Swapped my phone camera for an actual DSLR on Orion last month and the difference is insane

I used to just prop my phone up on a tripod and crank the ISO for nebula shots, but everything came out grainy and flat. Picked up a used Nikon D5300 off Craigslist for $200 and paired it with a cheap intervalometer. Now I'm stacking 20 second exposures from my backyard in Tucson and actually pulling out the dust lanes in Barnard's Loop. Anyone else hit a wall with smartphone astro and finally make the switch?

2 comments

2 Comments

walker.robert6d agoMost Upvoted

Used to think it was all about the gear until I spent a weekend trying to shoot from my driveway in Phoenix... @patricia42 you're totally right about dark skies being the real game changer. Finally headed out to a Bortle 3 zone last week and my stacked subs looked better than anything I got from my backyard even with the D5300.

patricia426d ago

Hell yeah, the D5300 is a beast for the money. One thing nobody mentions is how much dark skies matter more than gear. I drive 45 minutes out of Flagstaff to a BLM spot and my phone shots there beat my old DSLR from the city. Tucson's light dome kills it even with a tracker.