Help....DBK 21 ccd imaging!???

[northcanadian]

Hello:

I have just received my DBK 21 camera.

I am a complete newcomer to this type of imaging. Hooked it up last night to a Skywatcher 130 ( prime focus) and did get an image of sorts...seemed like I did not have quite enough focus travel(?)

I do have a Celestron 9.25 SCT which I would be hooking this camera up to. Will a 2x Barlow do the job...for imaging Jupiter, for example? Can a person only use Barlows or is there some kind of adaptor that one can use for eyepiece projection with this camera?

Thank you all again for sharing your wisdom and experience!

[Merlin66]

Unfortunately on some of the smaller reflectors the positioning of the main mirror and the type of focusser doesn't allow the camera to get close enough to focus.... usual solution is to move the main mirror UP the tube by 10 -20mm.

A x2 Barlow will give about f20 on the Celestron, a x3 giving f30 would be close to optimum for imaging. Barlows/ Powermates are prefered to eyepiece projection ( less lenses better resolution, easier to use etc)

Hope this helps!

[brianb]

The Imaging Source cameras do not have a lot of backfocus requirement & should focus with anything that will support an eyepiece. I even use one with a Coronado PST!

With the SCT, I respectfully suggest trying prime focus first. Working at 5 metres focal length (as using a x2 barlow entails) is quite exacting, you need to gain experience so you know how much amplification may be useful & how to process the AVIs. In fact with Jupiter at only about 20 degrees when due south at the moment, f/10 will probably be as much as is useful anyway.

[Psychobilly]

Its is very easy to "shoot" through the focus point and miss it especially when you start imagign at f20 or f30 when any turbulence will make it a real challenge ..... make a simple hartman or Bathinov mask it will make life much easier... and focus on a bright star close to your target rather than an extended object like the moon or a planet...

Peter...

[northcanadian]

Thank you for your help!

Do I capture the image in avi video...then run through registax?

Is there also a tutorial that a beginner could download for this type of imaging?

Thanks again

northcanadian