Equipment for a beginner astrophotographer?

[richard3030 (Richard)]

Hi all,

I'm quite new to amateur astronomy in general, but loving it so far! I've become more and more interested in doing some astrophotography, and I'd love to get into deep space AP. I realise this is an expensive proposition, so I'm making a wish list. I'll probably be spending most of my time in a suburban backyard setting, if that makes a difference.

What sort of equipment will I need, in general terms? I've been doing some reading, and so far I've got:
- telescope - ?fast Newtonian or SCT
- EQ mount with tracking
- webcam or CCD?

Any thoughts on where to start? And how to do so on a relative budget?

Cheers,
Richard.

[TechnoViking (James)]

Hi Richard and

Thats the big dollar question! but you dont need huge wads of cash to get the feel and ideas of what you want. Next month in Lostock is the IISAC http://www.iceinspace.com.au/iisac.html, im very sure there will be people up there who would be more than willing to let you look through their telescopes.

First you need a budget and try to stick to it, otherwise it will spiral out of control and you will end up doing something silly like building an observatory.

Second, what kind of AP do you want to do? Planetary? DSO? Widefield? get all the relevant information on the type of AP you want to do before spending a cent.

Thirdly, Read some of the previous posts on "Which Scope" plenty of info to work from, you never know someone may have answered your exact question. here is one i found as a starting point http://www.iceinspace.com.au/forum/s...=100795&page=2

Good Luck! and Clear Skies!