Astrophotography

For the basics on using NightCap Pro see the first page of the review. For how to use NightCap Pro for astrophotography read the Astrophotography page of this review. To see what is new in version 7 read that review page. What follows here discusses using the iPhone 6s Plus for astrophotography with version 7. The telescope used for these images was a Meade 8" LX200-ACF.

It is worth noting some significant differences with the iPhone 6s Plus camera vs the camera in the iPhone 5s (that I previously used):

Phone	Megapixels	Image Size	Aperture	Max Shutter Speed
5s	8 MP	3264×2448	f/2.2	1/2 sec
6s Plus	12 MP	4032×3024	f/2.2	1/3 sec

For astrophotography the biggest difference is the maximum shutter speed (1/2 sec vs 1/3 sec). While the difference is not great, it will mean that the iPhone 6s Plus camera is not quite as good at imaging faint objects as the iPhone 5s was.

So, how did the iPhone 6s Plus camera do on my initial astrophotography tests? Have a look. Exposure settings were Long Exposure, Light Boost, ISO 8000, 1/3sec, 60 seconds, afocal 77X.

M57 Ring Nebula


M13 Great Hercules Globular Cluster


Double Cluster


M17 Swan Nebula

For these night sky NightCap Pro v7 photos the iPhone 6s Plus was mounted on a GorillaPod:

Sagittarius (behind tree) and Milky Way (Long Exposure, Light Boost, ISO 8000, 1 minute exposure):


Cassiopeia and Perseus (Long Exposure, Light Boost, ISO 8000, 30 second exposure):

Using the Apple Watch is still a viable choice to view (and take photos) using the iPhone 6s Plus with NightCap Pro. This is a "live view" of the planet Uranus as seen on the Apple Watch:

Summary

If you have an iPhone 6s Plus (or the 6s), you can do some types of astrophotography using NightCap Pro. Capturing faint DSOs is still possible even with the shorter maximum shutter speed of the newest iPhones. Of course, if you still use an older iPhone, you can use NightCap Pro for astrophotography.

I highly recommend NightCap Pro for iPhone astrophotography.

Go back to Page 1 of "Review - NightCap Pro App for iPhone Astrophotography".

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