Need help astrophotography newbie.

[nebroc]

Hi all am fairly new to astronomy and need a little help. I have decided i would like to take some pics with my point and shoot fuji finepix s5500.
I have a celestron 130slt with Barlow lens t adapter (celestron) . I found some good help at the start gazer loung and pics of how to set it up.
[URL="http:// http://stargazerslounge.com/topic/55988-camera-adapter-silly-question/

Went to our local camera shop they had the adapter ring only but could not offer me any help.
If anyone could point me in the right direction it would be greatly appreciated.
As I am a newbie I really don't want to buy a new camera at this point. Although I have been thinking about getting a digital slr.

Thanks in advance. John Eumundi sunshine coast. :shrug:
http://stargazerslounge.com/topic/55988-camera-adapter-silly-question/

[OzEclipse]

Hi John

I think the reason nobody has replied is because your post isn't very clear about what you want help with? Your post indicates you seem to have all the bits you need and instructions on how they go together. Please be more clear about what assistance you are asking for?

Joe

[nebroc]

Thanks joe I did post it in a bit of a hurry.

Now I have time to think, after a good sleep.

I have the camera and the scope , the camera has a 55mm adapter ring with a thread on the inside, that stays on the camera to protect the lens, and the cap clips into that. I have a Celestron t adapter. And thats all.

I was just wondering where I can purchase the parts to join em up? The local camera shop was not very helpful.

[glend]

John, I have a Fuji Finepix S2950 camera that is a point and shoot and it cannot be used for traditional adaptor based photography. I am not sure how much you can do with a Fuji S5500 Point and Shoot camera other than afocal (eyepiece projection) photography; unless you have full manual control and can use that threaded ring to attach to a focuser tube through an adaptor. I have read the specs of your camera here:
http://www.dpreview.com/articles/1277982099/fujifinepixs5500z
and while it has some nice features (like being able to shoot in RAW file type), it has rather low ISO speeds that will hamper shooting dim objects.

You may be able to use your camera to pick up eyepiece projection if you can find a tube that fits to keep stray light out and you will need to get the focal point exactly right so need a way to hold the camera in place. There are brackets available that can be used to shoot this way from iphones etc, so there is probably a bracket solution available for you. Have a look through Bintel's camera adaptor equipment and check out the holder/brackets here:
http://www.bintel.com.au/Astrophotography/Camera-Adapters---T-Rings/68/catmenu.aspx

You still need to be able to focus on the image coming up from the eyepiece. Hyperion make a range of projection eyepieces that might help.
You will need the image to be focused and projected far enough above the surface to fall on your Fuji lens in the right place to achieve camera sensor focus. Suggest you read a bit about how it can be done here:

http://www.astronomysource.com/2011/10/13/eyepiece-projection/


Now it might be simpler to simply buy a second hand Canon DSLR off ebay as all the adaptor equipment is available to directly attach it to the focuser tube of the telescope and take photos. A Canon 450D is a good choice as they have the Liveview screen that enables you to see on the back what camera is seeing through the sensor and aids focusing, framing, etc. There is also software available to assist your use of the Canon DSLRs.
Good luck.

[nebroc]

Thanks Glen for your help, will do a bit more study. I too was wondering how to get that focal length correct.


Thanks again for all the links and info:thumbsup:

[OzEclipse]

John,

As you probably know, your fuji s5500 camera has a fixed lens with a 55mm female screw thread. The eyepiece shown in the link you gave is a Celestron 32mm plossl. It has a thread for 1.25" eyepiece filters.

Do you have that eyepiece? If not and you want to use your camera, you need an eyepiece with a thread and an adaptor with appropriate threads to join the thread from the eyepiece to the 55mm thread your camera to do the afocal method glenn mentioned.

It might be easier to use a digiscoping adaptor.
You can see two different sizes about 2/3 of the way down this page.

http://www.andrewscom.com.au/site-content-section-10-longperng.htm

These devices clamp onto your eyepiece and allow you to position the camera over the eyepiece. Wrap a piece of black cloth or black card around the lens and eyepiece to exclude stray light. Nothing else required.


Joe

[nebroc]

Thanks Joe that looks like a simple way to get started, and see what progress from there. Maybe that dslr one day, with mirror lock.
Thanks for the info.