I don't think it would work here. We have had close to six feet of snow in the last eight days and it is snowing heavily right now. It is supposed to be raining by the end of the week. Not good for astro photography.

Heads screw in to the 3/8 inch post on the tripod. On some heads, on the bottom is a little set screw. (Allen wrench). It’s to keep the head from coming loose. You can’t get the head off without loosening that set screw. You might check this.

If you are new to this here is something to think about (as though there isn't enough). Most here shoot RAW. If you go that route you will discover that you need to 'alter' your shots from the way the camera presents. RAW is not ready for Prime Time. What you see on the back of your camera is an altered preview and not what the downloaded RAW will look like. RAW needs work! The camera can alter a jpeg and if that is your output (what you download), it might be alright. RAW has the most potential but is not for general viewing.

Wrong. I love all the modern stuff. Auto focus and Back Button Focus, Auto white balance. I am definably a lover and believer in all the cool stuff my modern camera and every new version of LRc and Photoshop does. Still though, I have never heard of a Sensor Shield until today. I can't change that.

Suddenly I feel so out of it. Sixty years of carrying a camera. Almost forty of that making a living with cameras hanging around my neck. Quick to go digital when it appeared (Nikon D100) and, somehow I have never heard of a sensor shield until today. Now I am going to have to go back in time and rethink most of my photographic life. Damn! I would rather be shooting and making prints.
(Lest there be any misunderstanding, this is a joke. Humor! I don't really care about Sensor Shields.)

My computer and my phone are all synced in the cloud. I take a picture on the phone and it instantly shows in Photos on the computer. You might look at Syncing everything. It's sort of a pain to set it up but you only have to do it once.

Agree, Keep gray market out of it.

This is always a funny discussion. Everybody does it differently. Take a little of this answer and add a little of that answer. Maybe a dash of this one, then flip the whole sequence and that's how I do it sometimes, depending on the subject and who is going to win the Packers game.
I always start with exposure in a general way and sync the next bunch of shots if they are sort of the same. This will change as I fine tune them. Cropping comes fairly soon and dehaze before black levels most of the time. When the file generally looks good I might do some masking and custom dodging and burning. Denoise, sharpening and lens corrections are always way at the bottom and I might even print a few small versions around this time before I commit to a big or final print.
So, you see, a little of this and a little of that. And tomorrow I might change it all up. There isn't a right or a wrong way, just my way and your way.

If you are using roll paper, double check to make sure it is feeding smoothly. It's easy for it to hang up because of something so simple as the printer being too close to the wall, stopping the roll from spinning. Try looking inside the printer as it prints. When the print head gets to the end of a line do the rollers turn and try to advance the paper? Have you bailed on this and tried to print a sheet? Is it feeding smoothly?

They could be the same thing unless your show is something new and specific that you have been exploring in an artistic way. The description of THAT journey would be more of an artists statement.

Take the best camera you've got. A trip like this is the point of having it. Also, starting right this minute, carry that camera everywhere, to the grocery store, to the mail box everywhere you go and everything you do. Get used to the feeling of having it with you all the time. This will make it much less likely to be left somewhere. Although I pretty much always have a camera close, I make a real point of it being a part of me starting about a month before I go on vacation.

Yes, yes.

I'm sure Apple calibrates to make sure the displays work well and that all the displays look the same, but you still have to calibrate it for your work flow. At the very least it is going to be too bright to match prints from your printer. If you are selling your prints or delivering for a client there are expectations that just can't be met without proper and occasional calibration.

I calibrate mine with the x-rite studio device. It has me set brightness at four (little boxes). For non photo work I run it at about eight. I have to remember to turn it down for photos to match to printer. It is a super bright display. These settings are made quickly from the keyboard.

"all the references are based on the pixel resolution of the image..." Thats why I don't bother with pixel resolution in this way. I don't use it in viewing or emailing in printing. Years ago I figured out what gives me the best quality for my files in megapixels and resolution. About eight presets covers everything. It took some testing, but I find that is so much easier to understand than numbers on a side. I would probably use a chart like yours if I was designing web pages.