Upgradability

[tim26792]

Hi All,

I am a newcomer to astronomy and am currently debating what to purchase.

I think I have decided on the skywatcher 150pl on eq3-2 mount. I would like to do astrophotography at some point but having read a lot on here and elsewhere I believe the above set up would be no good for that. As my budget at the moment of around £300 does not allow for the equipment needed the question is can the above set up be upgraded in the future to suit photography?

Also when it comes to photography what camera would be best a digital slr or a ccd.

Any advise appreciated.

Thanks

Tim

[ronin]

The 150PL is a good start into this hobby.

You can image to a limited extent, probably best with a webcam on some of the planets or, the obvious one, the moon.

Basically align the mount, locate the object and track it (you will need motors fitted to whatever mount you use - no alternative), focus the whole lot up, get an avi of the episode and use something like registax to stack the best images into a composite one.

Now the down side. We have the moon, Jupiter, Saturn and Mars, that is it for planetary imaging. Imaging things like DSO's is more involved. Most start with a mount like an HEQ5 with goto, that's a start point, eq6 is better.

The chosen scope is usually a good apo triplet, small as in 80-100mm.

Camera seems to be a DSLR, often Canon as it can be modified suitably and relatively easily.

Astrophotography is expensive, £5,000 is a start, £10,000 more like the area and substantially more is not uncommon.

[brantuk]

Hi Tim - I started with a 150P on EQ3-2 (not the "L" long one) and it's a smashing start to the hobby with ability to see all the popular dso's and planets and more. FLO do the PL for £285, so nicely within budget. If you can stretch to (or save) another £95 you can add tracking in both ra and dec for imaging.

A webcam for around £30 complete will allow you to get some nice snaps of the planets, and the scope has a direct dslr connection for longer exposures (up to 1-2 mins) when accurately polar aligned. There's also a mod on "shoestring astronomy" for guiding (if you're comfy with soldering electrics or have a friend who is).

Most of the required software is free to download Registax (planets), Deep Sky Stacker (dso's), Phd (for guiding), and Astro Photography Tool (APT small charge for full version). You'd also need a guide scope/camera for dso's.

The PL is a great start to observing with ample upradeability for imaging planets and elementary imaging of dso's. The PL has a longer focal length than the regular scope, so planets will be nice and sharp - but you'd want to reduce the focal ratio for dso imaging to under F6. Should keep you happy for a year or two before you get aperture fever lol.

Hope that helps

[JamesM]

Personally, I would keep any desire to perform astrophotography limited to the moon and planets. This will provide adequate data to practice the processing side of image making which is an art in its own right. In the short term, I would suggest you get hold of a copy of Steve Richards "Making Every Photon Count" (FLO £19.95) to get a really good overview on the whole subject of imaging, what kit you need and why you need it before going to the next level. It is so important to take your time to understand what you might be letting yourself in for with regards to both time and money. The are certainly personal rewards to be had but they do come as a result of a lot of hard work, frustration and patience.

Clear skies

James

[tim26792]

Ok thanks for all the advise

[Dai150PL]

I enjoy my 150pl and have no problems using a web cam to image the planets. The first upgrade I would recommend is a set of motors around £100. Then change the eyepieces. Its alot bigger than it looks in the pics, if you can see before you buy would be best. And it holds collimation very well, really happy with it and am in no rush to upgrade to a new one.

David