Canon EOS 10D for astrophotography?

[Adam Isa]

Hello all. Decided I would like to take a few pictures of what I see through the telescope but don't really have much of a budget so going to have to go for second hand. Would also like a camera for everyday use. I'm looking at a Canon EOS 10D. I know it may not be the first choice (or second, or third etc etc) but it's all I can afford at the moment.

Anyone know if this will be suited to my needs and will I get decent results with it? What extras will I need to buy to attach it to the telescope?

[angusb1]

What are you hoping to take photos of? Are you planning to use it with your Dob?

[Adam Isa]

Yeah, will be using it with the Dobsonian. Hoping to take pcitures of the moon, planets, stars and if possible deep sapce objects, although the last one doesn't have to produce images like the Hubble!

[Abernus]

Can't comment on how well it will work with a Dob, but I have a 4" reflector and I find it hard to gain focus using my EOS 10D.

I have managed to snap the mon and the sun using it. I once tried Jupiter but all I got was a fuzzy blob at best. I mainly use mine for widefield photography (When the cloud clears) and the results are very good.

Hope this is of some use to you.

[NickH]

10D is a cracking camera, and for £100 on the s/h market hard to beat. not red sensitive out of the box (can be modded) , it will make a nice wide field camera, if your dob will reach focus with it

Jupiter et al, forget it...the camera is very wide field, combined with say an F5 Dob, jupiter will be a tiny blob in the middle

[angusb1]

Its sometimes easier to focus using a dslr and newtonian by adding a barlow. This lets you achieve focus with the camera farther out. Photographs of the moon and planets are possible with a dslr and barlows but better with a webcam. Photos of DSOs are very difficult with a Dobsonian, you will only be able to get very short exposures as you do not have a tracking mount so you will get star trails. This means you will only be able to get dim images of the brightest objects. For DSO images you will be best with an equatorial mount.

[Starblazer]

As has already been mentioned above. You may be required to use a barlow or get a new low profile focuser for the dob, I ended up fitting a Moonlight focuser as there was a lack of inward travel on the 250px.

Also, you will find it hard to get anything decent DSO wise, anything over 2secs will show a trail unfortunately. EQ6 is really the only way forward with this...unless you can add a wedge and tracking option of sorts to the dob base?

Planets, as said are better done with a webcam and I can confirm hat jupiter...is nothing more than a dot of about 8mm when i use my 1000d. Barlows and such help but webcams seem the business for this.

[Adam Isa]

It seems then that this may not be the route for me. Was just after some decent pictures here and there.