My take on these questions (I've been doing astophotography for a year or
so)....
These are short answers to potentially complex questions ;-)
> [1] Whats the best OM for astronomy use and are OMs the best bar none?
A) OM1 or 1n are the best OMs because they have a purely mechanical shutter, are
cheap, light, and have mirror lockup if that is ever needed. 2/2n's are good.
I
have a 1n and a 2n. I like the 2n because of the auto-exposure capabilities
which
works in low light.
B) Best bar none? Difficult to say. If OM1's had a removable prism I'd say
yes, but
they don't. One of the main problems is focusing if you're shooting through the
scope. If you're talking about shooting with a regular lens mounted to a
telescope
that tracks the sky, this isn't a major issue (just make sure the lens' infinity
setting is accurate, some aren't). Since there are so many OM1s used, there is
a
device called "B&K astrofocuser" made for the camera. I used one last night
with my
OM1n for the 1st time; I think I'm going to like it!
> [2] Whats the best film [professional or not] and film speed.
For the moon through a scope, you can basically use the sunny 16 rule and you
end up
shooting at very fast speeds. Any kind of 100 film is fine. For stars and
deep sky,
the issues become how long a shot can your telescope/mount track accurately.
If you
can track accurately for 90 minutes, Kodak Elite Chrome 200 slide film is great.
Supra/Royal Gold 400 (probably same film) are pretty good for 5 to 40 minute
exposures. Kodak LE 400 (formerly PJ400) is very good but not in most stores.
If
you're just getting started nothing breeds success as well as Koday Royal Gold
1000
for fairly short exposures.
> [3] Is mirror lockup
I think lockup is only an issue for shooting planets, really.
> [4] What other fixtures will he need besides the camera itself and are
they easily available?
This depends somewhat on what kind of telescope your friend has, but generally
they're available for most common scopes.
Required reading: Michael Covington's book, Robert Reeves' book. Sky
publishing
(Sky & Telescope mag) has a beginner book that's good.
-Dick Locke
astrophotos at:
http://www.flex.net/users/dtlocke/astrophoto/astro-index.htm
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