Couple of comet comments

[Fred Ward <fward@erols.com>]

Here are a few personal oobservations about the comet:

1. It turns out to be easy to photograph.. it is bright and beautiful.

2. What are attractive streaks from stars are unattractive bar-shaped
blurs from the comet. So, short exposures are a must, and very long
lenses are a problem when trying to keep the comet sharp.

3. I had very nice frames with ASA100 Ektachrome using a 50mm f/1.2 lens
at 1.4. The best exposures for me and the sky I had to photograph turned
out to be 10 sec and 20 sec. At 40 sec the sky had too much backscatter
and a color other than black (which looks best). But with this
combination and attempting to use a 200mm and 300mm f/2.8 lens, I found
the additional exposure was too long for sharp stars and comet.... so
successful pix with longer lenses require faster film to cut the
exposure times back to the 20 sec range. 

4. Something in the foreground is almost mandatory to make the images
make sense. Just the comet is not too interested I felt, so putting
houses, lakes, mountains, people, and other objects in the foreground
really does turn this into a scene.

5. Obviously, a sturdy tripod and locking cable release for time
exposures are a must.

6. I have not liked what I have seen in ASA 400, 800, and 1600 films. I
like the results from 100 and 200 speed films better. But to use them
you should have 1.4 lenses to keep the exposure time down.

Good luck.... it is getting low in the sky now, and the moon is a
problem this week.... so hurry to it if you want pictures. It will be a
2400 year wait for another go at this one. 

Fred Ward