Hey guys,
I'm another rookie looking for a bit of starting up equipment advice.
Have been interested in space and astronomy since I was a kid but up until recently I haven't had the time (or money) to get involved.
Really keen on astrophotography and whilst I find the photos of the moon/planets fascinating and would like to do some imaging of them, I think my real interest would be DSOs.
Currently have no equipment other than a Nikon D3400 with pretty standard beginner lenses (18-55mm, 55-200mm). The last few weeks I've had a play around with just my camera/tripod, taking some milky way shots and ended up more fixated on the orion nebula (only got a small blurry outline but was enough to get me hooked).
Starting budget is about $2k for now, and while I toyed around with idea of getting an 8 or 10" dob (for more bang for my buck) I think I'd end up just trying to take photos of DSOs and becoming frustrated.
After reading around online, it seems to be general consensus is to get a decent mount first and upgrade scope later. Inspired by Martin (startreks) post on Crater101s thread I've been looking at a getting a HEQ5 Pro and a cheap 6 or 8" newt.
Something like
http://www.astroanarchy.com.au/teles...to_HEQ5_8.html (seems a good price and I'm based in Brisbane) or the Bintel version.
Does this seem like a reasonable start? Probably with a plan to upgrade scope in the next 6-12 months. Am I going to regret not waiting 6 months and getting a eq 6 off the bat (and getting a cheap 8" dob to scratch the itch in the meantime)?
Thanks for your input!