AFAIK, the Meades need youn to point North if you are doing an Alt/Az align.
They also have a polar mode, for use with a wedge (you will need a wedge and to work in polar mode if you want to do astrophotography). In polar mode, you have to align with the South Celestial Pole.
Just make sure in the setup menu that the scope is set up in Alt/Az mode. That could easily explain why it's shot off to Scorpio not Alpha Centa
Quote:
Originally Posted by strummer4
 also wondering what eyepieces to get (it only came with the one) and whether a x2 Barlow is a good option. Also thinking about a dewlap and wondered. What I need in the way of an adapter to take a camera, and also what you could recommend for a good beginners astro camera? Sorry for all the questions, I know I'm a pain, but appreciate your help.
Steve  |
EPs - what one to get depends on what one you have already! I'd suggest you try to end up with one around 25mm and one around 12mm for starters (or get a 2x Barlow instead of the 12mm EP).
Dew is an issue with the corrector plates on SCTs. I've got a dew heater which is great but I believe the DIY dew shields that you'll find plenty of posts about here work well.
Regarding cameras - I wouldn't charge out and spend your money before getting a bit of advice and experience. If you can lay tour hands on a DSLR of any kind, you can get some quite good photos by just attaching the camera body to the telescope with
one of these adapters plus
one of these T-rings (that one's for Canon but they come for all makes). You will be limited to about 30s exposures with your alt/az mount.
If that's all working for you then you will want to look at getting a
wedge, getting your polar alignment really good, then entering the dark world of autoguiding. That's the crucial jump that allows you to take exposures of 3-10 minutes.
Only once you have all that under control will you want to start investing in a dedicated astronomical camera.