After years of skywatching with the naked eye and binoculars (Nikon 7x50), and using various astronomical apps (years ago I provided the southern Messier data for a Palm Pilot app), I'd like to graduate to a telescope. It seems odd that I've never owned one, but... well, I haven't.
And of course the more I read, the more confused I become. There's a never ending world of equipment out there, and whatever you buy, there's something better. So here's my list (in no particular order):
- under $1000
- easily portable and easy to set up
- 6" aperture
- able to resolve the rings of Saturn
- equatorial mount for occasional photography
- GoTo
I suspect that all of these are mutually contradictory, but hey, got to start somewhere!
There are beginners sites out there which warn the beginner from astrophotography ("Just don't!"), but in fact one of my professional interests is digital image processing (written two books), and it seems a pity not to take a few snapshots - even if just attaching my smartphone to the eyepiece. (My neighbour, who is an excellent amateur astronomer, took some excellent shots of the transit of Venus some years ago using precisely that technique.)
Anyway, a couple of possibilities are the cheaper instruments in the Celestron NexStar range (4SE, OzScopes, $999, but only 4" and with AltAz mount), or something like the Skywatcher BD150x750 (Bintel, $729, but not motorized).
And although I've said "city use", I occasionally get out of town and away from light pollution.
Of course I'm open to all suggestions!
Many thanks,
Alasdair