How to make my sundog photos "unboring"?

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We had some magnificent sundogs today, almost a full ring around the sun!

But, somehow, my sundog photos always end up looking... blah.

https://pic.armedcats.net/e/ep/epp_b/2009/02/25/2009-02-25_Just_Sundogs.jpg

https://pic.armedcats.net/e/ep/epp_b/2009/02/25/2009-02-25_Sundogs_on_a_Hill.jpg

Some EXIF: Aperture Priority, f/11, 1/2500, 18mm, ISO 200, Sunny WB (same for both photos)

My main complaints are that I never seem to be able to get the nifty sunstars you see in photos like these. Instead, the sun is an ugly diamond shape.

Me, lens, camera or a combination?
 
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You get the star effect by using a small aperture and having a long-ish exposure. I would bump the ISO down to 100m, set your aperture to the minimum and give it another go. My only concern would be that even then the exposure may not be long enough to get the desired effect and if that's the case you may want to take into consideration a full ND filter. You could always give it another go with your grad to see how long it cuts the exposure down by but I'm not entirely sure how effective that will be.
 
You get the star effect by using a small aperture and having a long-ish exposure. I would bump the ISO down to 100m
ISO 200 is the base for the D40.

set your aperture to the minimum and give it another go. My only concern would be that even then the exposure may not be long enough to get the desired effect and if that's the case you may want to take into consideration a full ND filter. You could always give it another go with your grad to see how long it cuts the exposure down by but I'm not entirely sure how effective that will be.
It was 1/2500 at f/11. At 18mm, this lens' minimum aperture is f/22, which is 3 stops darker, so it would set the shutter at 1/320. I have an ND8 filter, which is good for three stops, reducing it further to 1/40. I could pile on my ND2 and ND4, bringing it down to 1/5, but at this point, I'd need a tripod, which I didn't have with me.
 
Is it the 18-55 VR? If it is, you could probably drop it into continuous shutter and pop off 4 or 5 shots at each position. At 18mm I can usually shoot clean shots down to about 1/4 with VR on. Just make sure you shoot more than one shot just in case some do come out shakey.
 
Non-VR, but, then, yes, you are right. I've actually managed to handhold down to 1 second if I squat down, hold my breath and concentrate really hard... but that was probably lucky ;)
 
Oh, yeah, I forgot about those. Wouldn't those cause the outer "dogs" to burst as well, though?
 
Yes, any bright area would be 'starbursted'. I'd try fitting your darkest grad and then go back there towards sunset which should hopefully mean the sun will have slightly less intensity. Maybe take a cushion or find somewhere to rest your camera to act as a tripod.
 
Yes, any bright area would be 'starbursted'. I'd try fitting your darkest grad and then go back there towards sunset which should hopefully mean the sun will have slightly less intensity. Maybe take a cushion or find somewhere to rest your camera to act as a tripod.

1) It's bloody cold here, but that doesn't mean sundogs don't happen every day ;) ... they may not even happen again this year

2) I'll make sure I have my tripod and ND filters with me the next time I see sundogs
 
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