Evostar 120 Achromatic refractor..... Any good for imaging?

[Brownthunder93]

Ok, so I'm gonna preface this by saying I do not have the money for an Apo refractor, whatsoever, and won't for a little while due to COVID decimating my savings, and my sh***y wage from working in healthcare 😂

 

Basically, I currently have a 200p sat on an EQ5 mount. Now, I know that this is too heavy for imaging, and I cannot use it with my current camera setup (DSLR) without the tracking being all over the shop.

 

So, I have the opportunity to pick up a used Evostar 120 Achromatic. I understand that there's going to be a lot of CA, so I'm going to image in NarrowBand using a mono cam, instead of my DSLR.

 

Basically, I want to know whether I should be able to image with this setup, and get somewhat decent results when shooting DSO's. I am hoping to (once this terrible british weather clears up) capture all of the Messier Catalogue, as well as doing some planetary imaging later on in the year.

 

Any input would be appreciated 😁

[fifeskies]

You do not need large aperture for imaging DSO, 72mm or 80mm is plenty and that may mean you can afford a decent used ED 2nd hand scope.

Large objects like M31 also need the wide field of view these scopes have to get it all into a single frame.

It reduces the demands on tracking as well so you will probably get better results than the longer heavier 120mm.

 

 

Below are images taken with an 80mm scope

 

 

 

 

 

Edited January 23, 2021 by fifeskies
photos added

[The Lazy Astronomer]

Do you already have a mono camera and narrowband filters (and a filter wheel/drawer)?

If not, those items would probably end costing as much, if not more, than a decent 70 - 80 mm ED refracter

[Nicola Hannah Butterfield]

I got a 200p last January, the first thing I did was a decent 'ish mount, in my case an EQ6 Pro, a lot of money for me as I don't work, so I understand that bit. On a decent mount the 200p is a capable telescope for photography (winds aside) over the last year I have invested in a cheap guide scope and camera. I planned on 4 hrs of data for this image but only got 75 mins, due wind early on and cloud throughout the session.

[Brownthunder93]

5 hours ago, fifeskies said:

You do not need large aperture for imaging DSO, 72mm or 80mm is plenty and that may mean you can afford a decent used ED 2nd hand scope.

Large objects like M31 also need the wide field of view these scopes have to get it all into a single frame.

It reduces the demands on tracking as well so you will probably get better results than the longer heavier 120mm.

 

 

Below are images taken with an 80mm scope

 

 

 

 

 

Unfortunately, I am unable to pick up an ED scope for sub £100 like I can with the evostar, because obviously that would be the goal 😂

[Brownthunder93]

3 hours ago, The Lazy Astronomer said:

Do you already have a mono camera and narrowband filters (and a filter wheel/drawer)?

If not, those items would probably end costing as much, if not more, than a decent 70 - 80 mm ED refracter

A friend is lending me theirs for a while, as they have been laid up, and hopefully should give me enough time to source my own

[Brownthunder93]

3 hours ago, Nicola Hannah Butterfield said:

I got a 200p last January, the first thing I did was a decent 'ish mount, in my case an EQ6 Pro, a lot of money for me as I don't work, so I understand that bit. On a decent mount the 200p is a capable telescope for photography (winds aside) over the last year I have invested in a cheap guide scope and camera. I planned on 4 hrs of data for this image but only got 75 mins, due wind early on and cloud throughout the session.

Don’t get me wrong, I’d love to be able to use my light bucket for imaging, but it’s cheaper for me to find an imaging scope to take out with me on my EQ5 than it is to buy a new mount for the 200p, so I’m keeping it for visual use

[fifeskies]

13 minutes ago, Brownthunder93 said:

Unfortunately, I am unable to pick up an ED scope for sub £100 like I can with the evostar, because obviously that would be the goal 😂

 

The benefits of the smaller aperture for imaging still apply for the Evostar series , the 120 is a bigger heavier scope and you will most likely get better images using an 80mm.

Much less wobble on a EQ5 with the 80mm, and wobble really ruins images.

The smaller aperture is also less bothered by poor seeing.

I used to have an Evostar 150 , and while it was good for visual , I never got good imaging results from it.

 

Narrowband filters will help you cope with the CA that is present on the Evostar series.

They are a very budget friendly way into the hobby.