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mg_jones_uk

By mg_jones_uk
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mg_jones_uk

mg_jones_uk

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Hi i have a skywatcher 127 and have bought a canon 350d camera i would love to take astrophotography very serious, i would like to connect the laptop to the telescope so i can move it via the laptop, i have purchased a RVO 10m PC Cable For Skywatcher Telescopes and a rs 232 to usb conector, i have attatched the camera via the provided cable and downloaded numerous pieces of software but nothing happens, i can not connect the telescope or camera to the laptop, i am running windows 7 please please help i really want to get started!! thanks

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todd8137

todd8137

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windows 7 can be a real pain did you select a port to use so the computer can talk to the mount ?. what software are you using? what are the error msg you get. and this post may be better in the right section like beginners section cheers

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JamesM

JamesM

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Hi and welcome to the forum. I'm not quite sure what setup you have got but I am assuming it is a Mak on an alt-azimuth mount? If this is the case, then this mount will limit your imaging to only the planets and the moon. These objects being so bright, that they do not require lengthy periods of data capture to construct a final image and can be achieved using a relatively inexpensive webcam. However if you are wanting to image deep sky objects (DSO's) such as galaxies and nebula, then you are going to need very accurate tracking to capture their faint light. This tracking requires an equatorial style mount that is either accurately polar aligned to follow the object or is 'guided' along by an external camera that has been focused on a nearby star to the intended target. An alt-azimuth mount tracks objects using tiny vertical and horizontal steps which are invisible when observing by eye but on a camera censor will show up and spoil the final image. The equatorial type mount is a mount that is accurately tilted to create an arc that matches the path of celestial objects. There are pieces of kit called a 'wedge' that will effectively change an alt-azimuth mount to work in a similar way to an equatorial mount but decent accurate ones are fairly expensive (if you can find one for your setup) and from what I've read, doesn't appear to be the preferred way of getting good results.

Before doing anything else, can I recommend that you get hold of a copy of Steve Richards' "Making Every Photon Count" (FLO £19.95) which will tell you what you need and why you need it to create the level of imaging that you are after. As well as capturing data, an often forgotten consideration is the processing of that data, which although can be done using plenty of free software out there, naturally there will be other 'toys' that you will also need that you will have to pay for. This book will provide you with the necessary overview of all that you need to help you formulate an accurate budget.

Clear skies

James

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mg_jones_uk

mg_jones_uk

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hi Guys thanks for the welcome here is my eqipment:-

Skywatcher 127 supertrack autotrack telescope

canon 350d camera

cable from telescope RVO 10m PC Cable For Skywatcher Telescopes

rs 232 converter to usb

software stellarium, APT and phd none of which talks to each other, i hope this helps, i would love just to photo the moon at this stage!!! thanks again for your support and help. Mark

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