5D andromeda

17 Oct 2018

One thing I forgot to post from the Oct 15th session. I also wanted to try eliminating my Sony camera from the mix entirely (and I still may pursue this), so I gave Andromeda a shot with my trusty Canon 5D mk I. Partially I was just curious to see if the noise problem was any different (it was – much more ‘normal’ noise) or better (it wasn’t – a 13 year old camera shows its age), but it was also amusing to me in a sense to use this camera for astrophotography.

This particular 5D started its life in the hands of a friend’s boyfriend who used it to take photos of some pretty spectacular coldwater ocean life. It then made its way to me, and was my trusty daily driver for around a decade as I got my footing with photography in general. This camera was a beast and near-indestructible, taking all manner of abuse and still performing admirably. I thought it only fitting that instead of collecting dust, I at least close out (?) its lifespan shooting some stars. So, here you have it: Andromeda shot from my deck with an original mkI Canon 5D:

• Subject: Andromeda (M31)
• Camera: Canon 5D Mk I
• Telescope: Astro-Tech AT72EDII
• ISO: 800
• Shutter Speed: 60”
• Light Frames: 60
• Dark Frames: 40
• Flat Frames: 20
• Offset Frames: 20
• Software: Pixinsight - DynamicCrop, DynamicBackgroundExtraction, Background Neutralization, Color Calibration, SCNR noise reduction, Histogram Transformation, Curves Transformation, Unsharp Mask

I didn’t do a hugely long integration for this test, since I just wanted to get a feel for the noise, but still – the results go to show that even an old camera is no barrier to doing astrophotography!