New to the Hobby

[DeRealDeano]

Hi Guys, trust you all and your families are keeping safe during this pandemic.

I'm new to the hobby but have always been a massive fan of astronomy. Recently I got myself a beginner setup using what I had etc. 

Camera: Nikon D3200 

Telescope: Celestron AstroMaster 114

Other Bits: the usual T-ring etc. 

So the drama is, with the last full we had for the year, I thought I would start taking some picture as suppose to just observing as I often did and for my very first attempt at capturing the moon it wasn't too bad but at the same time I would have thought it would have been better.

The image came out blurry and I'm not too sure why as the had a remote attached to the camera, the mount was lock (no creeping etc). See image below, would love some feedback and what I can do to improve. 

Thanks for listening guys, much appreciated. 

 

Before Lightroom:

 

After Lightroom:

[CloudMagnet]

Great for a first attempt. Really with that telescope you will struggle to get fantastic pictures- you will be mostly limited to moon/planets. I think the focus might need some adjustment but otherwise a good start.

If you are looking to really go down the astrophotography route, just be prepared that you will spend a LOT of money very easily so bear that in mind. Spend as much time as you can learning best practice for imaging now and you will save yourself from a lot of problems in the future

[DeRealDeano]

Hello @CloudMagnet, thanks ever so much for your feedback, much appreciated. 

I'm sure its going to be expensive 🥴. I know this telescope isn't the best, I first got it because of the kids. Now I can see in order to get greater pictures, I will need to invest....Invest heavily in a decent one. 

Thanks once again. I will share updates as I go along. 👍

[CloudMagnet]

I started out with an Astromaster 130 EQ, not too disimilar to yours. It did me well for a few years so there is plently to do with a scope in that range.

Before you invest, make sure you know what to invest in. Its easy to make the mistake of thinking what works for visual will work for photography. First, aperture is NOT king and longer focal lengths will make it more difficult. Things like accurate polar alignement and telescope balance play a huge role in long exposure photography and cant be just done quickly like you can get away with for visual. Its really a change of mindset.

It will become a can of worms very quickly, but once I put a camera on my scope, I never really went back to visual stuff as a result. When you make a list of a mount/scope combination don't be afraid to run it past people on here first before pressing the "buy" button- it can save a lot of hassle to get the right set up first time rather than spending a lot trying to bring a bad setup up to standard.

[DeRealDeano]

Love this advise. I suppose, for something that will work better and wont break the bank account, the 130 EQ isn't a bag buck for money. 

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When you make a list of a mount/scope combination don't be afraid to run it past people on here first before pressing the "buy" button- it can save a lot of hassle to get the right set up first time rather than spending a lot trying to bring a bad setup up to standard.

Most definitely, I will sure do.

Thank you very much.

[CloudMagnet]

26 minutes ago, DeRealDeano said:

Love this advise. I suppose, for something that will work better and wont break the bank account, the 130 EQ isn't a bag buck for money. 

Yep, I wouldnt recommend this for astrophotography, I upgraded from this scope as it was only suited to visual work. Mainly due to the 1.25 inch focus tube not being a good match for a DSLR and being very difficult to collimate as the center of the primary mirror isnt marked very well. Most would recommed looking at a short focal length refractor and a big mount to get started.

A decent setup will get you into four-figures very quickly so just make sure this is what you want to do first. Once you starting getting involved with the endless accesories you can buy it adds up quickly. For me, it is all worth it when everything works and you take a picture of something millions of light years away from your garden

[DeRealDeano]

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For me, it is all worth it when everything works and you take a picture of something millions of light years away from your garden 

I can only imagine how you feel. 

Its a wonderful feeling. Question, what would you recommend? something that will not send my wife into melt down haha but something that can be used as a better solution to what I have now. 

 

PS: what is your setup???

[michael8554]

There's some tilt - the bottom of the moon is in focus, the top is not.

The full moon is very bright, so you can afford to use as fast an exposure as possible that gives a decent exposure.

Take 10 or so shots and pick the best.

Some will still be blurry due to atmospherics, but those fast exposures may capture a few in atmospheric sweet spots.

Michael

[DeRealDeano]

Hi @michael8554, thanks for this. the exposure time was 1/60 at ISO 200. I cant get a lower exposure time with my camera (Nikon D3200) for some reason. 

[michael8554]

39 minutes ago, DeRealDeano said:

. I cant get a lower exposure time

I said faster, try 1/500th  at ISO 800 or 1600. 

Michael 

[DeRealDeano]

29 minutes ago, michael8554 said:

I said faster, try 1/500th  at ISO 800 or 1600. 

Michael 

Thanks Michael, I will try this. 👍🙃