Photography

[gtfreight]

I am near to getting my first "decent beginners telescope" and I'm hoping it will be a "Skywatcher Star Discovery 150P GOTO Parabolic Reflector Telescope" but they are on back order and the shop nearest to me will not let me pre order as they aren't 100% sure when the next stock will arrive. Another option I have is a used "Celestron Nexstar 130 SLT GOTO Telescope" which I am very tempted to buy also.

I have a bridge camera, will this be suitable for photography with these scopes? I've done a little research and can only find DSLRs with an adapter and special webcams being used. If possible I would rather not go to the expense of buying DSLR camera.

As a total novice I'm presuming that these scopes will be suitable for taking pictures through, if not any advice would be greatly appreciated.

[wxsatuser]

I would say no for both as they are not really imaging scopes.

It does'nt mean you cannot all together but the alt azi mount is rather restrictive and the scopes
more than likely will not reach focus for direct mount cameras.

The only way to use a bridge camera is afocal because you cannot remove the lens.

It may be possible to get focus with a Barlow but don't bank on it.

[gtfreight]

Thank you.

[gtfreight]

So it seems that my intended telescope will not be suitable for photography, is there anything in my price range with similar performance that will do?

[Nik271]

Well, it does not matter what telescope you have, you need either a  photography camera with interchangeable lens, or a dedicated astrocamera in order to attach it securely to the telescope. Think of the telescope as a giant camera lens. With your bridge camera you can only take pictures from the eyepiece.

If you want to try astrophotography without too much extra exspense you can  buy a cheap 'planetary camera' which goes directly into the eyepiece of the telescope and works with both of the models. This way you can take photos of the moon and the planets. For deep spaces stuff (nebulas, galaxies  and such) you need a lot more gear and actually the mount becomes more important than the telescope (and often more expensive than the telescope too).

 

Nikolay 

[DaveL59]

you don't say which bridge camera and with most the options will be to take pictures at the eyepiece with the challenge of holding/mounting the camera to get an image, or to mount the camera on the scope piggy-backed and use it to take images via its own lens. That'll mean rebalancing the scope and finding a way to get focus set to infinity and it being able to run long exposure on a remote trigger. 

If your bridge has a lens that extends automatically on power-up you need to be careful it doesn't hit anything if trying at the eyepiece on a mounting rig.

My Fuji S100FS is too bulky to try at the eyepiece, but I have mounted it on a scope ring and used it that way. Downside is max 30s exposure and I've only played with it a little in that mode. Using a remote timer it is able to take several exposures of 30s without needing to touch the camera but so far not been easy to get any great results. Mobile phone at the eyepiece was a lot easier.

 

[Pryce]

Pour the bulk of your money into a good mount.  Like the the minimum of EQ5 or EQM35 equivalent. Though if your budget allows, go for the EQ6 right away or you'll have to switch it out when you eventually move to a bigger telescope. 

 

Get a small wide field refractor like the Evostar 72ED with a field flattner/reducer for example.

Get a used DSLR for cheap. Get a guide scope and cam and build extra acessories from there. Remember that you need a T-adapter to attach your DSLR. They don't cost that much.

OR

Get a star tracking mount, DSLR and a fast telescopic lens. Like a 200mm. This is probably the cheapest and the most forgiving option. Though you'll have a wide FOV and won't be able to image the smaller DSOs very well. Then again, there's plenty of wide field targets out there so it's not like you'll run out of things to photograph any time soon.

 

As someone who's just been through the process of putting together a setup for imaging I can tell you that it costs way more than you think and you'll allways want and need more and more gear if you get hitched.

Starting with high focal length isnt the smart thing to do as that requires even more precise and heavy duty acessories which again costs even more money. When I bought my first telescope(150P) I thought that 'bigges is better' because stuff in space is so far away.  Well, it is. But a lot of the objects people begin to photograph(like andromeda and such) are relatively big and they would extend beyond the FOV of the 150P(without a focal reducer). 

 

For beginners I'd say a cheap second hand DSLR(like a 550D or equivalent) and wide field refractor/ tele-lens is the way to go! 

 

Edited September 5, 2020 by Pryce

[gtfreight]

Thanks for all your help, I was wrongly thinking that I could just put a camera in front of the eyepiece and take pictures. 

I think the way to go for me is to get started with a telescope first and see where the hobby takes me.

[Pryce]

9 minutes ago, gtfreight said:

Thanks for all your help, I was wrongly thinking that I could just put a camera in front of the eyepiece and take pictures. 

I think the way to go for me is to get started with a telescope first and see where the hobby takes me.

Good plan! In that case I recommend a Sky Watcher 130PDS. It's a entry level telescope without too high focal length and you can easily transition into imaging with it at a later stage!  

FOV of the Triangulum galaxy(M33) shown here with the circle representing a 25mm eyepiece(what you see will be much dimmer though) and the rectangle representing the image FOV using a Canon EOS 550D with a 22.3 x 14.9 sensor size.

Would be a good starting option for both visual and imaging(wish I knew that before buying the 150P😂)

 

[Pixies]

A few other questions to thinks about:

1) Budget.

2) Goto or tracking required? (Note, these are different things).

3) Do you have easy access to garden, or would you need something portable to take it to your observing site ( or several flights of stairs, say).

[gtfreight]

12 minutes ago, Pixies said:

A few other questions to thinks about:

1) Budget.

2) Goto or tracking required? (Note, these are different things).

3) Do you have easy access to garden, or would you need something portable to take it to your observing site ( or several flights of stairs, say).

 

My budget is around £400. I'm looking at GOTO. I have a garden.

[RT65CB-SWL]

I am not an astro-imager, but the odd image does get posted now and again.

So here's may opinion...

1. £400+ will get you an average mount, minus tripod or pier if you want stability. Check the classifieds here on SGL or UKAB&S for secondhand.
2. Astro-imaging can be done with a goto mount. Many tend to be alt-az. You may need other items to compensate for the Earth's rotation if deep sky
   imaging is your thing/floats your boat. Accurate polar alignment and tracking is a 'must have' if you want satisfactory images and plenty of patience.
3. Read articles here on SGL and elsewhere, books; (especially this book... Make Every Photon Count); view videos, etc., (and repeat) on astro-imaging.

Good luck and wishing you clear skies. 

[Pryce]

The AZ GTi and 130PDS will put you just around that £400 budget. 

It has GoTo and a wifi connection for control with your smartphone/tablet/pc. I've seen some people say they use it for basic astrophotography but I havent seen any example images though.

 

*Important note.

I don't know if they used it in AltAz mode or if they had a wedge and used it as a EQ mount to image with.

Edited September 5, 2020 by Pryce

[gtfreight]

45 minutes ago, Philip R said:

I am not an astro-imager, but the odd image does get posted now and again.

So here's may opinion...

1. £400+ will get you an average mount, minus tripod or pier if you want stability. Check the classifieds here on SGL or UKAB&S for secondhand.
2. Astro-imaging can be done with a goto mount. Many tend to be alt-az. You may need other items to compensate for the Earth's rotation if deep sky
   imaging is your thing/floats your boat. Accurate polar alignment and tracking is a 'must have' if you want satisfactory images and plenty of patience.
3. Read articles here on SGL and elsewhere, books; (especially this book... Make Every Photon Count); view videos, etc., (and repeat) on astro-imaging.

Good luck and wishing you clear skies. 

 

Thanks for mentioning UKAB&S I haven't heard of that.

[Icesheet]

Is imaging your primary objective? If so spend all you can on the mount now and investigate if you can use your bridge camera for imaging (eg what FL is the lens and can you use bulb mode remotely). Might not be what you want you want to hear since we all love a shiny new scope! However, there’s a good chance it will save you money and a lot of frustration in the long run! 

19 hours ago, Pryce said:

The AZ GTi and 130PDS will put you just around that £400 budget. 

It has GoTo and a wifi connection for control with your smartphone/tablet/pc. I've seen some people say they use it for basic astrophotography but I havent seen any example images though.

 

*Important note.

I don't know if they used it in AltAz mode or if they had a wedge and used it as a EQ mount to image with.

I have recently tested imaging with the AZ Gti in EQ mode (although I would not recommend it with the 130PDS. It’s too heavy and long both physically and in focal length). You will need extra equipment/ software to get polar alignment but it can definitely work with shorter FL lenses and scopes.

If GoTo is a must the iOptron smart EQ could be a consideration and is in your budget (albeit not with a scope) Best bet is a second hand HEQ5/ CEM25p if you can push the budget and are lucky to find one.

Like others have mentioned don’t jump into anything as tempting as it is. Think what you want to achieve and read all you can here. The answer is in here somewhere! Good luck!

 

Edited September 6, 2020 by Icesheet

[gtfreight]

Thanks all. Definitely food for thought. 🙂