really long exposures... HOW?

[Nikko H'Draggo]

Hey everybody, brand new to this. I have a Nikon D40X and can only keep the shutter open for 30" or by BULB, if I can get the sticky tape to stay on!!! Does anyone know of a way to take longer exposures, say of Star Circles, etc, without having to stand there all night? The dedicated infrared release for this camera doesn't seem to do anything other than "click" either.

 

[kassad]

With the remote for my sony alpha when in bulb mode I hold the shutter release for more than 2 seconds and it locks open. Then when I press the shutter release again the shutter closes.

 

[--ares--]

What I do is I have a bunch of rubber bands and a quarter, the quarter keeps the pressure on evenly.

 

[Felix 222]

nikon ml-l3

 

[Garbz]

The infra-red remote has a click that mimics the old T mode rather than Bulb mode. That makes it a click to close and click to open action rather than hold down to close like a normal wired remote.

Also taking one long consistent image is a bad idea on older cameras, especially older CCDs like the D40 which generate a LOT of heat. You can damage the sensor.
Doing a really long exposure would be best done via stacking of multiple images. (google image stacker) For star trails 25seconds on 5seconds off produces great results and goes a long way to reducing heat and image stacking does very well at reducing noise.

 

[cnutco]

Yep, I have the infra-red remote and have thought about gettting the wired remote for that purpose. I just have not gotten to that part of my list yet.

 

[D-B-J]

Go out and grab a remote shutter release. The one that plugs into the ten-pin socket. There is a shutter lock on it. So when you set your camera to bulb, instead of physically holding down the shutter, you remote release it and then lock it. Bam, now you can do a two hour exposure.

 

[CW Jones]

Hmm ya older camera + long exposure doesn't sound like a good idea to me either.

 

[smackitsakic]

Soooo, am also new to this. I did order a remote shutter release that features a lock on it. I didn't buy it for the purpose of using very long shutter speeds but, since we're on the topic, am curious how I could utilize this option?

What does a person need to do to capture good 'star circles' during the middle of the night? Are you limited by your cameras f-stop and ISO ranges?

 

[Felix 222]

Soooo, am also new to this. I did order a remote shutter release that features a lock on it. I didn't buy it for the purpose of using very long shutter speeds but, since we're on the topic, am curious how I could utilize this option?

What does a person need to do to capture good 'star circles' during the middle of the night? Are you limited by your cameras f-stop and ISO ranges?

here's a good article all about it:

NatureScapes.Net - Article on Star Trail Photography

 

[Felix 222]

The infra-red remote has a click that mimics the old T mode rather than Bulb mode. That makes it a click to close and click to open action rather than hold down to close like a normal wired remote

generally makes things difficult, especially for longer exposures. I guess its all personal preference

 

[Nikko H'Draggo]

cool, thanx heaps for that. i didn't know about the overheating, i will definitely try the staggered series of shots.

 

[Nikko H'Draggo]

thanx for the info, i will get a nikon release and see how it works. camera shop people (in Oz) just don't seem to know anything!

 

[Nikko H'Draggo]

haha, tried that, gum and sticky tape! gum's no good afterwards, loses flavor! thanx fore the suggestion though. cheers

 

[Nikko H'Draggo]

thanx, love the godzilla! will just have to get myself a remote and try i guess.