How to make sky shots with Nikon D5100 and 18-55mm

[Onera]

Hey guys,

I'm introducing you the boring noob thread!

So here's my question I'm with D5100 and 18-55, how to make sky shots, not trails, just the night stars. I know the "A" should be as lowest as possible so 3.5g with 18mm. I've never made a pictures like that before so I'm clueless.

Also, I have no Tripod =D (really embarrassing), but can I just put the SLR on the ground and make the shoot like that? Just give me some hints, I've read a litttle in google about it, but that's all. Can I manage to make a decent amateur picture of the stars?

 

[DiskoJoe]

One, buy a tripod. You seem to already that this is needed. Also for star pics you would have to manually focus since the sky would be too dark for the motor to recognize.

 

[gconnoyer]

And put it on manual.

Then you can adjust everything to get the right exposure.
Also a remote shutter release would be a good investment. Not neccessary because you could use the timer, but for anything over 30 seconds you'll need it.

 

[scorpion_tyr]

You'll want to set your aperture as low as possible (f/3.5), your ISO pretty high, 1600-3200ish, and you're probably looking at at 30 second exposure. You'll definitely want a good tripod for that, but if you do set it on the ground you'll need a remote control so you don't have to touch (and move) the camera when you press the shutter release. You'll need the remote even with a tripod. To focus to infinity you can either do it manually, or if possible find a bright light off in the distance, auto focus on that light, and then switch it to manual focus. You'll just have to be very careful not to move the focusing ring during shooting.

 

[Garasaki]

I think the D5100 has a timed release so the remote may not be necessary.