Quote:
Originally Posted by larry forman
I am a senior physics teacher wanting to put astronomy into the course. Iwould like to take photos of stellar bodies and have a budget of up to $3000 australian. I am seeking help in what to buy i have no knowledge and limited experience and students will also be using the equipment, so something simple to operate would be an advantage  |
Mount EQ6
Scope ED80 refractor (Skywatcher or Saxon)
Guide Scope SW80 (achromatic [cheap] refractor)
Guide Cam QHY5
Camera Canon EOS 350D second hand
The above is around $3,500. The only way to get this down would be to get a HEQ5 which has less carrying capacity and swap the ED80 for say a 6 inch reflector OTA which would have to be modified to reach focus. The camera could be replaced with a cheap Meade DSI I or a planetary cam Celestron Nextimage etc but if you are serious go the Canon.
Extras
You will need to put aside 500 to 1,500 for the following
Reticle eyepiece, for drift aigning
Battery pack, to power the mount
Laptop, to control the guide camera and autoguide
remote shutter control (bulb unit), so no vibration when clicking shutter
side by side vixen dovetail, to mount imaging and guidescope side by side
extension tube, to allow guide camera to come to focus
Field flattener, to reduce field curvature of cheap ED80 imaging scope
Since this is a very long list i would recommend obviously ignoring it until you join an astronomy group and go and have a look see at what people are actually using.
Cheers
Paul