where to start in astrophotography??

[BeeJay]

:)Hi fellow enthusiasts,

Ever since I got interested in astronomy I've wanted to connect a camera to my Telementor 2. In the beginning I had no camera. The telementor went into storage, I got a camera and got heavily into photography.....and now the telementor has been resurrected how on earth do I put the two together??

As much advice as possible please. Most grateful.

Clear skies to all.

[neilm]

Welcome to the bottom less pit of astro photography!

On the assumption the you've been heavily into photography I'm assuming you have a decent camera, DSLR possibly ? If so, you can simply remove the telescope eyepiece and mount your camera in it's place. You'll need a T ring and a T adapter, have a look through these from FLO, Adaptors . Should have said it takes the place of the camera lens.

Cheers

Neil

[Whippy]

TBH, I think your Telementor isn't really suited for imaging. IIRC, they use a .96" focuser so it'd be very hard, if not impossible to get adapters for it.

If I were you, I'd leave the Telementor as it is, as it's a bit of legendary scope and look into buying some more suitable kit if you want to head into the imaging side of things.

Tony..

[BeeJay]

I am in two, possibly three minds about it.....I don't have a motorized mount anyway. I have a Nikon D80 but would love to have a go though (since the cost of a decent ED refractor plus goto mount are astronomical, pardon the pun??).

[Capricorn]

(since the cost of a decent ED refractor plus goto mount are astronomical, pardon the pun??)

More astronomical than you suspect.

As Neil said

Welcome to the bottom less pit of astro photography!

[JamesM]

Can I suggest that you buy "Making Every Photon Count" by Steve Richards to get a good handle on what astrophotgraphy is all about, the different methods, the different kit and naturally the cost. If good images are important to you then this will set you off in the right direction.

Clear skies

James

[Astro_Baby]

Seconded above - to be honest an ED refractor and a mount are going to be cheap by comparison with some of the astro imaging gear.

[ollypenrice]

A small ED refractor need not be in the least astronomical in price. A basic DSLR likewise. An HEQ 5 mount is also good value... and so is a simple autoguider. Erm, it's the cumulative effect that counts!!

First, read Steve's book and then decide if this lunacy is for you. If it is, you're one of the afflicted like the rest of us and you can join our community of bankrupts...

Olly

[BeeJay]

Wow, I'm glad I'm not alone in this particular boat...thanks again, I'll let you know how things progress.

Let there be a break in the clouds some time soon.

[E621Keith]

Seconded above - to be honest an ED refractor and a mount are going to be cheap by comparison with some of the astro imaging gear.

Cannot agree more, a ED80+CG5 goto will cost less than a AFS 300 f4d or a 135mm f2 DC, a C8+EQ6 will cost less than a 70-200/2.8 AFS VR2, so entry astro imaging gear can be a lot cheaper than many of your photography gear.