Meade ETX 125AT GOTO deluxe starter kit

[studiolightsphoto]

Hi fellow stargazers,

I was looking for some advice. I am looking to purchase my first proper telescope. I wanted a scope that, with a decent barlow and eyepiece was good for planets and solar system objects.

http://www.scopesnskies.com/prod/meade/starter-scope/mak/1252xep.html

I do plan on experimenting with astrophotography, initially with a DSLR and also (when my budget allows for further toys) CCD.

I was worried that the Meade ETX 125A Goto might not be a sturdy enough mount to track for say 30 second exposures? My DSLR is a a Canon 5D so it's not the lightest. I had a look at an astrophotography set up near where I live and he had a fairly compact but sturdy refractor and the equatorial mount he was using looked like it was built by the Russian Military it was so solid.

So my question is in 2 parts:

1. I know the GoTo mounts are great for finding objects but would a package costing less than £600 have the right build quality for decent quality images of both planets AND deep space? And,

2. If not, what would be the most cost effective package to get decent astrophotography results with?

Your input and thoughts are welcome.

[Pete Presland]

this set up is not what you need for astrophotography.you would be much better off with a EQ mount and a refractor or newtonian.

[Capricorn]

Unless you change the mount to be equitorial, not difficult on the Meades, then it is Alt/Az.

The 90 is a Mak, so long focal length, not suited to DSO and long exposures,

A DSLR isn't lightweight and the ETX simply isn't designed for one, you cannot rebalance the bube as it simply doesn't move.

So Mak and long exposure doesn't go together and Alt/Az and long exposure doesn't go together.

The imaging wih a Meade ETX is really done with a webcam.

Decent package, lightweight scope fast scope, EQ5 (preferably HEQ5) motor driven, better if goto as you want the scope to locate things so you can image not spend your time locating.

[Pete Presland]

EQ5 minimum,but HEQ5 much better.have you looked into the 2nd market, you should get more for your money.be warned astrophotograhy places serious strains on your wallet

[studiolightsphoto]

I'm not so fussed about the locating aspects of the GoTo as I have my maps and a rather cool app for the ipad which is basically an interactive map so locating things not really a problem.

I'm more concerned with 1) decent clear shots of the planets in our solar system, and 2) decent tracking

I looked at some of the Skywatcher refractors but by the time I buy a decent EQ mount I'd be nearing the £1.5-2k mark

[studiolightsphoto]

EQ5 minimum,but HEQ5 much better.have you looked into the 2nd market, you should get more for your money.be warned astrophotograhy places serious strains on your wallet

Lol, EVERYTHING to do with photography has put a serious strain on my wallet over the years haha. I only started doing it commercially to pay for all the kit I kept buying on impulse

[Pete Presland]

my current set up is a 200mm newt on a HEQ5. i have been doing DSLR photo's for around 18 months, but i consider myself still a total novice to be honest.there is just so much to learn.polar alignment led to drift alignment.a standard DSLR has led to a modded DSLR. 45 sec subs last year has led to the purchase of a guide camera, and thats just the tip of the iceberg, great fun though!

[studiolightsphoto]

my current set up is a 200mm newt on a HEQ5. i have been doing DSLR photo's for around 18 months, but i consider myself still a total novice to be honest.there is just so much to learn.polar alignment led to drift alignment.a standard DSLR has led to a modded DSLR. 45 sec subs last year has led to the purchase of a guide camera, and thats just the tip of the iceberg, great fun though!

Interesting, I had looked at a newtonian originally but a few people had told me to opt for either a decent refractor or a Mak. As it's all new to me I'm at the mercy of those with more experience of using the different types of kit

[Pete Presland]

absolutely its all about opinions in general i would say

a mak would be ideal with a webcam for planetary photography

a refractor would be widefield photography

a newtonian would be for dso's photography

obviously there are plenty of examples of superb dso's taken with maks and plenty of planets taken with newts, there is not really a straight answer unfortunately.

[studiolightsphoto]

Thanks for the input guys. I've just moved to Durham so I've decided to go join the local astronomy society when it starts back up in September so I'll hold off on the scope until then and I can get a better understanding of the different kinds of kit from the members. Wouldn't it be good if astronomy suppliers let you 'try before you buy' lol

[hemihaggis1]

hi there , look for a second hand eq5 goto or better ...this is really the minimum amount of mount you will need to do astrophotography ,