Joined quite recently and I'm very impressed with this site!
Im only 15 and I have owned a 6inch reflector on a eq3 mount for quite a few years, recommend from my aunt in England at an observatory.
It hasnt been till recently that I have gained a huge urge to get into astronomy and learn more about space!
I have been looking at 10" dobs and they look great! However in the future id like to get into astrophotography and apparently dobs dont support this as well...
I was wondering if it were at all possible to get a dob scope onto an eq3 mount? And what sort of size dob it could handle?
I would like to be able to observe deep space objects but planets as well though!
I live in a slighty light polluted area and I have around $1000 to spend.
Any replies or guidance will be greatly appreciated!
No problem - a moderator can move the thread for you.
A dobsonian telescope is effectively a newtonian reflector on a alt-azi mount. Therefore the reflector tube unit can be taken off the mount and with the addition of tube rings (and usually removing the trunnions which mount onto the alt-azi base) it can be mounted onto an EQ mount. It can be handy to keep those trunnions in place so the tube unit can be moved between the EQ mount and the alt-azi mount, depending on what you are wanting to do.
Your EQ3 will be struggling with a tube unit much bigger than the 6" that you have. Perhaps 8", but most probably not any larger.
No problem - a moderator can move the thread for you.
A dobsonian telescope is effectively a newtonian reflector on a alt-azi mount. Therefore the reflector tube unit can be taken off the mount and with the addition of tube rings (and usually removing the trunnions which mount onto the alt-azi base) it can be mounted onto an EQ mount. It can be handy to keep those trunnions in place so the tube unit can be moved between the EQ mount and the alt-azi mount, depending on what you are wanting to do.
Your EQ3 will be struggling with a tube unit much bigger than the 6" that you have. Perhaps 8", but most probably not any larger.
Ah sweet, alright well it sounds like I may have to make a decision on what type of telescope I want. Which is hard when you can want the best of both worlds!
Take your time mate and don't rush into a decision that you may regret in the long run. There is lots of info and people willing to help here on IIS. Read up as much as time allows and try to make sure any reviews that you read are based around what you are wanting to do. Also check out the classifieds here as you may be able to get a really good scope for less than what's in the shops. Just try before you buy!
Take your time mate and don't rush into a decision that you may regret in the long run. There is lots of info and people willing to help here on IIS. Read up as much as time allows and try to make sure any reviews that you read are based around what you are wanting to do. Also check out the classifieds here as you may be able to get a really good scope for less than what's in the shops. Just try before you buy!
Good luck
Simmo
Thank you for the welcomes
Oh yes, dont worry I'm not one to rush in this sort of thing! Been searching around the whole net for useful information! But ill be sure to check out the classifieds for a scope!
Hey Josh and welcome to IIS! Im 15 also and i just recently received a 5" GOTO Reflector for christmas to get me started in astrophotography and so far i have taken images that have amazed myself and my friends and family! If you want a telescope for astrophotography, i'd consider getting a 5" or bigger on a GOTO mount or a EQ6/EQ5. This will allow you to track sky objects and take long exposures without star trails! I have managed to get some quite amazing shots through a 130mm reflector on a GOTO mount.
You can find some decent dobsonian's and reflectors with GOTO mounts for around $1000 and even less
I'm not telling you to buy these, I'm just adding an option to yours
Hey Josh, I guess I'm kind of 'old school' about astronomy, I specifically went out looking for a mount that wasn't 'goto'. With a small amount of patience and checking the IIS classifieds daily I picked up an 8" F/5 newtonian and an EQ6 (non-goto, non-synscan, non-everything ) as well as a few eyepieces, camera adapters and software advice for well under a grand. I've recently been looking at upgrading some of my kit, but I can't find a scope worth upgrading to for less than $2000.
I got into astrophotography because I loved looking at DSOs through the eyepiece but I new there was so much detail and colour that I was missing out on, so I'm quite happy to sit outside with my scope while the 'fuzzy photons' from my eyepiece resolve into spectacularly crisp images on my laptop.
Your 6" won't be terrible for astrophotography so my advice would be to upgrade your mount to a HEQ5 or EQ6 (best you can afford) and stick with your current optics until you can afford a bigger tube (or build your own )
An interesting statistic is that a 12" scope has twice the surface area of a 10", so don't be fooled by thinking that you need to double your aperture to see any gains.
But having said all that, you could probably get a larger aperture Dob for the price of Newt + EQ mount, so it all depends on whether you're happy to stick with Visual observing until your budget can extend to all the gear you'll need for astrophotography. The thing I love about this hobby is you can spend as much or as little as you like (usually more than you'd like though )
Hi Josh,
the thing about telescope choice is that there is no right answer. Every scope is a balance of features and ambitions on the one hand with cost on the other.
You have a dob that sounds pretty portable. I strongly suggest you make contact with either your closest astro club or other astronomers in your area and spend time with them. Take your scope to a few club functions, see what others are doing, have a look through other scopes, get a sense of what is possible and what isn't. Don't spend your hard-earned cash yet. Instead, get yourself some time under dark skies with other astronomers and their scopes.
After a while, the answer to your question will become much simpler as your knowledge and interest grows.
Peter
Hi Josh and to IIS .
Murphy beat me to the punch on this , I was going to suggest exactly what he said , keep your 6 inch scope and wait for a HEQ5 or EQ6 mount , it does not have to be GOTO as these older mounts have good drives , easily good enough for AP and in the future a 'Syn Scan ' up grade is all you need, quite cheeply as well . .
Keep you eyes on the classifieds .
Good luck and like Sean , start small and enjoy .
I would say everyone here with $1000's worth of gear just like me has built it up over years and years , its an expensive hobby if you want the best straight up . .
Brian.
QUOTE=LAW;928670]Hey Josh, I guess I'm kind of 'old school' about astronomy, I specifically went out looking for a mount that wasn't 'goto'. With a small amount of patience and checking the IIS classifieds daily I picked up an 8" F/5 newtonian and an EQ6 (non-goto, non-synscan, non-everything ) as well as a few eyepieces, camera adapters and software advice for well under a grand. I've recently been looking at upgrading some of my kit, but I can't find a scope worth upgrading to for less than $2000.
I got into astrophotography because I loved looking at DSOs through the eyepiece but I new there was so much detail and colour that I was missing out on, so I'm quite happy to sit outside with my scope while the 'fuzzy photons' from my eyepiece resolve into spectacularly crisp images on my laptop.
Your 6" won't be terrible for astrophotography so my advice would be to upgrade your mount to a HEQ5 or EQ6 (best you can afford) and stick with your current optics until you can afford a bigger tube (or build your own )
An interesting statistic is that a 12" scope has twice the surface area of a 10", so don't be fooled by thinking that you need to double your aperture to see any gains.
But having said all that, you could probably get a larger aperture Dob for the price of Newt + EQ mount, so it all depends on whether you're happy to stick with Visual observing until your budget can extend to all the gear you'll need for astrophotography. The thing I love about this hobby is you can spend as much or as little as you like (usually more than you'd like though )[/QUOTE]
Last edited by brian nordstrom; 27-12-2012 at 01:43 PM.
Reason: mistake
Thank you for all the help everyone! Will definitely be sticking around!
All the advice has been very useful to me and all the opinions count!
I would love to join an astronomy club but im afraid I will find it hard because I dont believe there are to many local clubs around, as well as the fact im only 15 and cant drive!
Im sure my parents wouldn't mind though!
Im thinking a newt on an upgraded mount would do me good, as I do love taking photos of the sky as well as observing it.
Price wise, unfortunately I did wind my self into an expensive hobby... but thats just the nature of it and something I'm willing to pay!
Price wise, unfortunately I did wind my self into an expensive hobby... but that’s just the nature of it and something I'm willing to pay!
your not wrong!!! lol
Hi Josh,
I got into Astronomy just to take photos. Thought I could do it for around 2k. And you can but astrophotography is like a drug addiction you always want better equipment to get that ultimate photo.
I spent 2k at the start and now I’m just shy of 10k .
So my advice which is the same as a few below...Take your time make the right choice from the start. A 6" can take great photos but the mount is not something you should skimp on. Save your money for a high quality mount and you will be surprised what you can achieve with that setup.
But there are heaps of good advice here!!!!
I got into Astronomy just to take photos. Thought I could do it for around 2k. And you can but astrophotography is like a drug addiction you always want better equipment to get that ultimate photo.
I spent 2k at the start and now I’m just shy of 10k .
So my advice which is the same as a few below...Take your time make the right choice from the start. A 6" can take great photos but the mount is not something you should skimp on. Save your money for a high quality mount and you will be surprised what you can achieve with that setup.
But there are heaps of good advice here!!!!
Good luck and Clear skies
Robert
Alright sounds like I should be upgrading my mount by a few people Would this mean something like an eq5/6? And also, for astrophotography, what would I expect to need along with the mount?
[QUOTE=Mun;930975]Alright sounds like I should be upgrading my mount by a few people Would this mean something like an eq5/6? And also, for astrophotography, what would I expect to need along with the mount?QUOTE]
Hi Josh,
I have the EQ6 and think its fantastic. All Depending on Budget i would settle for no less than an EQ6. If you want to do Astrophotography I started off with a Canon 1000D i got some nice results from that camera. Im sure though that the Canon EOS 60D is not that expencive as if you are going to use your scope as the lens then you probably only require the body of the camera. But i think its good to have at least one lens for the camera then you can sit it on top of the Scope and take some nice wide field images. cameras are a personal preference however.
You will also require a guide camera, there are a few to choose from and different ways to guide so have look into those.
this is what i started out using and only recently upgraded to a CCD camera which is a completely new Challenge let me tell you!!!
Hope that helps and im sure others will have some fantastic suggestions to help you. But try and get to an Astronomy club and have a look at some setups and ask heaps of questions, the one thing i noticed when i started out is that Astronomers are very happy to offer advice and help.
Alright sounds like I should be upgrading my mount by a few people Would this mean something like an eq5/6? And also, for astrophotography, what would I expect to need along with the mount?QUOTE]
Hi Josh,
I have the EQ6 and think its fantastic. All Depending on Budget i would settle for no less than an EQ6. If you want to do Astrophotography I started off with a Canon 1000D i got some nice results from that camera. Im sure though that the Canon EOS 60D is not that expencive as if you are going to use your scope as the lens then you probably only require the body of the camera. But i think its good to have at least one lens for the camera then you can sit it on top of the Scope and take some nice wide field images. cameras are a personal preference however.
You will also require a guide camera, there are a few to choose from and different ways to guide so have look into those.
this is what i started out using and only recently upgraded to a CCD camera which is a completely new Challenge let me tell you!!!
Hope that helps and im sure others will have some fantastic suggestions to help you. But try and get to an Astronomy club and have a look at some setups and ask heaps of questions, the one thing i noticed when i started out is that Astronomers are very happy to offer advice and help.
Good luck and Clear Skies.
Robert
Thank you so much!
All this information has been very helpful! Especially after a great viewing last night it has make me more confident in spending this sort of money!
I'm going to (uncharacteristically) try and be the voice of reason here. Definitely get the best mount you can get your hands on, but as far as what's "required" for Astrophotography...
I started off with (and still use) an 8" Newtonian on an EQ6 with my DSLR. That's all.
With proper polar alignment I can comfortably take 2 minute exposures without an autoguider. The 1000D is a great DSLR for this type of work, the sensor is low on noise and 10.1mpx is a good size but it's based on the old 400D/450D. So I picked up a 450D cheap on ebay and (with the help of several online tutorials) took it apart and removed the IR filter, I'm also prototyping a TEC Peltier cooling system for it and I just wouldn't feel comfortable doing those kinds of mods to a brand new camera (but that's just my opinion).
So the cool thing about Astrophotography is you can expand your kit as you learn, once you've got a solid mount, an accurately collimated scope and a way of attaching your camera to it then you're ready to get started.
Now that I've got the hang of AP with the equipment I've got, I'm gearing up to start autoguiding and using filters. But I thoroughly recommend learning the basics before spending too much money, mostly because you'll probably end up (doing what I did) buying shiny things that you don't need.
I'm not saying Robert's advice is rubbish, I think it's great advice, and you will definitely need all of those things, but it's possible to start off small especially because you're on a budget.
This picture of M42 consists of about 15 minutes of 2min and 1 min subs.
Modded 450D, unguided. I used 'Backyard EOS' for the capture and camera control and DeepSkyStacker for processing.
So, having said all that, MY OPINION on what to buy and in what order goes...
Scope/Mount - Your current scope will be fine so a solid mount is in order.
Camera - What you want to image will affect your choices here. Planetary is easily done with a webcam, DSOs respond well to CCD and a DSLR is sort of 'halfway'.
***This is the minimum equipment, from here you can step up slowly (or quickly) as you learn what everything does and whether or not you need it***
Software - What camera you choose will give you software options, Canon DSLRs (for example) allow you to use Backyard EOS or AstroPhotographyTool to control them completely from a laptop. This also includes processing software like DeepSkyStacker, Registax, Irfanview, Photoshop...
Collimator - (some would say you should already have one) Once you start to get recognizable images you will undoubtedly start to nitpick, the first source of error is bad collimation. (Do your research on these)
Coma Corrector - This will correct the 'smeary' stars around the edge of your images. (You can see it in my M42 image because I don't have one)
Autoguider - Whether you decide to go with a seperate Guidescope or Off-Axis guider it's important to get a decent camera. I have the Orion StarShoot Autoguider, purely because it came up at the right time at the right price. It's the same as the QHY5 but with more restrictive firmware, so the QHY5 will work as an imaging camera and the SSAG won't.
I would say this is the 'base' level of Amateur Imaging, from here it depends on what you plan on imaging but that covers the basics and allows you to get used to the gear you have before adding to the learning curve. For example a more sensitive monochrome camera, RGB filters, Narrowband filters, filter wheel... Like Robert said, you can spend $2k or $10k
It is the opinion of the visual observer that the above is the best reason to stick to visual observation. It's so much better to have your eye at the eyepiece all night rather than setting up and then leaving your scope to capture a heap of data that will never leave your computer, or nobody will ever do anything with. Who wants to sit there listening to all those guiding issues for the rest of their lives? I joke of course and thanks to all those APs who post up those amazing images in the AP thread
)
to IIS .
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