n00b w/a Dob looking for advice

[abmcg]

hi

last sept i got a 200p Skyliner Dob & tho i know it's not ideal for photography I'm looking to invest in a camera this yr, ideally before having to get a new mount or indeed a new scope. (i need a camera anyway after dropping my last one in the ocean... & at least i'd have it when/if i get another scope/mount).

so yea, having scoured online & the search function on here i've found it a little hard to bust down the jargon & get the straight dope. so could someone help get this dope straight?

what are my options here?

am i wise even bothering to get a camera w/my current set up? if i'm not, what would you recommend me do?

& if i am ok(ish) & just want to get into it what should i be looking for? 

i mean i know i can't track etc but really at this stage it's not even for my own benefit just my mother(!) wants to get some pictures of what she see's thru the scope, y'know? i wanna get it done for christmas too..

i see a lot of images taken w/canon eos 60/600D - i was thinking of just getting the cheapest 1100D version?? would that do the job? or the nikon d3200?

i mean tbh for the price of the camera i'm half tempted just to buy another scope or a mount & leave off the photography for another while longer..

i am fortunate to live in an area w/very little light pollution & whenever i get the chance i always feel it's such a waste not capturing the brilliance of the sky. esp when so many people don't get the views i do.. i want to make the most of it, y'know?

i've had a great time this past yr, when the sky allows, but it would be nice to have some images recorded for posterity. 

sorry for the long post but any help would be GREATLY appreciated.

had this on the backburner last few months & finally getting it together to do something about it before christmas.

tl;dr = got an 8" dob w/alt-az mount & am looking for advice

[ronin]

Really you will not get anything, the moon will be OK but you can do that on a zoom lens and a camera.

You cannot realistically get planets with a dob, you just cannot rotate the scope smoothly enough to get images from a webcam that will stack.

When John Dobson came up with the mount it was an inexpensive Alt/Az manual mount for visual observing, and as such did a excellent bit of work. Note the lack of the terms: Equitorial, Motors driven and Astrophotography from JD's mount description. :eek:

For planetary imaging then a motor driven Alt/Az mount and webcam will suffice - get the movie, stack and process. For DSO imaging then DSLR or ccd and lots of processing are involved. AP is not point and press and a Hubble image appears.

[brantuk]

I agree with Ronin - astro photography isn't point and click. You need two scopes and two cameras for a start and the mount and scope(s) need to be well matched weight wise and motor driven, and then there's heaps of software to learn in order to process the images.

At this stage I would forget AP until you've learned the sky, and a heck of a lot more about imaging. That said - if your mum wants a camera for day time photography then stick with Canons (they're the most scope friendly for the future) and the 1100D will be fine for her to use until such time as you're ready for imaging with a telescope (assuming she's not doing Vogue model shoots lol).

(A good book to get on AP is "Making Every Photon Count" by Steve Richards - supplied through FLO - pretty much of an imagers Bible)

[Russe]

I second the book!

For AP you need a good mount first. Go from there and build up on it. If you search my content, I had a topic on stuff I bought over the years to do AP. Beware it's an expensive hobby if you're getting into it!!

[abmcg]

thanks for the prompt responses & info.

wasn't exactly what i want to hear, but it was kinda what i was expecting!

yea i noted that book researching this earlier on. seems to the first step in what i need to move forward.

& yea a problem is AP seems p much another [expensive] hobby onto itself.

back to the drawing board. i'll have another gander & rifle thru the search bar get a proper shopping list together & then get hopefully get back on here for further advice. 

i think now i'll prob start in on a motor driven mount or else just a second scope..

it was in hope more than anything that it would be a simple fix but i knew enough really to know that i was chancing it!

i know w/point & click what kinda results i'd be getting compared to tracked & stacked images. but it was always intended more like a stopgap along the way, just to start a record of pics than say to start processing DSO's over a night. i'm not so naive & clueless to expect awesome pics, it was more just for having a private collection. tho i am p clueless...

thanks tho!

any other ideas what i can get my mum from christmas then?!

i'll maybe just hand her a copy of that steve richards book!

[Russe]

thanks for the prompt responses & info.

wasn't exactly what i want to hear, but it was kinda what i was expecting!

yea i noted that book researching this earlier on. seems to the first step in what i need to move forward.

& yea a problem is AP seems p much another [expensive] hobby onto itself.

back to the drawing board. i'll have another gander & rifle thru the search bar get a proper shopping list together & then get hopefully get back on here for further advice.

i think now i'll prob start in on a motor driven mount or else just a second scope..

it was in hope more than anything that it would be a simple fix but i knew enough really to know that i was chancing it!

i know w/point & click what kinda results i'd be getting compared to tracked & stacked images. but it was always intended more like a stopgap along the way, just to start a record of pics than say to start processing DSO's over a night. i'm not so naive & clueless to expect awesome pics, it was more just for having a private collection. tho i am p clueless...

thanks tho!

any other ideas what i can get my mum from christmas then?!

i'll maybe just hand her a copy of that steve richards book!

Another great book: "backyard astronomer's guide"- was a present for my brother for Christmas and he read it twice...