Please help - buying first imaging rig

[Elp]

If you go used you can normally get £1000 ish rrp cameras for around £600 plus or minus 50 odd.

[Mr Green]

I've had an eye on the classifieds and will continue looking.

I need to factor in the cost of a decent narrowband filter after all.

I'm guessing these cameras struggle to pick up emissions in a bortle 7 zone without filters.... at least that's what I think it is where I am.

[Elp]

Mines B7 too, you can pick up emission without them but they improve LP to signal separation a lot.

[happy-kat]

why now get to grips with what you have ordered already before deciding on spending more on a new camera

[WolfieGlos]

Glad to see you’ve got the rig up and running, and a good first set of images to boot, but your ambition for a 2600mc already is surprising! Especially given your original budget restriction, that camera alone (brand new) would cost more than your entire setup, no?

Personally I would learn with the DSLR and get a lot more sky time under your belt. Yes, it won’t be as good on emission nebula, but where’s the harm in using it on galaxies, reflection nebulae, star clusters and even the Moon? You’ll easily be able to image M45 The Pleiades in the winter nights, and not long after Christmas it’ll be galaxy season anyway 🙂

Liking the ambition though! 

[Mr Green]

Very good point with regards to original budget. I didn't want to commit to spending too much as I was worried that I might struggle with the complexity of the hobby and give up. 

The 2600mc is pretty much the same cost as my setup but figured that going for a decent camera wasn't a bad idea (especially as I want to focus on emission nebula).

I've become absolutely hooked and have found it extremely rewarding processing images, but feel a little limited with the DSLR.

I shot about 3 hours of data on the heart nebula and got no data at all which was frustrating

 

 

[Elp]

Maybe before investing in a new camera see how you do imaging:

M31 - Andromeda Galaxy,

M45 - Pleiades,

M42 - Orion Nebula,

M33 - Triangulum Galaxy,

Any number of open star clusters which you can do in 30-60m or so per image.

 

[Mr Green]

I've imaged all of the above to some degree other than star clusters. I definitely want to improve on what I've done with the camera I have. 

Just talking out loud that I am considering a dedicated camera and wanted some opinions.

[WolfieGlos]

36 minutes ago, Mr Green said:

Very good point with regards to original budget. I didn't want to commit to spending too much as I was worried that I might struggle with the complexity of the hobby and give up. 

That's a fair point too! 

37 minutes ago, Mr Green said:

The 2600mc is pretty much the same cost as my setup but figured that going for a decent camera wasn't a bad idea (especially as I want to focus on emission nebula).

If that's your intention, then I'd agree, definitely invest in a suitable camera. But there's no harm in practising on the aforementioned targets (amongst others) for now 🙂

38 minutes ago, Mr Green said:

I've become absolutely hooked and have found it extremely rewarding processing images, but feel a little limited with the DSLR.

I shot about 3 hours of data on the heart nebula and got no data at all which was frustrating

Emission nebula are doable with a stock DSLR, but you'll either have to put in a ton of imaging time, or get a much faster scope. So you might as well get an astro cam. The heart is a bogey target of mine, it never worked well for me with a stock - even using a lens at f/2.8.

This was my first image with a stock 77D + Canon EF 200mm L. Set to f/2.8, ISO-800, I shot 200 x 20s frames with no calibrations. Nothing to write home about, but I was happy at the time. But note that compared to the 72ED with FF at f/5.6, the lens I used was collecting data much faster on a brighter target.

I always get f-stop differences wrong...but I think f/2.8 is 4 times a fast as f/5.6 - someone correct me if I'm wrong - so a single 20s sub would be the equivalent of an 80s sub at f/5.6.

[Elp]

Only you can judge whether any further expenditure will be worth it. AP is financially a very slippery slope and you'll constantly be looking at the next purchase. I often consider my equipment and wonder whether it was worth it (this year particularly as the weather has been totally bad and inconsistent, more so than usual). A more budget option you can consider is getting a pre modified DSLR or get yours done.

[happy-kat]

Could think about spending less and getting an Astro camera that opens up for EEA or planets or guiding like for example ASI585MC and see how that goes, I don't have that one but like what it does. See maybe on astrobin for example images

[Mr Green]

I've looked at the 585MC and the fov would require mosaics for most targets. The rarity of clear skies would cause too much frustration for me personally. 

Appreciate being given options though.

I think I'll either go with the 533mc or 2600mc but will wait and see if any deals at the end of the month.

[Elp]

You typically don't get deals on telescope stuff during black Friday (?). Zwo cameras normally go on offer once a year in the first quarter or half, cooled cameras generally never.

[Mr Green]

Good to know, I'll likely buy either the 533 or 2600 within the next few weeks in that case. 

Just weighing up whether I can justify the latter. 

[tomato]

Those are brilliant first time images👍You will be getting into post processing next to fix the over exposed core on M42, there are lots of tutorials on YT on this depending on what software you are using.

The ASI 2600 is a top notch camera, and this camera and other versions based on the same sensor  makes it probably the most popular dedicated Astro camera out there but it still comes with a hefty price tag.

If the budget is tight you might consider a CCD Astro camera based on the Kodak 8300 sensor. Sure it is now ‘old tech’ and requires a guided mount for the longer exposures but it has been responsible for many award winning Astro images.

[Mr Green]

Thanks for the kind words Tomato, I've been finding my way around Siril and Photoshop for post processing and still have a lot to learn but happy with the progress made so far.

Camera needs to be ZWO as I am using ASIair.

Think my minds made up on the 2600MC so will be ordering that at some point soon 👍