are only limited by the stability (or lack thereof...) of the camera during the exposure. Ah, so it's all manual! More power to you. o_O Garyh | AUS Pentax 67 w/ ME | Swiss ALPA SWA12 A/D | ZeroImage 69 multiformat pinhole | Canon EOS 1N+PDB E1 Kodachrome, Ektachrome, Fujichrome E6 user since 1977. Ilfochrome Classic Master print technician (2003-2010) | Hybridised RA-4 print production from Heidelberg Tango scans Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bob_bill Posted February 24, 2017 Share Posted February 24, 2017 A shoot with mine reminds me what I am doing. I don't have to charge batteries. I am sure to check my light meter batteries though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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