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Hello from southampton.

Sorgan

By Sorgan
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Sorgan

Sorgan

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Hello guys,

When I was a young lad I loved anything to do with space, I would gaze for hours at the night sky and had a ton of books on various stars, the solar system and galaxies.

I even had the good fortune to meet the late and great sir Patrick Moore, I guess the recent lose of such an icon has rekindled my intrest, this may also be due to the fact I would love to see my daughter see the stars as I once did.

So here we go, I am a keen amatuer photographer (keen but by no means good) and have frequently waited hours for the perfect moon shot but I would love to try and get a picture of something else in the heavens, I understand this is tricky so I'm not going to be attempting it for a while.

Right so that's me, question time.

If I want to look at the stars, maybe see a galaxy or two, even catch a glimpse at a planet, what kind of telescope would I want? Now I am by no means a rich man and I should imagine high tech equipment would be wasted on me but if I'm going to buy something I want it to last. Any recommendations? I know it's gonna be a bit of a broad subject to answer but is there a nice entry level set up that stands above the rest?

Many thanks in advance

Sam

Btw here is my best moon pic to date

moon1.jpg

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Velvet

Velvet

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Welcome to SGL

You must decide what you want to do or see. If you are considering astrophotography then the mount is the most important bit of kit. If just visual then not so much and your choices

would be different. Suggest you post this thread in the beginners section where you will get more advice.

Photography means HEQ5 or NEQ6 mount as minimum if you want it to see you through without having to upgrade.... but beware the darkside (astrophotography) will leave you with and empty wallet

and probably large credit card bills :)

Velvet

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JamesF

JamesF

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I'd suggest the place to start is with an idea of budget. You could spent as little as £150 and get a perfectly good scope for visual or you could spend thousands. Without some idea of what you have in mind it's hard to make a helpful suggestion. If you're just interested in taking the occasional casual photograph then that's different from serious imaging of DSOs, too. Narrow the field a little for us :)

And welcome to SGL...

James

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Sorgan

Sorgan

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Well lets say under £300, if I can get pictures then all the better but it's not essential at this time. I imagine I can still crack some good shots off witg my tele lens anyway. I don't imagine I will be taking these universe pictures for a few years haha.

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glowjet

glowjet

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Hi Sam and welcome to SGL. If you have a keen interest in AP, or the dark side as we affectionately call it, then your first purchase, as most of the experienced Astro photographers would recommend, is a copy of Steve Richards " Making every Photon Count " available through FLO, see top of page, this will help you decide what type of AP you want to be involved in as well guiding you on equipment. There are many basic packages that can get you started, without emptying your pockets, but a little knowledge may save you buying gear, that in the long run you may find you will not use. Nice photo of the Moon by the way :)

John.

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Sorgan

Sorgan

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Thanks for the warm welcome, I will look into that book tonight after work, I also need to read up a bit on the subject.

im just going to go for viewing to start with and then look at buying a posh mount, question is will most telescopes fit these motor things or am I limited to models?

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glowjet

glowjet

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Thanks for the warm welcome, I will look into that book tonight after work, I also need to read up a bit on the subject.

im just going to go for viewing to start with and then look at buying a posh mount, question is will most telescopes fit these motor things or am I limited to models?

Hi Sam, if your are just intending to purchase a scope and mount for visual, as a first testing the water as it were, then an Alt/Az or equatorial telescope package will serve you fine. If on the other hand, you wish to buy a mount and scope as separate items, with AP in mind for the future, then yes there are other things to take into account. As a first base for AP it is considered that the HEQ5 mount is the minimum requirement for carrying reasonable weight scopes and cameras, that will track well at sidereal rates for deep space photography, to the better quality mounts up to the HEQ6 which will take larger scopes and ancillary equipment. The AltAz mounts, although able to deal with some short exposure AP cannot be used to take long exposure DSO images, due the effects of Earth field rotation. You will probably want to assimilate a fair amount of information before deciding down what road you want to travel, whatever you decide enjoy your Astronomy :)

John.

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SnakeyJ

SnakeyJ

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Hi Sam,

Welcome to the Lounge from just across the water - very nice moon shot and look forward to seeing some more in the not too distant.

Very friendly bunch and some excellent advice so don't be shy asking.

Regards - Jake

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