Which camera?

[northwalesparry]

Does anyone have any recomendations on which dslr camera to buy . I have just done a xbox cam mod but soon i feel that i need to upgrade and with the sales due soon it could bea good time to start looking. I have a skywatcher 130p with auto tracking so im not to sure if i can attatch a camera to my mount. I have a budget of about £400.Also im a complete neebie to imaging so i have no idea how to go about it. cheers Phil

[Digz]

Canons are favoured and widely supported with software. You will also need to factor in a t-ring and t-adapter. You may also need and extension tube or Barlow to achieve focus with your scope but I'm not 100% sure.

[The Sailor]

On the Canon I would factor in Liveview, that has been a bonus for me, being able to see and focus without having to look through the camera viewfinder.

Jim

[Digz]

On the Canon I would factor in Liveview, that has been a bonus for me, being able to see and focus without having to look through the camera viewfinder.

Jim

good shout! You may also want to google bhatinov masks (I use a simpler Y mask, so check that out as well) to help focus with live view.

[Stephen]

130's can be notoriously difficult to focus with a DSLR on the back, it's been covered lots of times and depends on the age of the scope.

Barlow is usually required if you can't focus at prime, but that's generally a really bad idea

Which mount is it exactly also you have, the weight of a DSLR plus the scope may well be far too much for it.

Sorry to sound so negative!

[northwalesparry]

130's can be notoriously difficult to focus with a DSLR on the back, it's been covered lots of times and depends on the age of the scope.

Barlow is usually required if you can't focus at prime, but that's generally a really bad idea

Which mount is it exactly also you have, the weight of a DSLR plus the scope may well be far too much for it.

Sorry to sound so negative!

The scope is brand new, its a 130p explorer with auto tracking.

[tingting44]

i have the same setup as you and i use my 7d connected via t ring piece + 2x barlow, im very pleased with it, ive got my dslr connected and it handles the weight fine, once i had jupiter in view the last time i was out, it stayed in FOV all night which was a 1st and i must have had alignment very good

here is a couple of subs from my dslr setup with my SW130p +AZGOTO mount mate so it can be done and very rewarding when you get results

Latest stack(4) attempt of M43-M43 (JPEG for WEBSITES) by tingting44, on Flickr

Final best {202 images} by tingting44, on Flickr

this one was an AVI via my dslr only a short 1 mintue video so not very long at all @ 30fps

MVI_3957 1st time!!! (498 frames stacked - WAVELETS & PS done) by tingting44, on Flickr

by all means not the greatest but im very happy with my gear and the results im getting as im still a noob lol

[nephilim]

All i would say is that your first port of call if your interested in AP is to buy Steve Richards book 'Making every photon count', (u can get it from FLO or direct from Steve, he's 'Steppenwolf' on here) Its the first thing I bought after my X-Box cam (my second attempt at Jupiter-

Capture 12_9_2012 7_44_02 PM.bmp

gave me the AP bug and is highly recommended by almost everyone on here. It'l give you all the info u need for starting out in AP & the main thing u should be starting with is a sturdy mount (HEQ5 or EQ6 Syntrek are the ideal place to start) as a flimsy mount will ruin ur images even with THE best scope, (Although TingTings pics with the eq2 seem to be an exception there. ) I'm only a newbie too but Steves book (plus a great deal of good advice on here!!) is helping me to make the right choice & from buying gear that i'll regret later.

Steve,

BTW i have no affiliation with either Steve or FLO, its just it's a great book!!!

[nephilim]

All i would say is that your first port of call if your interested in AP is to buy Steve Richards book 'Making every photon count', (u can get it from FLO or direct from Steve, he's 'Steppenwolf' on here) Its the first thing I bought after my X-Box cam (my second attempt at Jupiter-

gave me the AP bug and is highly recommended by almost everyone on here. It'l give you all the info u need for starting out in AP & the main thing u should be starting with is a sturdy mount (HEQ5 or EQ6 Syntrek are the ideal place to start) as a flimsy mount will ruin ur images even with THE best scope, (Although TingTings pics with the eq2 seem to be an exception there. ) I'm only a newbie too but Steves book (plus a great deal of good advice on here!!) is helping me to make the right choice & from buying gear that i'll regret later.

Steve,

BTW i have no affiliation with either Steve or FLO, its just it's a great book!!!

Whoops I misread TingTings gear AZgoto not EQ2, altho as you'll probably see from others comments later an EQ mount is the most popular for AP & you'll need a wedge to track with an AZ for anything other than very short exposures.

[tingting44]

Whoops I misread TingTings gear AZgoto not EQ2, altho as you'll probably see from others comments later an EQ mount is the most popular for AP & you'll need a wedge to track with an AZ for anything other than very short exposures.

indeed mate, an EQ mount is a must really if your getting into AP in any depth, i can get max exposure's of 15 seconds before noticeable star trailing which just is not enough for my needs/wants right now lol. probably be a year or 2 before i can get the setup i want

[nephilim]

indeed mate, an EQ mount is a must really if your getting into AP in any depth, i can get max exposure's of 15 seconds before noticeable star trailing which just is not enough for my needs/wants right now lol. probably be a year or 2 before i can get the setup i want

I think you've done really well to get the photo's u posted on an AZ though. I'm in the process of saving for an EQ6 Syntrek, ED80 refractor & all the rest so it'll be a good year or so until I have the setup I need, probably around the same time as you. . Good luck & let me know how you get on.

[ollypenrice]

Really there is no way round this: AP is done on equatorial mounts. Without such a mount your camera will, in effect, merely 'glimpse' the sky. A glimpse can be great but if you want more then it needs to be equatorial.

I'm a CCD imager rather than DSLR but I agree that Canon are the best supported for AP.

Olly

http://ollypenrice.smugmug.com/Other/Best-of-Les-Granges/22435624_WLMPTM#!i=2264267969&k=PKcxCcN

[Gonzo]

Really there is no way round this: AP is done on equatorial mounts. Without such a mount your camera will, in effect, merely 'glimpse' the sky. A glimpse can be great but if you want more then it needs to be equatorial.

I'm a CCD imager rather than DSLR but I agree that Canon are the best supported for AP.

Olly

http://ollypenrice.s...67969&k=PKcxCcN

You could get a Vixen Polarie and a good tripod for example

As for a camera, I use a GF1.

[ollypenrice]

You could get a Vixen Polarie and a good tripod for example

As for a camera, I use a GF1.

True, the Polarie is an excellent little equatorial system and short focal length lenses are a great way into imaging.

Olly