Need help with choosing scope for astro-imaging

[titan79]

Hi all , i am looking to buy my first decent scope i want it for observing but would love to catch some great shots of the deeper objects . I dont know alot about what scope would be best for this but have had it explained to me that an EQ mount is a must . What sort of size should i be looking at to get some nice shots ? i know i wont be taking hubble type pictures and i understand the atmosphere problem but i really love photography and the night sky so i really want to put the two together  !

Thanks for your time .

[Raga]

For Astrophotography the mount is the most important. The general "feel" is that something like the HEQ5 PRO is the "entry level" mount when doing AP. It's better to spend the money on the mount and save for a scope than buy a scope and a lower level mount. Once you have a good solid mount, then for AP you need a "fast" scope. One with a focal ratio of f/5 or higher (f/4, f/3, f/2). I have the heq5 pro and the skywatcher 150p-ds and I love it. I know you said you want it for observing also. Fast scopes are better for taking pictures with and slower scopes are better for observing, f/6 f/7 and so on. For me it's just another reason to own more than one scope

One thing I would STRONGLY reccomend if you want to do AP is to buy a book called "Making Every Photon Count" by Steve Richards. It's a beginners bible when getting into Astrophotography. It starts right from the beginning with everything you need to know in the simplest ways without making you feel stupid. I'm soooo glad ppl on here recommended it to me when I started. It has saved ALOT of people ALOT of money.

All the items I mentioned, mount, scope and book can all be purchased from First Light Optics online.

Hope that helps.

Good luck.

[ronin]

Without more information difficult to say.

An APM 105/650 at £3000 should be good, and that is not excessive for AP.

Refractor. reflector or hybrid - Mak Newtonian, RC.

Some are a fair weight so what is the mount that it is going on.

Many will start out at the "inexpensive" line, say a WO 71mm refractor on a EQ5 mount, good few of these combination at the Sidmouth SWAF imagers. Can substitute a good 130 or possibly 150 reflector but you may need a heavier mount.

Visual scope are big scope+small mount, imaging is small scope+big mount.

What is the present equipment, what budget, any particular scope design prefered.

[brantuk]

I would suggest you get a good astro imaging book first to appraise yourself of everything that's involved with astro photography. A really good book that takes you through all the steps is "Making Every Photon Count" by Steve Richards. It's a great read and is pretty much regarded as the AP bible here.

The advice you had about the EQ mount is good - astro photography begins with the mount which needs to be polar aligned you can track objects with precision. So mount choice is critical. You also need to have a separate guide scope and guide camera so be prepared to get two scopes and cameras if you wish to do long exposures.

You'll also require dew bands and a dew controller, focus masks, and a computer and lots of software for guiding the mount, capturing your target, and lots more for processing the results. There's really a lot to it and it's a steep learning curve, but very gratifying as you start producing results and gain experience.

[swag72]

You mention observing and photography in the same paragraph, which just leads me to say that there is really not one scope that is suitable for both as visual and AP require different things in a scope.

The advice you have been given so far is good. Perhaps you could elaborate a little more with regards your budget and your thinking with regards a camera? I presume it would be a DSLR?

An HEQ5 mount with an ED80 refractor and a reducer / flattener (you'd need it on a DSLR chip) will get you going. After that it can be a slippery slope! You will find that you always need something more!! Take a look in the imaging section, people often put their kit by the image or in their sig and you can get a feel for what works well.

[Gina]

I don't think I have anything to add - great advice that pretty much covers it IMO   I too bought Steve Richards' book and found it invaluable - a great grounding in the essentials, easy reading and put me on the right track - highly recommended

[andrewluck]

Give some thought to whether you actually need a telescope for photography. You can get some great results with terrestrial lenses while you decide what your interests really are.

Cheers

Andrew

[Fordos Moon]

HEQ5 Pro, ED80, flattener/reducer and Canon 1100D here after taking advice from this forum and reading Steve Richard's book and absolutely no regrets!

[Sleepy Kiki]

I have the exact same setup, the ED80 / HEQ5 seems to be a popular combo and has proved itself as a great workhorse for many of us here.