Imaging potential on eq5 and heritage 150p

[memerhd]

HI guys,

right now I am quite interested in astrophotography and decided to buy a smartphone holder, and hopefully a plain manual eq5 mount. I am hoping to create good enough images to justify myself to invest in motors etc(?).  the heritage 150p OTA is only 3.6kg so will the eq5 be able to hold any future tracking/guiding cameras?

Also, will buying an eq3-2 be like cheaping out lol

[teoria_del_big_bang]

Hi and welcome to SGL as I see this is your first post.
I think what would help members to help you is to explain what you want to image, planets, DSO's or just widefield images of stars / milky way etc.
Where abouts you plan to image from - what is the sky quality like, light pollution etc ?
Also we really need to know what sort of budget you can manage in these austere times.

Many people do get good images from what are considered below par AP equipment but generally the cheaper you go with this hobby then the harder it can get and often many people get frustrated and leave the hobby because they were trying to get (or expecting to get) better images than the equipment is capable of.

Also you need different approaches for different types of images and there is no real do-it-all  setup that caters for all types of target so giving a lot more information is really required.

Steve

Edited September 11, 2022 by teoria_del_big_bang

[memerhd]

Just now, teoria_del_big_bang said:

Hi and welcome to SGL as I see this is your first post.
I think what would help members to help you is to explain what you want to image, planets, DSO's or just widefield images of stars / milky way etc.
Also we really need to know what sort of budget you can manage in these austere times.

Many people do get good images from what are considered below par AP equipment but generally the cheaper you go with this hobby then the harder it can get and often many people get frustrated and leave the hobby because they were trying to get (or expecting to get) better images than the equipment is capable of.

Also you need different approaches for different types of images and there is no real do-it-all  setup that caters for all types of target so giving a lot more information is really required.

Steve

sorry, I forgot!!!

I am looking for decent planet pics not tooooo detailed.
also for good deep space performance, some nebulae, galaxies etc.

I have s10+ phone camera with full manual control and iPhone 13 mini with some manual controls. However am trying not to end up using longer exposures. BORTLE 7

[memerhd]

3 minutes ago, teoria_del_big_bang said:

Hi and welcome to SGL as I see this is your first post.
I think what would help members to help you is to explain what you want to image, planets, DSO's or just widefield images of stars / milky way etc.
Also we really need to know what sort of budget you can manage in these austere times.

Many people do get good images from what are considered below par AP equipment but generally the cheaper you go with this hobby then the harder it can get and often many people get frustrated and leave the hobby because they were trying to get (or expecting to get) better images than the equipment is capable of.

Also you need different approaches for different types of images and there is no real do-it-all  setup that caters for all types of target so giving a lot more information is really required.

Steve

Thanks for introduction!

[happy-kat]

Hi planets can be done with a manual mount, so I'd definitely try them. You'll need to make a light shroud for your telescope I think can can make this at home.

For planets it's video clips you would take and then process using software like registax or astrostakker

You could try bright clusters maybe 1 second exposures taking lots and stacking those images using deep sky stacker

Have a look in the mobile imaging threads for ideas or here

https://stargazerslounge.com/topic/396563-sgl-2022-challenge-7-mobile-phone-imaging/

 

Edited September 11, 2022 by happy-kat

[Marvin Jenkins]

Hello and welcome. I use an EQ5 mount on the steel tripod (not HEQ5) which is regarded as the entry point for AP.

I fitted the motors and Synscan handset and this year I have been using guiding via PHD2.

I use it with a 150 pds and an un modded dslr. I have had some success with clusters, galaxies and nebula but have not tried planetary.

EQ5 land is an odd place to be! If you go lower then you will wish you hadn’t. If you go for EQ5 then at some point you will wish you had pushed it a bit for the H version. 
The EQ5 is a very capable mount and arguably the best type of set up for visual unless you prefer Dobs of course.

EQ5 world is a bit like being in a very comfortable waiting room, but you know all the while that you are actually waiting for the time when you can get something better.

Marv