Big thanks to Thedon and Tbomachines for the suggestions and help. These are the results. I'm quite a bit happier with them.

http://i71.photobucket.com/albums/i1...psa7e0bb33.jpg

http://i71.photobucket.com/albums/i1...psb4ad3634.jpg

http://i71.photobucket.com/albums/i1...ps2bb70d5e.jpg

http://i71.photobucket.com/albums/i1...ps58bd029e.jpg

http://i71.photobucket.com/albums/i1...ps764c4dc7.jpg

Now you need to play with off camera flashes.

Oh and get a decent macro lens and do water drop photography or smoke. I'd spend hours shooting that stuff.

I'd love to. but lenses are so bleeding expensive, especially the macro. I'd love to get my hands on a tilt/Shift lens. one day... but for now I gotta play with what I have :/

if you like night time photography, you’ll enjoy this thread
Nightscapes using AstroTrac Tracking Mount - FM Forums

Good lord those are amazing. I'll never be able to do something like that. but still, awesome

I'll also note, those lenses they used are about 2500-4500.00 and a full set runs about 25K. but they are really stunning pictures... I wish I could do it. the moving tripod is really nice, it's somewhat reasonable at about 600.00

Here is my 30-second exposure at 18mm, f/8.0, ISO 200, no flash

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7175/6...2f28c698_b.jpg

Try for a full minute exposure, I'd like to see what you get, 1:15 is the most you'd get before the stars start to visually smear

f/5.6, 300mm

Orion nebula, about 5 seconds, ISO6400
http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7006/6...00de7f44_z.jpg

Same, but 1 minute, ISO100
http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7172/6...3637a480_z.jpg

And 2 minutes, ISO200
http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7142/6...4a4f5f8c_z.jpg

http://i883.photobucket.com/albums/a...psde2e5627.jpg

This was a 20sec exposure the other night. I should have used a filter and gotten a bit more. Lots of light from the full moon though.

The running favorite from last night

Nice ones of Orion MBeige. How come the close ups of the nebula have wobbles in them? The camera was on a stationary mount no?

- Peter.

did you mate a camera to a telescope?

The camera was on a tripod. I just used my 150mm Sigma f/2.8 mated with 2x teleconverter. 300mm total range, but on my D90 or D300 it's a 1.5x crop factor equivalent to 450mm.

I guess back then the second floor hallway of our apartment complex was not as stable. The Orion nebula looks better with a proper telescope though.

Let me be the first to say that I am disappointed that there are no "celestial bodies" when someone says something about a photography related new trick.