Total Newbie - Help wanted.

[kry10]

I have bought my son a Skywatcher 130p EQ2 telescope and have been having some great success in viewing the moon, but, what I would like to know is, how can I get some pictures of the moon on the cheap ?

I have an iphone 5c and was wondering is there an adapter you can get to line the camera lens up with the telescope eye piece ?

I do not have the cash to buy a dslr, I do have an old Nikon digital camera though, but, don't think I can use that.

Any ideas anyone ?

[Charic]

Hi and welcome to SGL.

You can just hold your iPhone to the eyepiece, and if you use your  eyepiece with the largest  focal number, that should  allow your camera lens to better align to the image in the bigger eyepiece.

Its not perfect, but does work. That said, you could buy an adaptor plate or design something  instead.

[kry10]

I have used that method, but, it tends to be very fiddly and difficult to get a decent image.

I just wondered if anyone had created some adapter to allow this to be done ?

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[happy-kat]

The Moon is best taken with lots of images that are then stacked using free software DSS. The atmosphere changes all the time and that image sharpness may be more to do with the atmosphere then anything else.

[mcolbert]

you mention that you also have an old Nikon, which model?

michael

[kry10]

As you can see, I manage (with difficulty) to get an image, but, it takes some messing around getting the iphone lens just right, but, I will check out DSS and see what I can do.

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[kry10]

you mention that you also have an old Nikon, which model?

michael

It's a Nikon Coolpix...

One of those.

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[cjdawson]

This is an example of the bracket that you need for your smart phone.

http://www.telescopehouse.com/acatalog/Revelation-Smartphone-holder-with-tripod-threaded-bush-1.html

you'd need to combine it with one of these..

http://www.telescopehouse.com/acatalog/Revelation-P195-A-Universal-Digiscoping-Adaptor-28mm-45mm.html

http://www.telescopehouse.com/acatalog/Revelation-P200-A-Universal-Digiscoping-Adapter-43mm-65mm.html

You can also use either of the two below to hold your Coolpix in place.  If your nikon has a move mode, you could simply turn on movie mode and record a 10 min film of the moon, convert that to an AVI and stack it in Registax.  Could do the same with the iPhone once you get the movie from MOV format to AVI.

[Alan64]

Not too dreadful of a pic, although that shot of the Moon was taken under considerable magnification.

I have a Canon S110 point-and-shoot.  I take afocal photographs of the Moon and other objects on a regular basis, and simply by holding the camera up to the eyepiece...

M13, the great globular cluster in the constellation Heracles...

M42, the Orion Nebula...

...and, of course, the Moon...

Your Nikon should perform similarly.  You would then take the sharpest of the photographs and sharpen them further within a program like Photoshop or Paint Shop Pro, and in an effort to recreate the live view.  Of course, with the described afocal method, the camera will most always fall short in that. 

I have a steady hand when so doing, but here some aids for point-and-shoot cameras, albeit from a U.S. vendor...

http://www.telescope.com/Astrophotography/Camera-Adapters-T-Rings/Orion-SteadyPix-Deluxe-Camera-Mount/pc/-1/c/4/sc/62/p/5338.uts

http://www.telescope.com/Astrophotography/Camera-Adapters-T-Rings/Orion-SteadyPix-Pro-Universal-CameraSmartphone-Mount-125/pc/-1/c/4/sc/62/p/103503.uts

[kry10]

Sorry, but, I don't know astronomy or photography terminology, what is afocal ?

I am extremely new to all of this and know it can be a very complex subject, it's my son who is the one who loves astronomy, but, he has a learning disability, but, is very keen on this, so, I am trying to encourage and support his interest, anything is better than him sitting on his computer all day, lol.

Thank you so much for the help, always appreciated.

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[happy-kat]

Afocal is where you hold the camera up to the eyepiece to take an image.

Have you installed Stellarium? free and superb software.

Google Sky Maps free (is there an iOS version?...) point to sky and see what it is looking at.

Plannisphere, tactile device to see what is in the sky that date and time.

[kry10]

I have got Redshift 7 and Universe Sandbox 2 on pc and on ipad, SkyView and MoonGlobe.

Thanks for answering the afocal question, today I saw in a second hand shop a pliss eyepiece, I have no understanding of eyepieces, but, I think sticking with the standard ones that was part of the telescope setup is the best idea while I get used to controlling the eq2 mount.

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[D4N]

You wouldn't be able to reach prime focus with a DSLR on that scope anyway so I wouldn't worry about using one.

What will work is webcam imaging.

Get a cheap webcam, remove the lens, remove any LED's that can't be turned off and stick a bit of 1.25" pipe to it. Make sure it is sealed all around then just plop it into your focuser tube.

You then record videos of your target and use free software (AS!2 or registax) to turn the video into a single image.

/Dan

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[kry10]

Well, I do have an old webcam I could use, and could easily get a piece of 1.25" pipe from screwfix, so, that is very doable, thanks.

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[mcolbert]

remember to take some images of the conversion and either post here or in the DIY section - I'm sure there will be excellent comments there as well.

michael

[Interstellarshaw88]

With regards to using a web cam and doing this type of imagery what kind of pics could you get out of doing it this way ?

You wouldn't be able to reach prime focus with a DSLR on that scope anyway so I wouldn't worry about using one.

What will work is webcam imaging.

Get a cheap webcam, remove the lens, remove any LED's that can't be turned off and stick a bit of 1.25" pipe to it. Make sure it is sealed all around then just plop it into your focuser tube.

You then record videos of your target and use free software (AS!2 or registax) to turn the video into a single image.

/Dan

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[happy-kat]

The Moon, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn. Anything bright enough to be able to be picked up by a webcam at the frame rates the webcam takes a movie.

[kry10]

Well, I just downloaded SharpCam and seen the tutorial on how to adapt a webcam using a film canister, so, as soon as I get an empty film canister, I will be putting my hot glue gun to good use, lol.

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[wookie1965]

You could buy a smart phone holder which holds your phone and attaches to your eyepiece people have got some great shots like this.

[Helite]

FLO do a universal camera adapter, should work fine with your Nikon http://www.firstlightoptics.com/adapters/skywatcher-universal-camera-adapter.html

[mcolbert]

With regards to using a web cam and doing this type of imagery what kind of pics could you get out of doing it this way ?

also check out the introductory book: Video Astronomy  S.Massey. T.A.Dobbins, E.J.Douglass

[happy-kat]

You can make a holder if you are into DIY.

[kry10]

I will be doing the film canister and webcam method.

I have downloaded Registax, SharpCap and DSS, so, when I have got myself an old film canister and modded the webcam I have, I shall be testing it all, hopefully will be ready for the full moon coming up, just hoping we get some clear skies during the full moon time.

Just got another question, when I was in a second hand shop, I saw a Plossi eyepiece, I have no idea what they are and if they are any good, but, would it fit my telescope, are all eyepieces made to fit the same diameter of telescope eye holes and are they all 1.25" in diameter ?

It seems that it is the EP that makes the biggest difference in what you see rather than the scope itself.

As you can see, total newbie and no understanding of telescopes, to be honest, I haven't even bothered with setting the eq 2 mount up properly and setting it up to track stuff, it gets stored in our shed and I just carry it out when we have a clear sky and plonk it down, twiddle a few bits on it and try and aim it where the object is, totally wrong I know, but, it works for me, lol.

[Peter Drew]

If you can get over to the Astronomy Centre with your telescope on a Saturday evening we will be pleased to show you how to set up and use it and try different eyepieces to see what suits it best.  

[Dazzyt66]

Hers my modded ps3 eye. Not pretty at the mo cos I'm trialling what works. I couldnt get a good focus so have added a barlow lens to an old ep body. This seems to do the trick although I haven't tried it at night yet - the moon is my first target so i'll post up what happens...

Clear skies!

Dazzyt

FirstScope (soon to be upgraded - TBC)