Nikon D800 with Meade 10" pics

[Daveskywill]

Here's some of my Nikon + Meade astrophotos so far

Any suggestions?

[Daveskywill]

PS: the one of the Cressent Moon was done using my cheap Kenko 35mm

type lens

+ I built successfully a barndoor tracker mount on a stable tripod.

It of course follows a tangent-arm kind of equatorial mount idea.

And tested out how it did with some star patterns in tracking. And

even test fitted a laser to help it's pointing to Polaris. Roughly it

works but of course for the Moon, typically it's so bright that you

don't need this.

I can take a picture of it. I built it as per instruction is Terrence Dickenson's

book NightWatch.

It has helped teach me that these cool, manufactured eq's are doing

a great job. That essentially a home built barndoor tracker won't

make your DSlr on with a >200mm fl lens after ~ 5 seconds under


typical decs make tack-sharp stars :)

Because even though the tripod is stable, it uses a 1/4-20 thread

screw for the tangent arm thread. And this means a 1/4 turn every 15

seconds. So to turn it smoothly is a key. And I found out a little

what is tolerated.


Thanks.

David

[Daveskywill]

Some day I'd really love... I think I have'nt lived until I've had one of these

A Paramount ME II mount.

As it is I've only got a $500 Meade starfinder eq mount. And my

wonderful LX200GPS on a wedge.

Does anyone know of an equatorial commercially available better

than an ME II?

PS: also I love the idea of those craddle eq's.

Like Palomar, with the horseshoe polar

That's cool!

Thanks

[Daveskywill]

does anyone here have an idea on this idea?: How about

a SCT or Coude Cass scope that could have a flexible secondary

with the purpose to both/either make the mag zoomable (then

the sec could slide along a sliding trough in the OTA, or also

include AO?

PS: I like the scopes where the primary isn't cored and yet

there is a convex secondary plus a flat 2nd secondary,

that could this time divert light either out one side or the other

this could co-inside with the declination axis. A flippable flat

tertiary.