Dobsonian or Tripod mounted telescope?

[resonator77]

I am thinking of getting bigger aperture scope and hesitating between Dobsonian or tripod mounted telescope such as Celestron 8" SE nexstar (or similar Meade).

Very keen in astrophotography and think that dobsonian is little tricky for astrophotography but cheaper than tripod mounted bigger aperture telescopes.

Please help with what to choose?

[SteveL]

if you intend on doing any astrophotography (especially deep sky), then you need a german equatorial based tripod system.

[acey]

Why more aperture? What have you got now and what's wrong with it?

If you're seriously thinking of concentrating on imaging then don't get a dob. You can take photos through one but that's not what it's best at. And if you want to do a lot of high-power lunar/planetary work then again, a dob is not the best solution (and nor is large aperture).

A dob is a great all-round first scope, but what it's really good for is visual deep-sky observation. That's what I do - so my first scope was a dob, and I upgraded to a bigger dob. But they're not for everyone.

Visually, an 8-inch dob will show you everything that an 8-inch SCT can (and possibly a bit more). But the SCT will be on a tracking mount. So think carefully about what you want when weighing up the pros and cons.

[Helen]

If you want to do deep sky astrophotography then a Dobsonian is a non-starter. If you want to do serious astrophotography then the SE is not a good long term option either, sorry. For serious AP you need an equatorial mount - either a GEM or an alt-az on a wedge. The SE could be converted with a wedge, but the single arm design means it isn't really stable enough.

If your budget will run to an SE 8", and you're serious about photography, have a look at the HEQ5 or EQ6 mounts and 8" newtonian scopes to go with them. An example is Reflectors - Skywatcher Explorer 200P HEQ5 PRO

Helen

[resonator77]

Thank you Steve, acey and Helen,

I have Celestron 5SE and been using it for planet photography. I noticed that due to smaller aperture it is hard to take proper photos of saturn, Jupiter and Mars. The moon shots were amazing which makes me think that the problem is the lack of aperture:(

Is there a big difference between 8" and 5" ?

maybe I need better imaging kit, although I ve been using Canon 1000D ...

[Helen]

If you want better planetary shots then I'd suggest the first thing to do is get a webcam. A DSLR is not the best tool for planets. You take lots of short shots with a webcam, which means you can catch the best of the seeing and atmospheric conditions. You then stack using the free regitax and you're in business! You'll be amazed what you can get. I'd try that before you spend loads of money on another scope.

Helen

[resonator77]

If you want better planetary shots then I'd suggest the first thing to do is get a webcam. A DSLR is not the best tool for planets. You take lots of short shots with a webcam, which means you can catch the best of the seeing and atmospheric conditions. You then stack using the free regitax and you're in business! You'll be amazed what you can get. I'd try that before you spend loads of money on another scope.

Helen

Helen,

The problem with web cam is a laptop battery. It is almost dead and does not hold more than 15 minutes:confused:. i live in a flat so it is impossible to use socket power for laptop. Do you know if I can use powertank with HP pavilion laptops?

Thank you in advance:)

[DAVPPK]

Or you could buy a small refractor on a mount