Using EQ5 mount for Astrophotography

[hippie]

I'm wondering if i can use my EQ5 mount for astrophotography ? 

I have a Ball mount & can fix my Canon 650D to the mount,

At the moment the mount is manual use only and i am considering if the goto upgrade kit is worth purchasing at £299.00 quid. From Fleebay?

Is this upgrade kit going to work with my Skywatcher 6" refractor scope also and improve my viewing our should i be thinking of spending a little more money and get a purpose built  goto mount that will do both jobs and sell my EQ5 mount perhaps?. 

SkyWatcher Sky Watcher SynScan GOTO Upgrade Kit for EQ5 Mount

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/121190047355?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1438.l2649

[swag72]

If you are interested in imaging, then there's definitely some compromises to be made. What is good for visual will not necessarily work well for AP and vice versa.

If you are interested in DSO's then the best mount to get would be an HEQ5 - The minimum recommended mount for imaging. Couple that with an 80ED refractor and you have the basis for a good rig. You say that you have a 6" refractor, for AP again you need to be considering ED doublets as these really give the best colour correction.

If planetary is your thing, disregard everything I've said!!

Look around the imaging section and see what level you want to get to and be realistic about whether you can do it. People usually list their kit to give you an idea of what the image was captured with, it will give you a starting point and an idea of where you may wish to go in the future.

Hope that helps.

[Bizibilder]

The EQ5 is really too lightweight to take a 6" refractor - you would be far better off saving for at least an HEQ5

[Oily]

If you have the budget then get the best mount you can afford,if not then the EQ5 will do for AP.Don't be put off by people suggesting the HEQ5 is the bare minimum,it isn't,a lot of folk on here image with a 200P(8" scope) on a EQ5 with great results.Again if you can afford the Synscan upgrade then go for it but a cheaper alternative would be to buy the dual axis motor kit and a AstroEQ,cost approx £190

[WaveSoarer]

I have pretty much the same setup as Oily - though I have the dual axis motors as I don't mind star hopping - and the combination works well for imaging. The polar alignment needs to be spot on but you can get reasonably long exposures without trailing. I use my DSLR with a coma corrector. I occasionally use a 2x Barlow but then you need to try to be even more careful with the tracking and limit the exposure time. I normally use 60s exposures though my 120s subs, which I use for getting the initial alignment, also look fine. I expect that longer exposures would be possible but then that puts more stringent requirements on polar alignment and tracking accuracy.

[hippie]

If you have the budget then get the best mount you can afford,if not then the EQ5 will do for AP.Don't be put off by people suggesting the HEQ5 is the bare minimum,it isn't,a lot of folk on here image with a 200P(8" scope) on a EQ5 with great results.Again if you can afford the Synscan upgrade then go for it but a cheaper alternative would be to buy the dual axis motor kit and a AstroEQ,cost approx £190

Thanks Oily The dual axis kit looks a good compromise ,  I will look into it further when my membership is approved   at astronomyshed

[Oily]

Thanks Oily The dual axis kit looks a good compromise ,  I will look into it further when my membership is approved   at astronomyshed

No problem hippie,Have a look here at the AstroEQ thread for more info:

http://stargazerslounge.com/topic/188877-astroeq-for-eq-mounts/

[JimFR]

Hope no one minds me hijacking this thread somewhat, but I have a similar requirement, and would like to venture my 4p'uth for public cogitation / ripping to shreds

I'm looking at the EQ5 as the cheapest half decent mount. I am also looking at the dual axis and the polar scope and get these 'in a oner'

though I may forestall upgrading the OTA, concentrating on piggybacking my DSLR and lens, or webcam AP.

Take a look below for my current set up

What is the consensus on the versatility of this mount? I expect I wouldn't want to go any bigger than an 8" Newt, but imagine this would be adequate for 

scopes such as 6" Orion VX newt or the 130/150PDS from skywatcher - I'm also considering projects like the autoguider hack for dual motored EQ5's that are doing the rounds on t'internet...