Looking for a CCD camera.

[thing]

I'm back astronomering after a break of around 5 years. I used to use a Minolta camera for my imaging but managed to banjax two of them during my imaging years. Being as I now have an expensive DSLR (for taking normal pictures...) I don't want to stick it on the end of the scope. So, I'm looking at a CCD camera, willing to spend @ £500. I have an 8 inch reflector on a HEQ5 pro which after I dusted the cobwebs off, oiled all of the stuff with threads on it and and stripped and rebuilt  the handset is working like new. I don't use guiding, I used to get two minute unguided exposures out of the mount which is enough for me.

I'm not interested in colour or fancy wheels for filters and stuff , so does anyone rec a good b/w CCD camera for the above price?

[GuillermoBarrancos]

Why wouldn't you want to use Your DSLR? Especialy if it's a Canon, then you have a lot of adapters and Astro software support.

£500 is going to be tough finding a decent CCD camera, even second hand.

But really, if you have a Canon DSLR. You got an excellent Mount. So why not spend some of that Money on a guider (like QHY5L-II) and create a finder guider to autoguide and be able to take long exposures.

This way a lot more possible DSO targets will be within your reach to image.

You can get very good quality Clip Light Polution filters for the Canon EOS cameras.

With Your intended budget, this would be the best way to go in all honesty.

[thing]

I don't have a Canon i have a top end Sony. I really don't want to mess around with it as it was a gift. I hear what you say, I think someone on here is flogging a Canon. I'm not sure about the autoguiding, I like to keep things simple and stupid (being simple and stupid). I just have a typically suburban back yard with oodles of light pollution and I keep the scope and mount in the garden shed until I want to use them. It really is an amateur sort of set up as I don't have the time to get too deeply into it, but I do enjoy astrophotography. Thanks for the advice though, I'll start looking for a Canon.

[GuillermoBarrancos]

I don't have a Canon i have a top end Sony. I really don't want to mess around with it as it was a gift. I hear what you say, I think someone on here is flogging a Canon. I'm not sure about the autoguiding, I like to keep things simple and stupid (being simple and stupid). I just have a typically suburban back yard with oodles of light pollution and I keep the scope and mount in the garden shed until I want to use them. It really is an amateur sort of set up as I don't have the time to get too deeply into it, but I do enjoy astrophotography. Thanks for the advice though, I'll start looking for a Canon.

Autoguiding is really easy to setup tho. I got it running within 20mins first time. Most of that time was spend focussing lol. It really is easy. PHD2 is such a great piece of software, with excellent help documentation for first time use.

Getting Perfect Polar Alignment, which is Critical, especially when you don't guide, is much more time consuming. I had a much harder time with that, then setting up auto guiding.

EDIT: Check here:

http://cheapastrophotography.vpweb.co.uk/Available-Cameras.html

You can get a Astro modified Canon 1100D for good price there. Very good site.

Then you have Money left to buy a QHY5L-II finder guider package from Modernastronomy.

http://www.modernastronomy.com/camerasGuider.html

Tho I bought a 50mm guidescope from TS myself with 1.25" helical focusser:

https://www.teleskop-express.de/shop/product_info.php/info/p4064_TS-50mm-straight-viewfinder-and-mini-guiding-telescope-with-bracket-and-1-25--focu.html

Should fit straight into the findershoe of Your 8inch reflector.

[thing]

Thanks again.

[nmoushon]

I would also suggest using your DSLR. Even with it being a Sony you still have plenty of software that can run it no problem. You don't have to mod it and use it as a one shot color. With your LP grab a CLS Clip in filter for a Sony camera and it will work a charm. It pops in and out very easily and doesnt effect your camera in anyway shape or form...well except that you can attach a lens to it while the filter is clipped in but if you use it on your scope then you wont be doing that anyways. This is what I did with my DSLR that I also used for daytime photography.

With that I would also spend the money on guiding. Even the simplist of setups will fit in your budget and is very easy to run. With very simple tweaking (plugging in numbers) you can easily get 5min sub no problem.

One confusing part of your post is you say you dont want color or filter wheels but you want a b&w camera?

[lensman57]

I'm back astronomering after a break of around 5 years. I used to use a Minolta camera for my imaging but managed to banjax two of them during my imaging years. Being as I now have an expensive DSLR (for taking normal pictures...) I don't want to stick it on the end of the scope. So, I'm looking at a CCD camera, willing to spend @ £500. I have an 8 inch reflector on a HEQ5 pro which after I dusted the cobwebs off, oiled all of the stuff with threads on it and and stripped and rebuilt  the handset is working like new. I don't use guiding, I used to get two minute unguided exposures out of the mount which is enough for me.

I'm not interested in colour or fancy wheels for filters and stuff , so does anyone rec a good b/w CCD camera for the above price?

Use your Canon for now, save the £500.00 and start saving for a decent CCD, who knows you may even come to like the DSLR so much that you would not need a CCD camera as many folks do. BTW there is no difference between hanging a DSLR or a £2000.00+ CCD off the back of a scope as long as they are secure. As to teh answer to your question there is the Atik Titan for about £500.00 or the Orion G3 now reduced to £340.00 from Telescope House but both of these have very small sensors so you are restricted to small targets, neither of them are suitable for very short, fast APO or ED scopes due to the pixel dimension, about 750~1200mm of FL is fine for these.

Regards,

A.G

[thing]

One confusing part of your post is you say you dont want color or filter wheels but you want a b&w camera?

You've confused me now! Not wanting colour or filter wheels would indicate a b/w camera? Surely?

[nmoushon]

One confusing part of your post is you say you dont want color or filter wheels but you want a b&w camera?

You've confused me now! Not wanting colour or filter wheels would indicate a b/w camera? Surely?

With a b&w camera (mono) you will need a filter wheel with your LRGB filters in order to come out with a colored image in the end. If you are wanting a colored image but with out the filter wheel and filters you will want a color camera (One Shot Color or OSC). There are CCD camera that are OSC that work just like a DSLR (which is a OSC) except with better sensors and cooling equipment.

[thing]

Probably didn't make myself clear. I'm not interested in colour images. B/w is fine.

[Thalestris24]

Probably didn't make myself clear. I'm not interested in colour images. B/w is fine.

Hi

The problem with mono images without the use of narrowband or lp filters is that I expect you'll have interference from lp but no way of processing it out. You could get a qhy5l-ii which is available in mono or colour. The mono version is more expensive but has a high QE and many people (including me!) use them for guiding. They are cmos, not ccd, and not cooled but are easy to use. They are small, light and easy to fit. However, they are only 1.3 Mpix tho and have small pixels.  

http://qhyccd.com/en/left/page3/qhy5-ii-series/

Modern Astronomy sell them:

http://www.modernastronomy.com/camerasGuider.html#QHY5L-II

But I'd say a canon dslr is more versatile and similar in price... You can always take images in colour and convert them to B+W if you really want...

[nmoushon]

Probably didn't make myself clear. I'm not interested in colour images. B/w is fine.

So you dont want any colour in your images what so ever? Is this just because you really like b&w pictures or don't want to fuss with combining RGB and the filters that are involved?

If you only want b&w pictures then you only have 2 options. Buy a specifically modded DSLR or a mono CCD. You could get a modded DSLR in your budget but most modded DSLR are to increase the sensitivity to Ha so you will have to specifically look for one that is modded to be b&w....or just convert the image to b&w in PS. The Ha modded DSLRs pick up a lot more of the fainter Ha nebula and if you then convert it to b&w in PS will have a lot more detail than a DSLR modded for b&w imaging. For a mono CCD, which shots in b&w, your budget is a bit too low even for second hand you I think you'd be better off going with a modded DSLR. Even if you had the budget to get a even a decent mono CCD you would want to at least get 1 of 3 filters to bring out more detail and help control your LP. You would want to consider a Lum. filter, a LP specific filter or a Ha filter. Techniqually every filter you image through will be b&w until you asign it to a color layer in PS.

[thing]

Thanks for the advice chaps, all appreciated. Forgotten how helpful this forum is!