Taking up old hobby, but wanting to go further!

[JimmyC]

Hey all

I was a keen back-garden type observer for a few years when i was younger - Owned a nice 8" Skywatcher reflector and 4.75" Skywatcher refractor on EQ5 mounts, and looking back, this was some pretty good kit! Would've definitely got me started had i had kept them...

Anyway, i find myself in the grips of astronomy, cosmology and all other manner of universe related subjects, and having pondered for a few months i think it's time to get myself going again with a good 'scope. 

As said, i've got some experience with using telescopes, so i should be fine with some intermediate-advanced type equipment.

What i'm looking for:

Good visual capability

Good imaging capability

GoTo feature

Object tracking

Budget - £1000-£1500

I will also need a camera, software and any other items of sorts to start out taking pictures, budget up to £500. 

So i'm looking to spend no more than £2,000 in total. Accessories such as eyepieces and the like are not too important as these cost peanuts and i can acquire a few come payday.

Portability is not such a problem, neither is brand as such, but due to my past experience with Skywatcher telescopes, i wouldn't mind another!

What could people recommend to get another keen lad onto his feet again?

Thanks guys,

James.

[Langy]

Hello James, welcome to SGL and back to the hobby.

I'm far too new to help here but I dare say in another few weeks / months you will be helping us all.

It's also nice to see a detailed list of requirements and a sensible budget for someone wanting to do imaging.

I'm sure you will get a lot of good responses with that budget as it should fit well with some good equipment.

Good luck!

[oldpink]

with that budget I'd go for the SW 250 / 300 PDS on an NEQ6
camera, I'd stick with my choice of 600d modified as it will do Planet & DSO
Coma corrector and a decent Barlow (2X - 4X)

[Laurie61]

Hi and welcome, the requirements for visual and imaging are quite different. I think going back to an 8" sky watcher dob would keep you happy visually and then an eq6 size mount with suitable refractor for imaging would be the way to go.     

[ronin]

My first point is good visual and good imaging are different.

Just to be pedantic I could spend twice you total budget on a single good imaging scope.

If imaging then the mount needs to be equitorial, in the "common" makes that is Skywatcher or iOptron.

Presently I would favour the iOptron, it was developed more recently so has more up-to-date features.

Eyepieces, good to know that an Ethos is peanuts at £450 :grin:

The retailers will love selling you a complete set. :rolleyes:

If you can wait until June there is the IAS at Warwick area, an astro show with a lot on display.

It would be worthwhile looking at all options and talking to people there.

[nightfisher]

James, you have a good budget, however mixing imaging with visual causes problems, for imaging you need a really good strong mount and generally a small ED refractor.....for visual you need aperture, i cant help thing maybe a celestron C925 will fit budget, good for visual and not to bad for imaging

[Russe]

Always a good question, where people will have completely different opinions about. It may just be that the best visual telescope isn't gonna be the best imaging one. I think a good entry would be:

130pds on a HEQ5 - imaging see here

[JimmyC]

Agree with the above - You can't have the best of both in one. It's all about compromise and i appreciate that. I'd sway more to the imaging side of things. I know what sort of thing i need for that, such as EQ mount, good focal length and the like, it's just which one(s) have the more superior optics. As said in the title, i'm looking to start out with the photography side, so i don't need anything too advanced, but ideally i'd like something that will see me through for a good while. You know, like so i'm not looking to get another scope within the next 2 years due to boredem with the scope.

Maybe i'm waffling but hey ho. I was on a website earlier and saw a camera for just shy of £200 so thought that may be good to get the hang of things (starting out lunar/planetary).

I know some eyepieces may cost hundreds, but it shows that i'm more for imaging by the way i see eyepieces as a lesser important component of my kit.

Good idea, i may as well attend the warwick event - might get a feel for things.

Any more for any more?

[nightfisher]

Have to ask, is it Luna/planetary imaging or deep sky you want to do

[JimmyC]

Deep sky preferably, as there's a lot more choice involved, and i feel there's more room for improvement upon skills.

I'm liking the look of the SW 250PDS on an EQ6 Pro mount, seems a decent scope and has some good reviews.

[swag72]

For DSO imaging, get yourself a copy of the book Making Every Photon Count - Something of an imagers bible it will really help you to make the most informed choice about what you want, and more importantly why.  

Many start off with an HEQ5 and a short focal length refractor, such as an 80ED. They punch well above their weight and will serve you well. With a short focal length refractor you are putting minimal stress on your mount for tracking, as for DSO images you want LONG exposures. In order to get them you are also going to want some form of guiding setup. And if you are using a DSLR you will benefit from a focal reducer / field flattener.

Don't be fooled into thinking you need a long focal length - Many DSO's are frankly huge!! And they will certainly keep you occupied for some time. Have you looked at a fov calculator, such as this http://www.12dstring.me.uk/fovcalc.php where you can look at all sorts of camera, scope combo's on all manner of targets to get a feel for the fov you will get.

You may also want to consider that you may decide to use a laptop for controlling everything as well.

If you spend some time in the imaging section, you'll get a feel for the sorts of images that people are producing with certain kit, it's generally listed. Then you just need to be realistic about what you want to personally achieve and that should give you another good starting point.

Just a couple of ideas really, but do get the book, it will help you no end.

[JimmyC]

I will get that book then, it can only help. Thanks for the advice so far guys, it's much appreciated - Usually i rush into things and i regret not doing research so at least this time i'm doing it properly.

Overall i'm just trying to get started, just getting to grips with how to use an astrophotography camera, but i'm still all for a bit of visual!

I was thinking i could get the 6" SW refractor and the 8" (maybe 10") SW reflector, as this gives me something to choose from as well.

Could anybody give some reviews/experiences with specific kits? I feel this may help if i hear from a user's point of view.

[JimmyC]

OK so plans have changed slightly due to certain things, but i think i am going to "settle for" my old kit. I quite like the idea of having my babies back (lol) and cracking on with the old life. SW 200P (EQ5 PRO or HEQ5 - Some sort of GoTo) and the Evo' 150 (same mount). Going to get a Celestron NexImage 5 as well as this may be primitive kit but allows me to dabble with photography without too much a committment with money.

What does everyone think? Good enough to start me up and get me going again?

[Thalestris24]

OK so plans have changed slightly due to certain things, but i think i am going to "settle for" my old kit. I quite like the idea of having my babies back (lol) and cracking on with the old life. SW 200P (EQ5 PRO or HEQ5 - Some sort of GoTo) and the Evo' 150 (same mount). Going to get a Celestron NexImage 5 as well as this may be primitive kit but allows me to dabble with photography without too much a committment with money.

What does everyone think? Good enough to start me up and get me going again?

Hi I have a 150pds on an Heq5. I almost regret not getting an Neq6. However I manage ok. The recommended eq5 pro payload is only 6.5kg for imaging, 9kg for visual. The evo 150 ota weighs 13kg  . Having a good solid mount is probably the most important part of an imaging system. I don't quite see the point of getting a 200mm scope and a 150mm.  Again, from an imaging point of view, focal ratio is important. For observing, it's aperture. Oh, believe me, imaging is not at all as easy as it sounds! Do lots of research and reading before you commit to anything. Try out some field of view calculators as Sara suggested. However, only use the example images for getting a feel for the dimensions of what you might see or image. Have a look at members' gallery images here plus on Astrobin and Flickr. You can usually see what equipment they've used and how much integration time it's taken to produce the image.

Louise