Here we have a quick session with Andromeda with clear outside stats.......
48% moon
sunset 20.57 sunrise 05.15
darkness 00.09 - 02.09
With only two hours of dark, things needed to go smoothly.
Using the nikkor 180mm slight errors in PA can be quite forgiving but luck was on my side & PA was nailed very quickly.
All sky plate solve located M31 in 10.9secs.
Slight adjustment with the framing & I was imagining by 00.15.
Techy bit.....
Canon 450D astromodded
CLS clip filter
Nikkor 180mm F2 @ F4
60 60s lights @ ISO 800
30 30s lights @ ISO 800
associated calibration frames
SW Star Adventurer
APT for focus / imaging session
ASPS for plate solving / framing
DSS 64bit for stacking
Photoshop CC 2015 for processing
GradientX
Noel Carboni star tools

Firstly, note that I'm primarily after images of the Milky Way. I've read about the 500 rule / rule-of-thumb for avoiding star trails. My understanding is that applies to 35 mm camera lenses.

How about micro 4/3rds? Say a 28 mm lens, which in my case is probably ~ 1.6 x 28 or ~49 mm equivalent for a 35 mm camera.

Gear: I've sold a lot of more bulky equipment and am making the BIG MOVE to Micro 4/3rds, most likely an Olumpus OMD E M-10 Mark III. While I want a Olymput Pen-F but will likely settle for more bang for the buck.

I've got a choice of a 28 or 45 mm lens, both F/2.8. Which would be best for Milky Way? Might an 14-42 f/3.5-5.6 "kit" lens be enough - I'd like to save a few bucks? I won't be going "pro" / "prime."

FWIW: I've read several on-line guides, including Night Photography: How to Photograph The Night Sky, by Dave Morrow.

Thanks for your guidance.

/Roger

I finally had a great sky for imaging and was doing well until an Aurora shut me down. Quickly grabbed my camera w/ 6.5mm fisheye lens and shot a few subs for pictures and a time lapse.

Full album of the Aurora at: https://www.flickr.com/photos/brianallan/sets/72157710124855796/.

Time-lapse: https://www.flickr.com/photos/brianallan/48468527346/

Enjoy!

bwa

P.S.: I did manage to image a few DSO's before the Aurora arrived on the scene. One target shown below.

The learning curve on focusing with a new Ha filter is been quite challenging but , with determination and willingness to "get r dun" pushes me to try , try , and try. After talking with Ed on the 6th I was able to get a short 2 channel sequence ran before I was in a tree. I keep having issues with my tube running into the tripod leg since reattaching my dec motor and putting it on the right side, it only does it during blind solving . I'm still working on removing the light line in the lower middle and the ampglow , any ideas as to what I should try differently in the processing of this?

This last week in March were clear sky or nearly so. I had two nights to image and ran three telescopes to take advantage of what "up" time I had. The Needle Galaxy was taken with an 8 inch Orion Newtonian.

All images were taken with ASI1600MM-C cameras (two are pro) the other is one of the early ASI1600MM-C cameras but still does a great job. Astronomik LRGB filters were used for the Needle and Pinwheel Galaxy. ZWO filters (I think they are Optilong) were used for the Markarian Chain. I imaged each target for approx 7 hours. Exposures of 20 seconds for Lum and 30 for RGB produced a lot of subs to sort through. I scored the subs in Nebulosity 4 and used roughly 50 subs per filter. Supporting darks, flats, and bias frames were used but were not needed....with those short exposures there was no amp glow and all three optical trains are pretty clean but I took and applied them anyway.

I know the skies have been terrible, but where did everyone go?

This isn’t a slam, I get the skies have been really bad, but it is nice having an occasional greeting. I’ve gotten a lot of support and knowledge from folks here, and I would hate to see that go away.

Although we don’t speak at a personal level, I do think we have a bond between us. I think just an occasional “hello, I’m still alive” is a great thing.

I hope you don’t find this a bad thing, I just want to try.....I don’t know