Celestron C80 ED RGT

[ldavey]

Hi guys

I want to attempt getting into Astrophotography again after my previous mistakes of buying cheap tasco kit about 7 years ago. Anyway my partner has been giving me hell about wanting to spend too much on a decent scope... she likes doing photography of nature but is little interested in the skys :?

But never fear i have managed to twist her arms into letting me spend more by persuading her that if i buy this scope http://www.celestron.com/c2/product.php?CatID=11&ProdID=53 that she will also be able to use it for her nature photography aswell as my astronomy (although i skipped that she will have to buy camera attachments etc ) but i don't know how long she will stay in this state of mind so i need to act sharpish !!

I decided now that a reflector will be too big to move about and not versatile enough for my partner, also i really want this goto feature to link upto my laptop, it will be easier for her too as she is useless with knobs and things (don't tell her i said so) so i would rather her fiddle with my laptop to work the scope when possible ! ... i am an qualified IT TECHNICIAN anyway so can fix the laptop

Do you guys think this is the right road to take ? ... i need to act sharpish before she changes her mind ! OH also i was going to get the Celestron NexImage CCD camera for the time being,. i know its not the greatest resolution camera but thought it be something to start me off with,... besides when she finds out that she needs more kit to do her photography aswell, i can bend her arm saying i also want a better camera so that way i will end up with TWO - have you any advice on affordable good cameras instead of the NexImage ?

thanks in advance...

[GordonCopestake]

The ED80 is a great scope for imaging but personally I would go for the ED80 on a HEQ5 as the mount is much better (and MUCH quieter!) than the CG5.

http://www.firstlightoptics.co.uk/proddetail.php?prod=pro80ed2ota

The price is much cheaper and you get a better mount with the same 'scope.

I can't help you with nature photography though unfortunatly

[ldavey]

Thanks, thats what i wanted to hear,

The SkyWatcher ED80 was recommended to me before, i thought the C80ED would be more or less on the same standard as the ED80 but wanted to make sure.

For the stand the HEQ5 with a ED80 does work out a bit cheaper, but once i add GOTO it works out dearer then the CG5, guess i will have to compromise as my partner would hit me on the head with a hammer - originally i told her i wanted to spend 300 max, then 600 and now ......................

I will decide tomoz after a little discussion, then out omes the credit card before she changes her mind !

[ldavey]

I have been researching how to set up a digital camera for astrophotography and getting confused.....

I have two digital cameras, Olympus 2020 and Nikon CoolPix 950, i have determined that the Nikon 950 will be the best camera to use and cheapest to setup.

Thing is i am getting fairly confused on what adapters i need to buy, i have nailed it down to getting an ADAP-T Eyepiece to Camera Attachment System which requires buying 2 parts, but it all looks rather delicate to me, i am concerned it will not be strong enough as the nikon has a small lens ? ........ is this ok on its own or what bracket do you recommend to make it sit more sturdy ?