Beginner wanting advice on starting Astrophotography
Hi Folks.
I recently joined IceInSpace (3 days ago to be exact) and it was purely accidental. Took photos of the crescent moon last Friday (the 13th) and wanted to know in particular which planets were those four bright lights around the moon. Googled it and saw this forum.
I am a lover of the moon and the night sky and take gazillion photos of it from time to time. I've never done sky/star gazing or photography using a telescope though but now my interest has been stimulated (very dangerous when that happens!). Now, i'm interested in doing astrophotography but don't know which telescope would be appropriate. I've done a bit of reading online for the last day but still not sure which one I should get. Would greatly appreciate if the experts out there can give me a heads up on what's what. I'm after a middle range telescope that I can use for astrophotography. Would be great too if it can be used during the daytime to take photo's of other faraway stuff but if not possible, then i'll settle with the one I can use for the night sky.
Appreciate whatever help you guys are willing to dish out!
Thanks for your reply. I'm looking at getting a set up for not more than a grand. I've got a dslr and am into photography. I'd like to get a telescope that would let me take good quality photos of the night sky/moon/planets/galaxies. Will this be enough? I could probably go an extra 200 if it will make a difference in the kind of telescope i need. I don't want to waste money in buying a cheap telescope and not get the quality i'm looking for which will make me go out again and buy a new one. I'm comparing this to like buying a new lens for my cam. Get a good one so it won't disappoint. So yea, my tax returns will definitely be used in getting a telescope!
Cheers again for your help!
Regards,
Chris
Quote:
Originally Posted by renormalised
Hi Christine, welcome to IIS
Just as an idea, what are you prepared to spend on a scope and equipment??. That'll give me a better idea of what you can get.
You will need to go2nd hand for those dollars. Unfortunately astrophotography is the expensive brother to observing.....
You will definitely need the following
Mount.... Various available hq5 and up
Scopes.... One to image with, skywatcher ed80 is a good entry scope , I think there was one recently sold for 400 ish in the classified section
Guidescope, the bottom end would be a finder with a webcam
A computer, star charts,
That. Might get you started, but it's down the bottom. Could you do it for 1200 ...... possibly.
More thoughts, if your camera is a decent one with a bulb setting then youncan do away with.the scope altogether..... Sorry I didn't think of that before , can't see the forest for the trees.
A mount would still be needed..... Now you should do it for the money you want.
Astrophotography, is one of those pursuits that grows on you and youncontinually update gear to a better level to get better pics.
I'm sure others will chip in with good advice, you could join up with others viz a club or something, or even a local who is willing to help
A $1000 would be pushing it. Unless you went an bought it second hand (see the IIS classifieds). New, if you were looking for a general purpose astrophotography rig for what you want, you'd be looking at $1900 at the low end and name your price at the high end.
If you go here Bintel, click on telescopes in the menu and goto page 4, you'll see an ED80Pro and EQ5 mount setup for $1899. That would be the smallest I would go (especially with the mount). In order to keep the weight down, I would guide through the scope using an Orion OAG (off axis guider) on page 5 of "imaging and accessories", an Orion Starshoot autoguider (page 1) and for a good all purpose camera, a Meade DSI II colour (best to stick to an OSC for now until you gain experience, then go up to mono cameras). So, you're looking at $2966 for that setup.
If, however, you just want to take snaps of the planets and the moon only, you could get away with a 10"-12" dob and the DSI, because the planets and the moon are so bright, the exposure times are short and there's no real need for guiding the mount. That way, you get down to $1000, or a little more for the larger scopes and for a new purchase.
Thanks for those important bits of wisdom and info on what I would need to get me started.
To answer your question, yes, my dslr does have the bulb feature. I have a nikon d90 at the moment. I do have a laptop and will definitely get a star chart.
Hmmm... I know this is going to be an expensive hobby but i'm willing to give it a go, i'm sure to the detriment of my bank account. I'll take it slow though and not spend a fortune (that I don't have) at this point.
Ok, so no need for a scope. I'll check out the classified section and see what i can find that's within my 1200 budget .
hq5? I have no idea what that is unfortunately. It seems I need to do a lot of research before I actually go out and get the required gear.
Cheers!
Regards,
Chris
Quote:
Originally Posted by Alchemy
More thoughts, if your camera is a decent one with a bulb setting then youncan do away with.the scope altogether..... Sorry I didn't think of that before , can't see the forest for the trees.
A mount would still be needed..... Now you should do it for the money you want.
Astrophotography, is one of those pursuits that grows on you and youncontinually update gear to a better level to get better pics.
I'm sure others will chip in with good advice, you could join up with others viz a club or something, or even a local who is willing to help
Or like Clive said, a good camera with a bulb setting and a decent set of lenses, along with a mount would be excellent for widefield astrophotography.
The main problem with using an OAG is that sometimes it can be difficult to find good guide stars.
HEQ 5 is a type of mount. It's a GEM (German Equatorial) which can track the stars in sync with the Earth's rotation. That's the type of mount you need. The HEQ5 is the second largest mount (carrying capacity wise) that SkyWatcher build. Here's a piccie.
I've got a few lenses, 50mm prime, 24mm prime, 80-200mm zoom (although this one is not in perfect condition) and soon to get a 300 mm zoom. Can I use this for this purpose? I thought I didn't need the lenses as I can just attach cam to telescope with an adaptor?
Ok, if I was to invest in a combination of brand new and 2nd hand equipment, which equipment should I preferably get brand new and which ones should i just get 2nd hand?
Thanks so much for all the help. I don't want to get a set-up that would be extremely difficult to lift although I know it'll be a bit weighty. 3 grand is not a fortune but it is still a lot of money. Guess i'll just have to tighten the belt for the next few months for this gear.
Cheers!
Chris
Quote:
Originally Posted by renormalised
Or like Clive said, a good camera with a bulb setting and a decent set of lenses, along with a mount would be excellent for widefield astrophotography.
The main problem with using an OAG is that sometimes it can be difficult to find good guide stars.
You can use all those lenses for astrophotography. The 300mm especially. If you have a scope, you just attach the camera to the scope, no need for the lenses unless you want to piggyback the camera and/or attach the camera itself to an EQ mount.
The mix of 2nd hand and new really depends on what you can afford and what's available. It's entirely up to yourself.
Well your pointing in the right direction, it's a very big learning curve hobby, and it would be a huge factor if you could make appropriate arrangements, with someone who can show you the ropes, preferably with a club, on club night where there's lots of scopes and different setups. You will find people usually only too willing to help.
I have recently spent $1349 on an 8" Black Diamond reflector on an HEQ5 from Andrews comms and with a DSLR T ring to attach my 1000D to the focuser. Without guiding and 30 second shots, I have been able to take these pictures of M8, M20 and M22 which can show you what this scope and mount can do.
Well worth the money and even though I am only just starting out down the Astro Photo path, these took only 1 hour for me to get on just the second night I had the scope. The only thing that may be limiting is its size, a pic can be found here showing me standing next to it.
Hi Christine,
Welcome to IIS. It's fantastic to have another female on board. We're few and far between in this hobby.
If you have any questions what so ever, don't hesitate to pm me.
Hi Christine
Welcome to ice in space. Like yourself I was new to the hobby just before Xmas. You will find plenty of good support and advice on this forum.
I have started out in astrophotography and it is not cheap. The best advice I can give you is to look up your local astronomy club and give it a try. I did the same and the help i received was great, with their guidance and advice I was lead to the right direction regarding equipment. I was able to try other club member's scopes, so I had insight and made an informed decision when I needed to spend my hard earned dollars.
I look forward seeing your photos on this forum
Best Regards Paul
It does get a bit daunting when you start to realise how much equipment you need and cost involved. But i'm not backing out on my intent to get into it. I'll take the slow path though and take everyone's advise to get involved with a club or meet up with a crew that can show me the ropes.
I'm so glad to have found this forum. Everyone seems to be willing to help newbies like me.
Thanks jjjjnettie. Once I get my head around astroP stuff, i'll surely PM you and maybe pick your brains if you wouldn't mind too much.
Same as you Paul, I too am looking forward to taking and posting my first astrophoto! Let's hope for the best but will prepare for the worst!
Chris, your telescope looks really cool!
Cheers guys. Every bit of info you all provided really helped.
Christine
Quote:
Originally Posted by apaulo
Hi Christine
Welcome to ice in space. Like yourself I was new to the hobby just before Xmas. You will find plenty of good support and advice on this forum.
I have started out in astrophotography and it is not cheap. The best advice I can give you is to look up your local astronomy club and give it a try. I did the same and the help i received was great, with their guidance and advice I was lead to the right direction regarding equipment. I was able to try other club member's scopes, so I had insight and made an informed decision when I needed to spend my hard earned dollars.
I look forward seeing your photos on this forum
Best Regards Paul
Quote:
Originally Posted by jjjnettie
Hi Christine,
Welcome to IIS. It's fantastic to have another female on board. We're few and far between in this hobby.
If you have any questions what so ever, don't hesitate to pm me.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Screwdriverone
Hi Christine,
I have recently spent $1349 on an 8" Black Diamond reflector on an HEQ5 from Andrews comms and with a DSLR T ring to attach my 1000D to the focuser. Without guiding and 30 second shots, I have been able to take these pictures of M8, M20 and M22 which can show you what this scope and mount can do.
Well worth the money and even though I am only just starting out down the Astro Photo path, these took only 1 hour for me to get on just the second night I had the scope. The only thing that may be limiting is its size, a pic can be found here showing me standing next to it.
See what you think.
Cheers
Chris
Quote:
Originally Posted by Alchemy
Well your pointing in the right direction, it's a very big learning curve hobby, and it would be a huge factor if you could make appropriate arrangements, with someone who can show you the ropes, preferably with a club, on club night where there's lots of scopes and different setups. You will find people usually only too willing to help.
Beginner wanting advice on starting Astrophotography
I've never done sky/star gazing or photography using a telescope though but now my interest has been stimulated (very dangerous when that happens!).
Now, i'm interested in doing astrophotography but don't know which telescope would be appropriate. I've done a bit of reading online for the last day but still not sure which one I should get. Would greatly appreciate if the experts out there can give me a heads up on what's what. I'm after a middle range telescope that I can use for astrophotography. Would be great too if it can be used during the daytime to take photo's of other faraway stuff but if not possible, then i'll settle with the one I can use for the night sky.
I'll take it slow though and not spend a fortune (that I don't have) at this point. 
It seems I need to do a lot of research before I actually go out and get the required gear. 
Christine
