guiding questions

[spikkyboy]

Hi all, I have just bought my first guiding set up with Skywatcher scope and ZWO package from FLO.

Not had a chance to try yet due to rain. bBut having a read and a fiddle and questions arise. Maybe one of you seasoned imagers and please answer.

Should I fit a moon or IR filter to the camera to make guiding more accurate?

What happens of after I get a lock on a massive cloud comes by? Do I have to reselect guide star and get a new lock?

Have downloaded the PHD software and it seems straight forward enough and a few good Youtube videos on this.

Cant wait to get going and try it out.

Thanks in advance for any tips and suggestions.

[PhotoGav]

Congratulations on taking your first steps into guiding. Your images will benefit hugely!

Filters - no, you won’t need to fit any filters. The more starlight the better to find a guide star.

Clouds - if a cloud covers your guide star, PHD2 (you mention PHD above, I would recommend going straight to PHD2) will report that it has lost the guide star and beep at you a lot! If the cloud passes quickly and your polar alignment is good, when the cloud has gone the guide star should be in a very similar place and PHD2 should pick it up again and carry on guiding. If the star has moved outside the green box in PHD2 and can’t be found, you would have to select a star and start guiding again.

It will all become very apparent as soon as you connect everything up and are pointing at stars.

Good luck with it all. 

[spikkyboy]

Do I need to align the guide scope with the main scope the same as my red dot pointer?

[spikkyboy]

One more has just popped up.

If I am using my laptop to run the guide camera, will i need a second one for the imaging camera? seems there could be a lot of processor action from both.

[Ouroboros]

30 minutes ago, spikkyboy said:

Do I need to align the guide scope with the main scope the same as my red dot pointer?

It is convenient to do so. Doesn't have to be exact.

Edited October 8, 2019 by Ouroboros

[Ouroboros]

6 minutes ago, spikkyboy said:

One more has just popped up.

If I am using my laptop to run the guide camera, will i need a second one for the imaging camera? seems there could be a lot of processor action from both.

No. Only one laptop required. Most imagers run their mount control software, planetarium, guiding and imaging software on the same computer. 

What sort of imaging camera are you going to use? 

[AKB]

18 hours ago, PhotoGav said:

Filters - no, you won’t need to fit any filters. The more starlight the better to find a guide star.

Interesting!  Some folk swear by adding a filter to the guidescope, to stop IR star bloat or mitigate seeing problems.  Sometimes, even, an IR pass, although that does cut down on the available guidestars.

[spikkyboy]

I bought the Celestron Neximage Burst for now but am looking at the ZWO offerings.