~ Getting into some Basic Astrophotography ~

[Arc]

Hey guys,

I realise there are a number of different schools of thought concerning getting into astro photography. I’ve chosen a classic path to see if I have the patience for this area. I have just purchased a SPC900NC + Adaptor, UV/IR filter and Tele Vue x5 Powermate. I would like start with the Moon, Jupiter and later Saturn if it all goes well; and the mount can handle it.

Anyway I’m sure I’ll have plenty of questions for you guys soon; that is if it ever stops raining up here in Central Queensland. But that’s not the reason for this post.

Being so use to the eBay feedback system, I really wanted to just thank Peter http://www.tan14.com/gears.htm for his friendly help, good communication and prompt postage. Cheers Peter.

[wasyoungonce (Brendan)]

Peter Tan is a good supplier I can also recommend.

You didn't mention what scope you are using. Just remember the 5X powermate extends the FL ...quite a lot and you may have a lot of "target jitter" due to this. This depends upon your mount & atmospheric conditions etc.

Planetary imaging is a very good starter in Astrophotography. Good luck.

[Arc]

Hey wasyoungonce, it was actually your posted link that got me onto Peter in the first place so thanks mate.

I have a C10-NGT + GPS and yes I know the 10" Reflector is probably not the best on the celestron goto mount, but it will have to do for now...

[wasyoungonce (Brendan)]

Originally Posted by Arc

Hey wasyoungonce, it was actually your posted link that got me onto Peter in the first place so thanks mate.

I have a C10-NGT + GPS and yes I know the 10" Reflector is probably not the best on the celestron goto mount, but it will have to do for now...

You will do well with that set-up. Just try some planetary astrophotography without the powermate first & then graduate from that.

[Arc]

Originally Posted by wasyoungonce

You will do well with that set-up. Just try some planetary astrophotography without the powermate first & then graduate from that.

Yeah thanks wasyoungonce, that's the plan. I'm going to start off with something that is pretty easy to locate in the sky...like the moon.

I pulled the cover off the SPC900nc yesterday, screwed out the lens and screwed in my adaptor + blocker. I was quite impressed with the build quality of the aluminium adaptor.

Installed a cam program on my laptop last night and downloaded the win7 drivers. I'm just about ready to start. :0)

[Chief Wiggum (Warrick)]

I am also interested in getting the SPC900nc but have had a bit of trouble finding one in Australia. Is Peter Tan in Hong Kong? Did deleivery take long and was postage expensive? How did you pay?

Sorry for all the questions. Thanks for the help.

[Arc]

Originally Posted by Chief Wiggum

I am also interested in getting the SPC900nc but have had a bit of trouble finding one in Australia. Is Peter Tan in Hong Kong? Did deleivery take long and was postage expensive? How did you pay?

Sorry for all the questions. Thanks for the help.

That’s no trouble Chief,

The delivery was not expensive, for example Peter charged me $14.50 to deliver the Cam + Adaptor. (Peter put the adaptor inside the cam box) That’s air mail with a tracking number.

The delivery time was 10 days to my location which often takes an extra day. So 9 or 10 days to deliver.
I payed Peter using PayPal.

The link to his site is above. If you are after something just shoot him an email asking for a delivered price to your location. He will give you the price in HK dollars. Just do a simple conversion for your own reference. But you can send the payment via PayPal in HK dollars and let them handle the conversion.

I also bought a Baader UV/IR block, which again he put in the cam box. That's a pretty good idea because apart from being a helpful filter, it also seals the end of the adaptor and will help keep dust off of your exposed CCD in the Cam.

The only trouble here is I sound like Peter's shill. But seriously, I bought from this guy pretty much because of the prices.