Instruments:
film cameras and objectives
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Nowdays I no more use film for
astrophotograpy, except on particular events (eclipses, meteors). Here
are my three film cameras:
- Fujica ST-701, totally mechanical,
very good
expecially for objective photos.
- Nikon FM-2, totally mechanical,
with
the possibility
to substitute the focusing screen and to lift the mirror with the
autoclick
function.
- Olimpus OM-1, totally mechanical,
with
the
possibility to substitute the focusing screen and to lift the mirror
Objectives:
- 8 mm f/3,5 Peleng, 42x1, Nikon
and Canon mounting: an extreme objective, capable of imaging the whole
sky on a single 24x36 frame. Found used at a very low price, about 150€.
- 16 mm f/2,8 Zenith, 42x1 mounting: exceptional
objective,
if used at f/4 the stars are pinpoints, also Sirius at the border
hardly
become seagull shaped. Also the price is very low, about 150€.
- 28 mm f/2,8 Chinon, 42x1 mounting: to be used at least
at
f/4, but also in this way the stars are not pinpints.
- 28 mm f/2,8 Olympus, Olympus mounting:
seldom used on the sky.
- 50 mm f/1,8 Nikon, Nikon mounting: to be used at f/2,8,
non
uniform quality over the whole field.
- 50 mm f/1,8 Olympus, Olympus mounting:
seldom used on the sky.
- 55 mm f/1,8 Fujica, 42x1 mounting: if used at f/2,8 it
provide
pinpoint stars almost near the corners.
- 200 mm f/3,5 Vivitar, 42x1 mounting: at f/3,5 the
stars are
big, there is chromatic aberration and an evident vignetting, at f/5,6
the stars are pinpoints despite a residual of chromatic aberration and
no vignetting.
- 500 mm f/8 "Russian", 42x1 mounting: the principal
difficult
is in focussing, I belive that the focus change during the long
exposures.