Need some help in buying my first setup, what I'm after is to take long exposures to capture nebula (horsehead would be awesome).
I have a 5d mk iii, 50 1.4, 16-28 2.8 and 70-200 2.8 (which I think will be the best choice). Will possibly buy a 2x teleconverter to make a 400 5.6.
So my question is, with my limited astro knowledge in finding things, What will I need to be able to find and track DSO's? So a few minutes at 200-400mm.
Goto mount? Eq5? I've heard these terms but not sure exactly what they mean..
I had in mind maybe a 1k budget.
How about an EQ2 or EQ3 tripod and mount, with motor drive(s)? You would be able to get that for well under $1,000 brand new (around $350 for a new EQ3, and about $100 for a single RA drive, or $170 for a pair of drives - and even cheaper second-hand). It would be a great mount for a DSLR with telephoto lens for general time exposure photography, and would also handle a small / medium sized telescope later on if you go down that path.
(I got a brand new EQ2 from Astro Pete's in Brisbane for only $39, and another $99 for an RA drive from Bintel - all-up spend including postage was about $160. I bought it mainly as a tracking mount for my 90 mm refractor, but it works great as a tracking DSLR mount as well.)
EQ means "Equatorial" - necessary for tracking stars without leaving trails. (You might get by at a pinch with a motorised GoTo Alt-Az mount for moderate time exposures, but "field rotation" can still leave curved star-trails for stars which are away from the centre of view, for longer time exposures.)
The bigger the EQ-number, the bigger, heavier and more expensive the mount, the bigger the counterweight it can carry, and the bigger the load it can carry.
While an over-sized mount will work fine with a light load (but you'll have to take off most of the counterweight), the sheer weight and bulk of the mount can make it a hassle to transport and use, so an EQ-2 (mount plus tripod weighs about 8 kg with all counterweights, and will carry a load of 2 - 3 kg comfortably) can be a better choice for a portable DSLR mount than going for anything bigger. (You might even be happy with an EQ-1, which weighs about 6 kg, and can carry a load of up to 2 - 2.5 kg, but can be a bit wobbly when loaded up, or in wind etc.) An EQ-3 mount weighs about 11 kg [Edit: corrected the weight - it's about 25 pounds, not kg! ] all-up, and will comfortably carry a load of about 5 kg - but it's probably "overkill" for a DSLR mount.
just be aware that at 400mm with that camera, you are looking at a field of view of around 300 arc minutes or 5 degrees (back of the envelope calculation) and the horsehead nebula is around 8 arc minutes. this FOV would be perfect for large objects like the LMC and SMC, carina nebula, and even the orion nebula. not sure if the horsehead nebula would be a little too small with this set up.
Apparently, they took them off some scope packages to replace with a different mount, and they're selling the surplus EQ-2 mounts at the price difference between the two mounts, to clear the shop floor. They still had a few left when I got mine a week or so ago.
If you're not based in Brisbane, I'm not sure what it would cost to get it shipped to your location, but a phone call would clarify this. If you can't get an EQ-2 from Astro Pete's for a reasonable price, you should be able to pick up a comparable tripod and EQ mount from a local supplier for $200 or so. The motor drives for EQ-1 / EQ-2 / EQ-3 mounts are readily available for around $100 for a single RA drive, which is all you need for time exposure work.
Sorry to nit pick, but the EQ3 wouldn't weigh anywhere near 25kg, more
like around half that. My HEQ5 GoTo only weighs 25 inc weights and tripod. Just in case you would have considered the EQ3.
raymo
Sorry to nit pick, but the EQ3 wouldn't weigh anywhere near 25kg, more
like around half that. My HEQ5 GoTo only weighs 25 inc weights and tripod. Just in case you would have considered the EQ3.
raymo
Yes, my mistake - it's about 25 pounds, not kg, which is about 11 kg. Fixed in my earlier post.
And how will my camera mount? Do I need another ball head or other mount?
In my humble opinion, either would be a more than adequate mount for DSLR sky photography. The EQ-3 that you have listed has GoTo, which is nice to have, but not essential for relatively wide-angle DSLR photography. The EQ-3 would handle a bigger load if you are contemplating getting a telescope at some point. You could economise a bit by buying a single RA drive only, as this is all you need for star tracking, and skipping the GoTo capability for now, but if it's within your budget - well, why not?
There is no GoTo capability for an EQ-2 without hacking and modification, as nobody seems to sell a 2-drive motor kit for an EQ-2.
My Saxon EQ-2 came with a standard camera adapter - see attached photo. It screws onto the EQ head, and has a standard camera screw. Check whether the mounts you are looking at come with this adapter included - if not, it should only cost a couple of bucks more.
Thanks Julian. I guess it's within my budget but I think I feel I'll learn better without it for now! Plus it saves me money haha. Might put it towards a teleconverter and grab the eq2 and single drive soon.
For the price of the EQ3 and upgrade you can pick up an EQ5pro or EQ6pro second hand. These often crop up in the icetrade section for ~$1k or less.
If portability is an issue the EQ5 may suit you better, but I've taken the EQ6 away with me many times without an issue.
Also, incase you decide astrophotography is not for you, the resale on a used EQ5 or 6 has been pretty stable for years and would definitely be greater than that of a EQ3+upgrade, they're more attractive to buyers so likely easier to sell.
I bought my first EQ6pro for $1k used, I sold it for the same price three years later!
My current EQ6 was a bargain, bought used for $700, cheaper than the EQ3 upgrade kit.
Worth watching the classifieds, there's one there now for 1100.
] all-up, and will comfortably carry a load of about 5 kg - but it's probably "overkill" for a DSLR mount.
