You say Reflector, I say Refractor...beginners help please.

[Tiddles]

You have two options.

1). Buy a reflector and enjoy it, a few months later you'll question why you didn't buy a refractor.

OR

2). Buy a refractor and enjoy it, a few months later you'll question why you didn't buy a reflector.

All joking aside, you wont really know what you want until you've bought and lived with a scope for a few months. You've narrowed the choice down to some sensible options that should satisfy your first steps into astronomy. Toss a coin, buy on a whim, do what it takes but I think you're ready to take the plunge and make a purchase.

[Scott]

in your opening post you mentioned an interest in a.p. while a dob is probably your best option if its purely for visual i think you'd eventually regret not buying an eq mount. reflectors are NOT hard work. buy yor 150mm on an eq, start dabbling and if you find your really drawn to ap and want a better mount you'll get quite a bit for your eq3 to put toward a bigger and better mount. just my opinion so make of it what you will. good luck with your search and enjoy whatever scope you decide to get.

scott

[JamesM]

Tim, in your opening question you stated two interests, visual and astrophotography.

Taking the visual question first, I endorse the comments made by Rik (RikMcRae) in nominating the skywatcher Skyliner 200P which you can view here. It is the U.K's most popular scope and for good reason, decent aperture, easy and comfortable to use, quick set and portable (if you need to travel to a dark site) and will offer you good resolution (detail) on planets and deep sky objects (DSO's) and at a great price. For me, this would be every person's beginner scope. Its popularity will also mean that it will hold a good resale value when you are ready to upgrade.

On the astrophotography question, can I refer you back to Olly's well written explanation that it's all about the mount, and to Rik's experiences of what you need to get good consistent images. The above dobsonian (200P) will capture the moon and planets via a webcam, stacking the best frames using a free program called Registax to create a composite image that you will be proud of. There are plenty of free pieces of software out there to help you along including Sharpcap, Wx Astrocapture and Craterlet etc. It is when you turn your attention to imaging DSO's that the fun (frustration?) begins. I would recommend that you get hold of a copy of Steve Richard's "Making Every Photon Count" (FLO £19.95) to provide you with a comprehensive overview of what you need and importantly, why you need it to achieve the level of images that will best meet your own expectations. DSO imaging doesn't have to cost thousands but you are not going to do it with the budget that you have at the moment, The minimum mount that offers enough accuracy with tracking, has a generous payload capacity (weight of kit never should exceed half this figure) which can also locate an object that visually you cannot see, that facilitate auto guiding, that can also be used in connection with free software such as EQMOD (helps monitor the tracking tracking, connection with planetarium software, with mosaic imaging etc) and that has a proven track record in performance is the Skywatcher HEQ5 (£750). Anything less will help generate an image but not one that is worth all the sweat and tears. Many people think that they can produce good images on the cheap but they all eventually end up going down the same route that their fellow imagers have trodden before because certain kit does what it says on the tin - plain and simple. It is important to be honest and upfront about the capabilities and limitations of kit. Steve's book will save you money and will help you buy correctly from the beginning, we don't want your first picture of a black hole being the one in your wallet!

Clear skies

James

[ollypenrice]

You say Reflector, and I say Refractor

You say Dobsonian, and I say Newtonian

Reflector, Refractor, Dobsonian, Newtonian ...

Let's call the whole thing off!

:)

Olly

[H3rtsman]

Thanks one and all for all your inputs; all very thoughtful and informative. I need to pop back into the shop that I mentioned as they sold me a tripod binocular mount for my faithful East German Carl Zeiss 10x50s...that didn't fit.

best wishes and clear skies to all of you,

Tim

[David JM]

On the subject of mounts, the NexStar 4SE/5SE is an alt az mount that also has the ability to turn it into an eq mount.

The downside for you is that the 4SE is North of £350.