Astro photography

[rocketray]

I have a Celestron 130EQ scope and would like to start  attAching a camera to it. I also have an old Olympus OM10 SLR camera gathering dust that I would like to use with it. Can someone please advise me what I would need? Thank you

 

[Davey-T]

Something like this for starters, need to check if it fits your camera

Dave

http://www.365astronomy.com/T-Ring-Olympus-OM.html

[Thalestris24]

Hi

Generally speaking you need a camera that has an 'M'-mode or 'B'-mode setting that allows you to take long exposures. The camera also really needs a removable lens which you exchange for a camera-specific t-ring. You may also need an adapter that lets you attach the camera + t-ring to your scope at prime focus.

Louise

ps I see the OM-10 was a 35mm film camera - you really want a digital slr for AP

[DaveS]

Yes, film still has a very definite place in conventional photography, but for AP digital rules. You *can* do it but film is insensitive by comparison and you'll have to take your exposure in one go, due to the non-linear "toe", and, unless you have a film scanner, the impossibility of stacking. With digital there's no "toe" so even a small signal can add up, whereas with film, if there's not enough photons per second you can be exposing all night and still see nothing at the end.

What drives do you have on the 'scope? I guess from the name it's an equatorial mount, but I'm not familiar with it. I think you will need a RA drive at least, even if you don't guide at this stage.

If you're even half-way interested, buy this book and read it twice before spending any more money https://www.firstlightoptics.com/books/making-every-photon-count-steve-richards.html

Steve is a mod here, "Steppenwolf".

[rocketray]

Thank you for your suggestions. My camera is capable of long exposures and the basic lens is removeable. I do have a digital camera but it is not an expensive SLR which I can't afford on a pension. My telescope does not have a drive motor. I am only intending to take a few photos of the moon and anything after that would be a bonus. There are not a lot of stargazing chances where I live in the west of Ireland due too perpetual cloud cover so don't want to spend a great amount of money on a hobby I can only do in a limited way.

[Cornelius Varley]

I think the first thing you will need is a ton of patience. Astrophotography with a 35mm film camera is a bit hit and miss because you won't know if the imaging has been successful until the film has been processed.  For extra equipment you will need an Olympus OM t -ring, a 1.25" nosepiece, a barlow lens or a barlow lens with a built in t-thread in stead of the nosepiece and a motor drive for the mount. You will need the barlow lens because the Astromaster won't reach focus without one. The OM10 is an aperture priority camera with an optional manual adapter that will give you more control of exposures.

[Cornelius Varley]

2 minutes ago, rocketray said:

Thank you for your suggestions. My camera is capable of long exposures and the basic lens is removeable. I do have a digital camera but it is not an expensive SLR which I can't afford on a pension. My telescope does not have a drive motor. I am only intending to take a few photos of the moon and anything after that would be a bonus. There are not a lot of stargazing chances where I live in the west of Ireland due too perpetual cloud cover so don't want to spend a great amount of money on a hobby I can only do in a limited way.

If you already have a digital camera you can use a suitable adapter to hold it in front of the telescopes eyepiece. https://www.firstlightoptics.com/adapters/skywatcher-universal-camera-adapter.html

[D4N]

If you just want to image the moon you might be better off stripping down a web camera to remove its lens then put a 1.25" adaptor onto it.

You can get really great images of the moon with a webcam by recording a video and then stacking the individual frames in software to make a clearer final image.

 

Another possibility is afocal imaging where you take photos of what is in the eyepiece using a camera or smart phone, you can buy adaptors that help hold the camera steady for this.

[Stub Mandrel]

2 hours ago, rocketray said:

I have a Celestron 130EQ scope and would like to start  attAching a camera to it. I also have an old Olympus OM10 SLR camera gathering dust that I would like to use with it. Can someone please advise me what I would need? Thank you

 

The main thing you need is the determination to have ago rather than worrying too much about the right equipment! The moon is easy as short exposures won't show any drift. You can also image constellations with standard lenses - Orion will reward you!

A basic tracking motor will let you image more than you expect.

[happy-kat]

Why not use the camera you have and a wide field lens and investigate creating star trail images. These can be quite spectacular. You might find you can use the digital camera you already have for this and the software to combine your digital star trail images is free it is called starstax.