Ready to start with the planets

[johnb]

Hi

I have

Skywatcher Explorer 250 OTA

Skywatcher EQ6 Pro SynScan

and have been visually observing and get excellent views of the Moon and Mars. I now want to start to try imaging. I assume i need a webcam and link to the laptop running some software for capture (i understand processing for Planets is Registrax)and advice on which one would really be appreciated and which capture software ?

Do I need to be guided or can i go unguided to start with ?, if I can I guess there is a time limit ?

Lastly and im sorry if its an obvious question, I attach the cam to were I woudl insert the eyepiece, if so how do i increase magnification ?

John B

[Cornelius Varley]

Your EQ6 will be more than ample. You don't need guiding as with DSOs just a motorised mount. For imaging the moon you will probably have plenty of magnification with your telescope as it stands but for planets use a barlow lens. The total length of capture depends on the camera you intend to use. I use a DMK21 which can capture at 60fps, I usually go for 1000 frames. A webcam can only shoot at about 10fps uncompressed so will obviously take longer to capture sufficient frames to process in registax. A minute or so should be enough for the moon and mars.

Craterlet and Wxastrocapture are both free image capturing programs that can used. K3ccdtools has a free version that works with webcams.

Peter