Comet 'Lemmon' last night (PICS)

EOS M6 + EF-M 32mm f/1.4 lens - a shot of the EOS Ra on my tripod - under the tree I had set up under... with the old Canon EF 135mm f/2 USM lens on it.

EOR Ra + RF 85mm f/1.2L USM lens - three JPEGs stitched together and rotated clockwise.  The glow on the left is from Sydney city. The original JPEGs looked flatter and were slightly more subdued in contrast and color.  I then edited this panorama by adjusting color, contrast, curves, levels, and saturation ...but then I forgot to eliminate the vignette. No sharpening or Noise Reduction used.  I'll chalk this up to being an early test. Auto WB was used and I need to calibrate for a better alternative.  The JPEGs used here were three seperate 6 second, unstacked exposures.

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I'm watching the upcoming EOS R6 closely and may consider it for regular terrestrial photography if the price is reasonable.  I've been anticipating that model since last year.  I would prefer to save my EOS Ra just for Astro work if possible although it's not about shutter-count numbers.  According to Canon, both the EOS R and EOS Ra have a 200,000 shutter count life expectancy.  This camera will probably outlive me because in three weeks I've only taken about 400 pictures with it... and everyone knows how you get trigger-happy in early days of new gear.  I finished tweaking three JPEGS from the camera taken last week (see above) and I've now, after four trips out with it at night, I feel that I've leaned what the camera and lens combo are at least capable of.  Eventually I'll use a T-mount to place EOS Ra onto a telescope with tracking.  In the meanwhile, I'm stuck doing some landscapes and just simple unguided, unstacked shots.
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Setting up for the first shots and there were already clouds moving in.

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Comet C/2019 (Lemmon) last night...
I've just spent a couple of hours in the dark last night trying to photograph Comet Lemmon (C/2019 U6) in a National Park (in the Sydney Blue Mountains).  I tried to set up in my usual spot about 1.5 hours from my home... but when I arrived, there were clouds approaching  from the North-West where there the Comet was supposed to be located... and a nearby illuminated advertising sign was spilling light into the lens hood of the camera lens.  I got back in my car and drove to a darker location another 30 minutes away in a National Park.  I set up under a tree next to my car, took a few shots and returned home ASAP because it was just so darned cold up in the mountains in Winter.
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It's a little eerie to be standing in a remote area with no phone reception.  It's literally pitch black out there and you an certainly see the stars and the clouds and the milky way overhead.  At one point I heard something behind me and expected to see a feral pic in the torchlight but it was only a possum.  It's winter here so the snakes usually don't come out at night at this time of the year.  Some clouds were low enough to reflect lights from the cities.  Others were high up and simply looked like spaces in the sky devoid of stars.  I had to switch on my flashlight between shots so as not to trip over on my camera tripod. I did however drop a $230 NiSi Night Filter while removing it from the RF 85mmL lens... it fell from my fingers as I unscrewed it and landed on rocks.  I expected the worst... but as luck would have it, the filter was attached to a step-down ring and the cheap $9 ring took the only impact, leaving a very small mark on the aluminium.
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EOS Ra + RF 85mm f/1.2L lens - a defocused view of Jupiter and Saturn from under my tree.

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I saw two meteors, one of which was on the camera LCD as I counted down for a timer-delay shot.  I found that with wide lenses I'll use a 2 second delay but longer lenses can require a 10 second delay to prevent tripod/camera shake.  I once found a 2-inch long meteorite right where I was standing to take the picture below - back in 2014.
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Again, a few people asked me why I didn't just buy a tube-type CCD/CMOS camera to plug into the eyepiece of a telescope.  Those things can be more expensive than the Ra for a decent model and I don't want to have to deal with laptops and computer driven software either.  More importantly, I can't capture landscapes like these with that type of astrocam. The image below was shot at ISO 6400 - which was completely unnecessary. My preference has been to use ISO 4000 and 5000 for some  Milky Way shots if shooting at f/1.4 with the 85mm lens.
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EOS Ra + RF 85mm f/1.2L lens - Comet Lemmon is on the left - behind the pesky clouds.

Comet Lemmon - as seen on the Live View of the EOS Ra camera at 30x magnification.

EOS Ra + EF 135mm f/2 USM lens - Comet C/2019 (Lemmon) with a faint, white tail.

EOS Ra  + EF 135mm f/2 USM lens - Comet Lemon - out of focus to show the colors.

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The comet wasn't really visible to my eyes.  I think it was about magnitude 6.0 when I saw it through the camera lens.  I knew it was just above (and to the right of) Sirius.  So, when I got out of the car, I simply pointed the camera lens towards the area I thought the comet would be in and took a picture.  The comet was visible in the first photograph and then re-framed the scene as needed.   A major issue was the moving clouds.  The sky had been spotless all day and the sky was rated 9/10 for Stargazing last night.  But as soon as I had parked the car and set up the camera on a tripod, I was having to wait for the clouds to move.  Eventually the comet dipped closer to the horizon and was fading behind the clouds there (see image above).  I took a couple of shots looking over the tops of the branches of the short tree (shrub) I was standing near (see below) and then drove home.  I'm not overly moved by these shots but the camera and lens seem okay so far.
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Hot Pixels and Temperatures
I've had a few lazy pixels appear on the sensor when using long exposures, especially with high ISO settings.  They generally disappear when I do a sensor clean, much like on my 6D.  There are none when shooting in normal conditions with shutter speeds over 1 second.  I thought the Ra might have the ability to remap the sensor since it has a Dust Delete Data function. But since the stuck pixels are gone at normal speeds, this is perfectly normal behavior.  I only mention it to be thorough on reporting on the camera.  There are no dead pixels of course (which is good).  I also notice that the camera gets REALLY cold in the night air when the frost arrives but it doesn't get damp (yet) like my EOS 6D does.  The Protage lens warmer I've used on these cold nights continues to keep my glass from fogging/frosting up.
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I think I'm about done shooting Astro for a little while.  I'm waiting for Andromeda and the Orion nebula to show up in a couple of months.  I'll shoot those from a fixed tripod and will later move to an EQ Mount with tracking for future imaging.
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EOS Ra + RF 85mm f/1.2L USM - A defocused Milky Way bokeh from under my tree.

EOS Ra + RF 85mm f/1.2L USM -  The color temperature of the stars is easily observed this way.

Marco Nero wrote:

EOS M6 + EF-M 32mm f/1.4 lens - a shot of the EOS Ra on my tripod - under the tree I had set up under... with the old Canon EF 135mm f/2 USM lens on it.

EOR Ra + RF 85mm f/1.2L USM lens - three JPEGs stitched together and rotated clockwise. The glow on the left is from Sydney city. The original JPEGs looked flatter and were slightly more subdued in contrast and color. I then edited this panorama by adjusting color, contrast, curves, levels, and saturation ...but then I forgot to eliminate the vignette. No sharpening or Noise Reduction used. I'll chalk this up to being an early test. Auto WB was used and I need to calibrate for a better alternative. The JPEGs used here were three seperate 6 second, unstacked exposures.

.
I'm watching the upcoming EOS R6 closely and may consider it for regular terrestrial photography if the price is reasonable. I've been anticipating that model since last year. I would prefer to save my EOS Ra just for Astro work if possible although it's not about shutter-count numbers. According to Canon, both the EOS R and EOS Ra have a 200,000 shutter count life expectancy. This camera will probably outlive me because in three weeks I've only taken about 400 pictures with it... and everyone knows how you get trigger-happy in early days of new gear. I finished tweaking three JPEGS from the camera taken last week (see above) and I've now, after four trips out with it at night, I feel that I've leaned what the camera and lens combo are at least capable of. Eventually I'll use a T-mount to place EOS Ra onto a telescope with tracking. In the meanwhile, I'm stuck doing some landscapes and just simple unguided, unstacked shots.
.

Setting up for the first shots and there were already clouds moving in.

.
Comet C/2019 (Lemmon) last night...
I've just spent a couple of hours in the dark last night trying to photograph Comet Lemmon (C/2019 U6) in a National Park (in the Sydney Blue Mountains). I tried to set up in my usual spot about 1.5 hours from my home... but when I arrived, there were clouds approaching from the North-West where there the Comet was supposed to be located... and a nearby illuminated advertising sign was spilling light into the lens hood of the camera lens. I got back in my car and drove to a darker location another 30 minutes away in a National Park. I set up under a tree next to my car, took a few shots and returned home ASAP because it was just so darned cold up in the mountains in Winter.
.
It's a little eerie to be standing in a remote area with no phone reception. It's literally pitch black out there and you an certainly see the stars and the clouds and the milky way overhead. At one point I heard something behind me and expected to see a feral pic in the torchlight but it was only a possum. It's winter here so the snakes usually don't come out at night at this time of the year. Some clouds were low enough to reflect lights from the cities. Others were high up and simply looked like spaces in the sky devoid of stars. I had to switch on my flashlight between shots so as not to trip over on my camera tripod. I did however drop a $230 NiSi Night Filter while removing it from the RF 85mmL lens... it fell from my fingers as I unscrewed it and landed on rocks. I expected the worst... but as luck would have it, the filter was attached to a step-down ring and the cheap $9 ring took the only impact, leaving a very small mark on the aluminium.
.

EOS Ra + RF 85mm f/1.2L lens - a defocused view of Jupiter and Saturn from under my tree.

.
I saw two meteors, one of which was on the camera LCD as I counted down for a timer-delay shot. I found that with wide lenses I'll use a 2 second delay but longer lenses can require a 10 second delay to prevent tripod/camera shake. I once found a 2-inch long meteorite right where I was standing to take the picture below - back in 2014.
.
Again, a few people asked me why I didn't just buy a tube-type CCD/CMOS camera to plug into the eyepiece of a telescope. Those things can be more expensive than the Ra for a decent model and I don't want to have to deal with laptops and computer driven software either. More importantly, I can't capture landscapes like these with that type of astrocam. The image below was shot at ISO 6400 - which was completely unnecessary. My preference has been to use ISO 4000 and 5000 for some Milky Way shots if shooting at f/1.4 with the 85mm lens.
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EOS Ra + RF 85mm f/1.2L lens - Comet Lemmon is on the left - behind the pesky clouds.

Comet Lemmon - as seen on the Live View of the EOS Ra camera at 30x magnification.

EOS Ra + EF 135mm f/2 USM lens - Comet C/2019 (Lemmon) with a faint, white tail.

EOS Ra + EF 135mm f/2 USM lens - Comet Lemon - out of focus to show the colors.

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The comet wasn't really visible to my eyes. I think it was about magnitude 6.0 when I saw it through the camera lens. I knew it was just above (and to the right of) Sirius. So, when I got out of the car, I simply pointed the camera lens towards the area I thought the comet would be in and took a picture. The comet was visible in the first photograph and then re-framed the scene as needed. A major issue was the moving clouds. The sky had been spotless all day and the sky was rated 9/10 for Stargazing last night. But as soon as I had parked the car and set up the camera on a tripod, I was having to wait for the clouds to move. Eventually the comet dipped closer to the horizon and was fading behind the clouds there (see image above). I took a couple of shots looking over the tops of the branches of the short tree (shrub) I was standing near (see below) and then drove home. I'm not overly moved by these shots but the camera and lens seem okay so far.
.
Hot Pixels and Temperatures
I've had a few lazy pixels appear on the sensor when using long exposures, especially with high ISO settings. They generally disappear when I do a sensor clean, much like on my 6D. There are none when shooting in normal conditions with shutter speeds over 1 second. I thought the Ra might have the ability to remap the sensor since it has a Dust Delete Data function. But since the stuck pixels are gone at normal speeds, this is perfectly normal behavior. I only mention it to be thorough on reporting on the camera. There are no dead pixels of course (which is good). I also notice that the camera gets REALLY cold in the night air when the frost arrives but it doesn't get damp (yet) like my EOS 6D does. The Protage lens warmer I've used on these cold nights continues to keep my glass from fogging/frosting up.
.
I think I'm about done shooting Astro for a little while. I'm waiting for Andromeda and the Orion nebula to show up in a couple of months. I'll shoot those from a fixed tripod and will later move to an EQ Mount with tracking for future imaging.
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EOS Ra + RF 85mm f/1.2L USM - A defocused Milky Way bokeh from under my tree.

EOS Ra + RF 85mm f/1.2L USM - The color temperature of the stars is easily observed this way.

Wonderful! I had read things about stars colors and spectrum but didn't know it's visual for eye so beautifully. Thanks for showing these fantastic pictures.

Regards,
Marco Nero.

Very nicely documented, thank you very much!

Awesome, pictures, I think I've never seen a milky-way bokeh before

How is your experience with the 135mm F2 for astrophotography in general?

Best regards,

Wayne

MasterWayne wrote:

Awesome, pictures, I think I've never seen a milky-way bokeh before

I discovered years ago that you can make out the colors of the stars more accurately by defocusing the lens for astro shots  - and you can also use longer exposures without any star trails for this method (if required).
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EOS 6D + EF 24mm f/1.4L II lens - earlier experiments to see the color temperature from stars

EOS M6 - My Bokeh shot of Comet 46P/Wirtanen

How is your experience with the 135mm F2 for astrophotography in general?

For comets, I really like the EF 135mm f/2 lens. I've used it for lunarscapes as well but at f/2 it works quite well with comets... I've used it for this purpose with several different cameras.  For some shots it needs a longer exposure with a smaller aperture to control blooming and CA.
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EF 135mm f/2L lens - Carina Nebula
(not the best results ... needs a longer exposure with a smaller aperture)

EF 135mm f/2L lens - Comet Swan (on the LCD)

EF 135mm f/2L lens - Comet Swan on the EOS M6

EF 135mm f/2L lens - Comet 46P/Wirtanen

EF 135mm f/2L lens - Orion Nebula

EF 135mm f/2L lens - Comet Lovejoy (C/2014 Q2)

EF 135mm f/2L Lens - Lunar Rise

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Thanks for the quick and comprehensive answer! Highly appreciated!

A friend recently bought an EQ Mount, so it seems I have to try out my 135mm on it

Marco,

REALLY impressive images and a great write-up! I use dedicated astro cameras but I still really like to see Canon continuing to support astrophotographers with specialized bodies with less filtering that interferes with the wavelengths of emission nebulae.

Fun to see so many objects in your widefield Milky way image, with the Lagoon and Trifid nebulas and also the Rho Ophiuchi complex so prominently represented. You obviously have some dark skies where you are imaging from. The comet shots are equally impressive, and amazing to realize you are seeing the comet core on the LiveView display - that's mid blowing!

I now have a new respect for Canon's latest astro body the Ra, after your excellent write-up and fantastic sample images. Thanks for sharing. This might just be the ultimate nightscape shooting camera. I am currently about to switch over to an R5 from my trusty 5DSr, but having a second body for nightscape imaging could be a real benefit.

Thanks so much for sharing these, and for taking the time to give such a detailed report on the camera. Good to also see how well the 135 f/2 is performing. I will have to keep an eye on that as well.

Best Regards,

ML

www.thinairphotography.com

Currantos wrote:

Your images are spectacular. I have nothing to do with astrophotography in general but your images are really great to enjoy on this forum. Way to go man.

Thank you Currantos. I've been wary of posting images here in the R forum because for Astro work people might have preferred that I post them over in the Astrophotography forum instead. But since the EOS Ra is simply a factory-modded EOS R, and because the R is also quite decent for Astrophotography, It may be of interest to folks here as both cameras share the same features (other than IR-cut sensor + 30x magnification on the R). The folks on the Astro forum seem to give Mirrorless and DSLR cameras a bit of a hard time because they're mostly into the cooled CCD/CMOS cameras which are more like a tube that plugs into the back of a telescope. But when I get around to some longer exposures with an EQ Tracking mount, I might post some samples over there. I'm more interested casual observation with wider lenses for landscapes using the Milky Way as a backdrop. I just can't do that with the dedicated Astrocams of the tubular variety. For a portable system, the EOS Ra seems quite capable and portable.
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I saw a single shot of the Andromeda galaxy taken with the EOS Ra on a YouTube video and the detail for a single 45 second exposure looked like the sort of thing you'd typically get from a major observatory or via many hours of tracking and stacking - showing the dust layers and swirls ... only this was just one exposure. Admittedly, the photographer used an expensive EF 400mm f/2.8 lens. But what's to stop someone else using a slightly longer exposure with a different lens on an EQ Mount?
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Link to the image is here: https://www.canon-europe.com/cameras/eos-ra/

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mikeyL wrote:

Marco,

REALLY impressive images and a great write-up! I use dedicated astro cameras but I still really like to see Canon continuing to support astrophotographers with specialized bodies with less filtering that interferes with the wavelengths of emission nebulae.

Thank you MikeyL. I'm still exploring the camera and have only taken it out of the house 5 times.  The first time was for 'street testing' to see if the daylight colors could be dealt with and 4 times at night to test different lenses under the Milky Way.  Each time I was out it was for about an hour and a half.  This was enough for me to review the EOS Ra for the purpose it was sold and purchased.  But I am yet to spend enough time with the RF 85mm f/1.2L lens and that's a very impressive lens so far.  I'm just waiting for a cabinet to be delivered so I can put all my gear behind glass and clear some space in my home office for some product photography tests. Then I intend to spend some time near the ocean with this lens.  But for Astro it is an absolute gem so far. 
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The image quality of the RF 85mm f/1.2L USM is very impressive to me.  I've been shooting with the original EF 85mm f/1.2L II version of this lens for years and I just can't believe the AF reliability and image quality (specifically clarity) this RF ens is producing.  I know the RF lens is very expensive, but for those who can justify using it will be rewarded.  I had to give up my cherished EF 85mmL version but I don't have to many regrets.  I look forward to obtaining another R body after learn more about the upcoming R6.  Since DSLRs never needed IBIS to take great pictures, and because IBIS is useless for long exposure astrophotography, the Ra is just fine as it is. But I think Canon knows a lot of their reputation is riding on the R5/R6 so I'm expecting good things.  If it meets my needs for terrestrial photography, I will certainly consider one. But I do like the EOS R.  I could easily use a non-modded (Standard EOS R)  body and enjoy the results and it does look like I'll eventually need a well-featured body for my own use.  The weather seals and protective sensor-shutter are two things I admire on the Ra and R.  Not sure I'd buy an R6 if those were lacking.

Fun to see so many objects in your widefield Milky way image, with the Lagoon and Trifid nebulas and also the Rho Ophiuchi complex so prominently represented. You obviously have some dark skies where you are imaging from. The comet shots are equally impressive, and amazing to realize you are seeing the comet core on the LiveView display - that's mid blowing!

There's so much up there to see.  The last 5 comets I photographed with the EOS Ra and also the EOS M6 (APS-C) and EOS 6D (DSLR) cameras both showed the comet cores with a bright green halo around them on the LCD screens.  Sometimes you can even see the direction of the comet tail on the LCD if your ISO is high enough (usually around ISO 5000).

I now have a new respect for Canon's latest astro body the Ra, after your excellent write-up and fantastic sample images. Thanks for sharing. This might just be the ultimate nightscape shooting camera. I am currently about to switch over to an R5 from my trusty 5DSr, but having a second body for nightscape imaging could be a real benefit.

I'm done editing and posting the shots I've already taken of the Milky Way but I do need to try some shots of Andromeda and the Orion Nebula when they become visible in my Southern Skies again in a few months.  Since my posts may be of interest to folks here, I'll put a bit more effort into the next night I head out (when Orion and Andromeda come out in September).  I do dread those bitterly cold nights out though.  Especially in the mountains where the air is much clearer.  I live in the outer suburbs of Sydney and there's so much light pollution here that I can see it from two hours drive away.

Thanks so much for sharing these, and for taking the time to give such a detailed report on the camera. Good to also see how well the 135 f/2 is performing. I will have to keep an eye on that as well.

That EF 135mm f/2L lens is a gem on just about every camera I've used it on.  It's not the best Astrophotography lens when used wide open at f/2 but it does capture things my other lenses couldn't.  My longer lenses have smaller apertures and my wider lenses don't have enough focal length... for things like comets.

Excellent images!

I'm sold on EOS R and 85/1.2. Would love to get my hands on this combo. Hopefully sooner rather than later!

Please do come over to the astrophotography forum, and ignore the nay-Sayers. I for one would love to see more of your work, and I'm sure the vast majority of posters there would too.

1DSmII wrote:

Excellent images!

Thanks.... though these are still experimental at this stage.  It is so cold here in Winter (especially in the mountains) that I have only had time to quickly set up, takes some pictures based on what is in the sky at the time, and then pack up and drive home again.  I would take these pictures from my backyard, but I live in the suburbs near Sydney (Australia) and I'm afraid that the light pollution is quite strong here.  A short drive to the rural districts is about 45 minutes away.  I have chosen to drive a little further to get to even clearer skies.  Even then, I still have problems with the glow of the cities near the horizons.  I guess I could drive further but the risks of hitting animals or having an accident increases if I do.  I'm also wary of the possibility of being robbed, which is something other local astrophotographers in the same area tell me is on their mind.

I'm sold on EOS R and 85/1.2. Would love to get my hands on this combo. Hopefully sooner rather than later!

In retrospect, the price is probably fair for this degree of technology and for the features of both the camera and lens.  I found the price of that lens somewhat prohibitive initially. Then I realized it was cheaper than the telescope I was considering... and more useful in other ways for terrestrial photography. After months, and even more than a year of many other priorities, I was able to pool the resources together to buy this camera and lens. I have to admit that I was unprepared for the experience of using this specific lens with the Ra. I thought that I would need to be taking multiple shots and then stack them... since some of the earlier reviewers for the Ra were doing this.  Fortunately, a single exposure is all it took for me.  I haven't stacked any images yet.  I did need to increase the overall contrast and saturation to bring out more color and detail...but it's all there in the JPEGs when the images show up immediately after taking them. The live view on the LCD is incredible. And when switching to Manual Focus on the lens, the Focus peaking become active. I set mine to "Blue" but when the lens is aimed at the sky, all the stars are instantly highlighted with blue. And when you pan the camera, it picks up on every star. This makes the LCD come to life in a way that can't easily be described. And the Live View on the LCD even shows a faint pallet of colors depicting the Milky Way live in a manner than no other camera seems capable of doing.
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This lens is well regarded by members of the forum here for non-astro photography (and that's probably what it was intended for). I hope to do more video of the Ra in use that shows what the experience is like. I have only just last week assembled a CGX EQ Mount to try this camera out using longer exposures... although it has dawned on me that I never thought to try higher than ISO 5000. Mainly because I thought that this would be too noisy. It appears I was wrong. I still don't have a suitable battery to operate my CGX mount... but I will attempt to photograph the Andromeda galaxy in about two weeks with the Ra. The Pleiades and Orion will be appearing in our Southern night skies at a respectable hour shortly. In another two months they ought to be up high around midnight. I'll try to test the Ra on those targets with the EF 100-400mmL II lens or possibly the EF 135mm f/2 USM lens... although the 135mmL lens doesn't seem to allow me to apply much in the way of lens corrections. Either way, I'm more than happy with the performance of the RF 85mm lens - so I guess I'm still in the process of exploring with it to see what it can do. It might be another two months before I can get my hands on the power supply I need so until then I will work with limited exposure times and a regular tripod. The coolest thing so far for me, is that the Ra + RF 85mmL can be used without any special tripod or any special long exposures. Heck, even Auto-WB seems to be giving me some reasonable results.
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Yet to be tested but I'm curious to see what an EQ Mount can do for this lens + camera.

Still waiting on a power supply.

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I believe that the EOS Ra is a very interesting FF mirrorless camera. The price is a little steep although it does go on sale every now and then where it drops well below the price of the EOS R camera. I bought my own Ra after missing one sale by just a day, and waiting for another. It was not inexpensive, even under sale. But I firmly believe that it has a degree of usefulness that many overlook. The EOS Ra can be used as a stand-alone camera for astro-terrestrial photography and it can be easily adapted to a telescope. I was at first hesitant to buy this camera, thinking to myself that some folks say you don't need an IR-Cut filter to capture the Milky Way nebulas that exhibit strong reds etc. But the difference is considerable. And I'm seeing better low-noise performance that I could have imagined.
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Hydrogen-Alpha + Sulfur II sensitivity on the Ra?
I am also noticing far more detail in the dust lanes... right across the full stretch of the Milky Way - which is likely to be related to the EOS Ra's increased sensitivity to the Sulfur II channels - not just the Hydrogen-Alpha channels in the 656.3nm range... and this is something that an IR-Cut filter will usually be more sensitive to. This is just with very short exposures too. Companies that modify camera sensors to remove the IR-Cut filter element claim that the increased sensitivity to H-alpha (656.3nm) is 4x (which is the same number that Canon claims for the EOS Ra) but the sensitivity to the Sulfur II (672nm) channels is increased by 6x ... which is something Canon doesn't mention, but is almost certainly the case with the Ra. My own observations suggest this is also the case and that is exciting because I was only expecting to see more of the reds. I would guess that the modified sensor allows for more light from the Sulfur II (672nm) range and this may involve more back-lighting from the areas where the Dust Lanes are located. I think this might be something others often overlook.

Please do come over to the astrophotography forum, and ignore the nay-Sayers. I for one would love to see more of your work, and I'm sure the vast majority of posters there would too.

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Forums
One of the complaints I often see on the Astro-forum is that many members don't recommend the EOS Ra because they assume it's much the same as the EOS 60Da or the 20Da. They also prefer to recommend tube-type CCD and CMOS cameras that need to be plugged into telescopes... not appreciating that those cannot be used to produce landscape-inclusive astro-photography. This is where the Ra is particularly good. It's also the very first Full Frame mirrorless IR-Cut sensor camera from Canon.
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I had considered spending more time at the Astro Forum but even a recent reply to someone on the subject of certain filters produced a chain-effect of unpleasant replies from people who claim to know better. When a University Professor of Observational Physics chimed in to support my comments, they then turned on him... with one element of abuse even being that he had 'dropped his credentials' into the conversation. This just goes to show that no matter how well your intentions, or even the level of your qualification, you simply paint a target on your back when you enter your certain forums. I'm big enough to take care of myself here and I'm sure there's moderators watching over certain threads but I'm not too happy with how some people behave over there. Which is very unusual because I'd expect better behavior from people on that forum.

primeshooter wrote:

Anyone know how the R5 compares regarding the LV feed / milky way. I am meaning the brightness, not H alpha emission differences. Is it as good as this on the LV feed?

The first image below ought to answer that question for you.  The EOS R5 should be VERY similar to the R6 with Live View for the Milky Way.  The difference in sensitivity is -6.5EV versus -6.0EV with a bright lens, which is almost indistinguishable.  These were all shot in JPEG and were taken using a basic Manfrotto tripod and the self-timer.  I believe the results from the R5 would be visually identical with the same lenses, however the R5 should produce a physically larger image with potentially greater detail.  The LCD Live View should also be the same.
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I have only used the EOS R6 once for Astro - to test it out when it first arrived. It's my intention to use other cameras for Milky Way photography although it's seems to be a capable camera in this respect. The brighter areas of the Milky Way (the Galactic Core and the Karina Nebula were clearly visible in the Live View - and turning the lens to Manual Focus causes the stars to 'sparkle' on the LCD due to the effects of the Focus Peaking. 
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LCD Live View on the EOS R6 prior to taking a test image of the core of the Milky Way...

Resulting image from the EOS R6 *(shot in JPEG, basic edits applied).

EOS R6 + EF 24mm f/1.4L II USM lens.

A vertical Panorama from the EOS R6 + RF 85mmL - with and without an edit
*(left image is from the camera, right image is after a basic color/contrast/curves edit).

R6 - uncropped image of the Galactic Core after a basic edit.

EOS R6 with the EF 24mm f/1.4L II USM lens during this shoot.

EOS R6 with the RF 85mm f/1.2L USM lens during this shoot.
R6 panorama after editing for color/curves/contrast/hue & saturation.

primeshooter wrote:

Marco thanks for that, looks great. I wish canon had a native 24 1.4 for RF, still not surfaced, nor a 20 1.8!

I've heard they've been working on at least one.  There's no official word on the subject of an RF 24mm lens but several rumors from within Canon have come forth in the last year suggesting a 24mm lens with new features - presumably a new optical design and possibly even a wider (than f/1.4) aperture has been implied.  An RF 35mm f/1.2L rumor has also been floating around and I'd guess that one would be true.  24mm is a key focal length for Canon's pro-shooters so I'd expect to see one emerge sooner rather than later.  If they applied Canon's BR Optics they could produce something pretty special.
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Canon's "Lens Roadmap for 2020-2021" as leaked by an unknown source in September 2020 was EERILY accurate with a bunch of lenses that have since been released... yet listed an RF 24mm f/1.4L USM lens.  PetaPixel leaked the Canon Rumors leak indicating a Canon RF 24mm f/1.8 IS STM Macro lens was on the cards (not that I believe anything from that particular site)... and a Canon TS-R 24mm f/3.5L lens was also supposed to be announced in 2021 from yet another source.
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Canon Watch noticed a number of Canon Lens Patents for "a bunch of RF Prime Lenses" on February 17, 2021 -  which included an optical formula for 24mm and 35mm lens. (*Patent Application 2021-18277A).  I think that it's safe to anticipate one is on the way.

Hello...

As usual - excellent photographs. Thank you for sharing.

Merry Christmas and a happy NY to you both.

Marco Nero wrote:

EOS M6 + EF-M 32mm f/1.4 lens - a shot of the EOS Ra on my tripod - under the tree I had set up under... with the old Canon EF 135mm f/2 USM lens on it.

EOR Ra + RF 85mm f/1.2L USM lens - three JPEGs stitched together and rotated clockwise. The glow on the left is from Sydney city. The original JPEGs looked flatter and were slightly more subdued in contrast and color. I then edited this panorama by adjusting color, contrast, curves, levels, and saturation ...but then I forgot to eliminate the vignette. No sharpening or Noise Reduction used. I'll chalk this up to being an early test. Auto WB was used and I need to calibrate for a better alternative. The JPEGs used here were three seperate 6 second, unstacked exposures.

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I'm watching the upcoming EOS R6 closely and may consider it for regular terrestrial photography if the price is reasonable. I've been anticipating that model since last year. I would prefer to save my EOS Ra just for Astro work if possible although it's not about shutter-count numbers. According to Canon, both the EOS R and EOS Ra have a 200,000 shutter count life expectancy. This camera will probably outlive me because in three weeks I've only taken about 400 pictures with it... and everyone knows how you get trigger-happy in early days of new gear. I finished tweaking three JPEGS from the camera taken last week (see above) and I've now, after four trips out with it at night, I feel that I've leaned what the camera and lens combo are at least capable of. Eventually I'll use a T-mount to place EOS Ra onto a telescope with tracking. In the meanwhile, I'm stuck doing some landscapes and just simple unguided, unstacked shots.
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Setting up for the first shots and there were already clouds moving in.

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Comet C/2019 (Lemmon) last night...
I've just spent a couple of hours in the dark last night trying to photograph Comet Lemmon (C/2019 U6) in a National Park (in the Sydney Blue Mountains). I tried to set up in my usual spot about 1.5 hours from my home... but when I arrived, there were clouds approaching from the North-West where there the Comet was supposed to be located... and a nearby illuminated advertising sign was spilling light into the lens hood of the camera lens. I got back in my car and drove to a darker location another 30 minutes away in a National Park. I set up under a tree next to my car, took a few shots and returned home ASAP because it was just so darned cold up in the mountains in Winter.
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It's a little eerie to be standing in a remote area with no phone reception. It's literally pitch black out there and you an certainly see the stars and the clouds and the milky way overhead. At one point I heard something behind me and expected to see a feral pic in the torchlight but it was only a possum. It's winter here so the snakes usually don't come out at night at this time of the year. Some clouds were low enough to reflect lights from the cities. Others were high up and simply looked like spaces in the sky devoid of stars. I had to switch on my flashlight between shots so as not to trip over on my camera tripod. I did however drop a $230 NiSi Night Filter while removing it from the RF 85mmL lens... it fell from my fingers as I unscrewed it and landed on rocks. I expected the worst... but as luck would have it, the filter was attached to a step-down ring and the cheap $9 ring took the only impact, leaving a very small mark on the aluminium.
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EOS Ra + RF 85mm f/1.2L lens - a defocused view of Jupiter and Saturn from under my tree.

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I saw two meteors, one of which was on the camera LCD as I counted down for a timer-delay shot. I found that with wide lenses I'll use a 2 second delay but longer lenses can require a 10 second delay to prevent tripod/camera shake. I once found a 2-inch long meteorite right where I was standing to take the picture below - back in 2014.
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Again, a few people asked me why I didn't just buy a tube-type CCD/CMOS camera to plug into the eyepiece of a telescope. Those things can be more expensive than the Ra for a decent model and I don't want to have to deal with laptops and computer driven software either. More importantly, I can't capture landscapes like these with that type of astrocam. The image below was shot at ISO 6400 - which was completely unnecessary. My preference has been to use ISO 4000 and 5000 for some Milky Way shots if shooting at f/1.4 with the 85mm lens.
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EOS Ra + RF 85mm f/1.2L lens - Comet Lemmon is on the left - behind the pesky clouds.

Comet Lemmon - as seen on the Live View of the EOS Ra camera at 30x magnification.

EOS Ra + EF 135mm f/2 USM lens - Comet C/2019 (Lemmon) with a faint, white tail.

EOS Ra + EF 135mm f/2 USM lens - Comet Lemon - out of focus to show the colors.

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The comet wasn't really visible to my eyes. I think it was about magnitude 6.0 when I saw it through the camera lens. I knew it was just above (and to the right of) Sirius. So, when I got out of the car, I simply pointed the camera lens towards the area I thought the comet would be in and took a picture. The comet was visible in the first photograph and then re-framed the scene as needed. A major issue was the moving clouds. The sky had been spotless all day and the sky was rated 9/10 for Stargazing last night. But as soon as I had parked the car and set up the camera on a tripod, I was having to wait for the clouds to move. Eventually the comet dipped closer to the horizon and was fading behind the clouds there (see image above). I took a couple of shots looking over the tops of the branches of the short tree (shrub) I was standing near (see below) and then drove home. I'm not overly moved by these shots but the camera and lens seem okay so far.
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Hot Pixels and Temperatures
I've had a few lazy pixels appear on the sensor when using long exposures, especially with high ISO settings. They generally disappear when I do a sensor clean, much like on my 6D. There are none when shooting in normal conditions with shutter speeds over 1 second. I thought the Ra might have the ability to remap the sensor since it has a Dust Delete Data function. But since the stuck pixels are gone at normal speeds, this is perfectly normal behavior. I only mention it to be thorough on reporting on the camera. There are no dead pixels of course (which is good). I also notice that the camera gets REALLY cold in the night air when the frost arrives but it doesn't get damp (yet) like my EOS 6D does. The Protage lens warmer I've used on these cold nights continues to keep my glass from fogging/frosting up.
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I think I'm about done shooting Astro for a little while. I'm waiting for Andromeda and the Orion nebula to show up in a couple of months. I'll shoot those from a fixed tripod and will later move to an EQ Mount with tracking for future imaging.
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EOS Ra + RF 85mm f/1.2L USM - A defocused Milky Way bokeh from under my tree.

EOS Ra + RF 85mm f/1.2L USM - The color temperature of the stars is easily observed this way.