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Hey guys! I'm looking to buy more first telescope. I'm wanting to get into astrophotography and keep going around in circles when it comes to looking for a telescope. My budget is around $1000-$1500 AU. I was looking at something like this one, but got a bit concerned when I couldn't find that model anywhere else. Is it an older model? https://www.ozscopes.com.au/sky-watcher-120-1000-eq5-refractor-telescope-with-steel-tripod.html Also, I have a canon 80D. Are there any additional bits and pieces I need for connecting the camera? Thanks! |
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I thought I would try to give you a quick opinion to this. I do not see this model on Sky Watcher's global website, but they do sell different products in different countries sometimes. It appears to be one of their basic, all purpose models which will mostly be targeted for visual use and maybe very basic imaging. It does have an equatorial mount (+) and I got the impression it is a doublet, but the low price makes me think it does not likely use the ED quality glass in the more expensive doublets that SW sells. So there likely will be some residual chromatic aberration. The focal length (f/8.3) is kind of in the middle - usually for deep sky imaging, one prefers something more like f/4 - f/6, and for planetary imaging, one wants something f/10+. If you do a quick search here on Astrobin, there are a few solar images, a bunch of moon images, and a few planetary images (Jupiter), so this is the kind of result you could expect from it. There are a couple posted galaxy images, so it is not impossible to do some basic deep sky images, but (in my opinion) it will likely be frustrating to do too much more. If you plan to also do some visual viewing, it may not be a bad choice, but for pure astrophotography, my opinion would be to consider alternatives. One option to consider if you are unsure about equipment would be to just get started with your Canon and a decent mid-sized lens. Not to self-advertise, but I just uploaded this image with of the Orion constellation this evening taken with a 50mm lens and a Canon-1100D: https://www.astrobin.com/1tk7e7 This image was admittedly taken with a star tracker (a very small equatorial mount built for cameras, ~$400usd) and my camera is also (self) modified to improve the sensitivity to deep red light of the nebula, but this is the kind of thing you might expect with nothing more than a DSLR - and some practice.... |
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I suggest an EQ5 or AVX mount with a fast (f6) 60 to 70mm APO, for example: Aptura 60EDR, Williams Zenith Star 61, or Sky-Watcher 72 APO. Add a small guide/finder scope, a Zwo ASI 120MM guide camera and a used Canon T6 and you will not outgrow this starter kit for several years ( and when you do it can become your travel scope). The faster scope vs. the f8 you are looking at will make tracking easier and keep exposure times shorter making it easier to get good results early. As you progress the mount should be fine for several upgrades and the fast APO can become the upgraded guidescope. |
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| Find out what you want to shoot first. If you like galaxies, star clusters and reflection nebula, you will be moving past a small refractor fast but it certainly is the best to learn on. |
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Agree with the above: it would be helpful to know what kind of objects you hope to photograph. Planetary imaging is a completely different beast to Deep Sky for example. |
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Thanks heaps for all your replies! I was thinking deep sky photography is what I'd shoot, but would also love to be able to see the moon and planets. Someone suggested on another forum to get a Sky Watcher Star Adventurer Pro mount and use my dslr on that as a starting point. Is that a good idea? |
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It is definitely one good potential path (I have one as a portable travel rig and like it). There is the SW Star Adventurer Pro and also IOptron Skyguider Pro which are similar in price and capability. Just be aware of two limitations: 1) the payload is very limited (<5kg). It can support DSLR’s with a telephoto lens or very small telescope (around 60mm aperture or 300mm focal length max). So upgrading to a larger telescope later would require upgrading to a full equatorial mount too. 2) they are R.A. axis only, which means they do star track, but there is no automatic GoTo for finding Deep Sky objects. You have to orient it yourself. This is not a problem for wide-field images where you can just point the camera in the right general direction. For smaller objects with longer focal lengths, however, you have to “plate-solve”; there is open-source software for doing this, but I read on-line that some people do seem frustrated by the process. |
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It is definitely one good potential path (I have one as a portable travel rig and like it). There is the SW Star Adventurer Pro and also IOptron Skyguider Pro which are similar in price and capability. Just be aware of two limitations:1) the payload is very limited (<5kg). It can support DSLR’s with a telephoto lens or very small telescope (around 60mm aperture or 300mm focal length max). So upgrading to a larger telescope later would require upgrading to a full equatorial mount too. A SW star adventurer would support a canon 80D and say a Skywatcher 72ED, right? What would be the usual payload of a telescope and camera? Sounds like a bit of a learning curve. In terms of plate solving, is that something you've had experience with yourself? |
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A 72mm telescope will likely be right on the edge of what it can handle: it is about 2kg, plus a field flattener (~0.5kg), the camera, and a few cables will probably be around 3.5-4kg. That said, a quick search shows a few people do already seem to be making that combination work. Here is an AstroBin user that came right up and it looks like a nice image. You might want to send him a message and see what his opinion is: https://www.astrobin.com/398819/ This discussion on Cloudy Nights might be worth looking at too: https://www.cloudynights.com/topic/689382-telescope-for-star-adventurer/ And there will be a steep learning curve no matter what, but it gets easier after practice. The website: http://nova.astrometry.net/ is used to upload test images to. It will solve for the celestial coordinates that your image is centered on. There are also several plate solving programs available - they all essentially incorporate downloaded versions of the Astrometry.net database, but can be used without needing internet access - I use "All Sky Plate Solver" . You compare the computed DEC/RA to what you would be looking for, adjust your mount, and take another image. With practice, you will probably find what you are looking for after only a few iterations, but it is slightly more complex than just pushing a button on a hand controller. |
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A 72mm telescope will likely be right on the edge of what it can handle: it is about 2kg, plus a field flattener (~0.5kg), the camera, and a few cables will probably be around 3.5-4kg. I'd like to chime in here, since I have been doing that for about a year and I think I have thoroughly tested the limits of the star adventurer; I concur with Matthew, the most heavy setup I used has been an TS-Photoline 72/432 with a Flattener, Nikon D3200a or d5300, ZWO mini guidescope, ASI 120 mini guidecam, two dewstraps. The scope, flattener and camera plus dewstraps weigh in at 3,2 kg, the giding setup at 300g. Here are my two cents: For a focal length like this, RA-guiding is a must with this mount if you want to do subexposures longer than 30 seconds! Guiding in RA was about 1,5" RMS at its best, which gives you reasonably round stars with a DSLR and a 432mm scope. Overall RMS was usually 1,9" to 2,2" once I figured out the setup. But for this, perfect polar alignment is crucial, since there is no guiding in Dec. It really helps to mount the guiding assembly on the counterweight side of the L-bar instead of putting it on top of the scope. Like this, you don't have to put on extra counterweights to balance the mount and keep the overall load down. Switching to this setup easily improved my guiding by 0,8"RMS. It is possible because you only guide in RA, and thus it doesn't matter which side of the Axis you guide from, just make sure to point the guidescope rougly the same direction as your imaging scope. Putting aside the technical details; With this mount you have to be extra careful every bolt is tight and in place, and even then it's not the most stable in case of wind. I think using this as a first mount teaches you a lot about mount balancing, polar alignment, finding and framing a target, but it also offers lots of potential for frustration. For example it's easy to knock off your polar alignment while framing, so somtimes after framing you will have to slightly correct the alignment and reframe, because changing your PA also slightly changes your framing.... So if you're easliy put off by mishaps better invest in a proper mount. As for plate solving to find weaker targets: I reccomend the inexpensive capture software Astro Photography Tool (APT), which implements a platesolving routine that works very well once established. It also allows you to operate your camera from a computer, which is way easier than the tiny screen on the camera itself which will mostly be pointing downward. I have now started using a go-to mount (iOptron CEM25P) which makes life easier and offers way more stability. But all images in my gallery so far were done on the star adventurer. |
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Hi pancakesmaplesyrup, Tracking with the SA, say for up to 30 seconds, works well with a DSLR and a short lens, say up to 135mm -- accurate PA and a sturdy setup provided. Any longer focal length requires autoguiding in RA and is the safer choice even for up to 135mm lenses but you have to fire up a laptop unless you have an M-GEN guider. Anyway, when it comes to mounting an APO it is crucial to bear in mind that the 1kg counterweight must be subtracted from the specified maximum payload leaving you 4kg max for the SA Pro Pack. As a rule of thumb, for accurate tracking/guiding the mount should not carry more than 70% of its specified payload, even safer 50%, also for the sake of product life time. This is barely enough for a DSLR, a lens, a mini guidescope and a guide camera. In other words, the SA is fundamentally for mobile use with camera lenses (as manufacturer-specified). Saving on a mount usually entails regrets. If you are planning to image DSOs stationary then I wholeheartedly agree with David Redwine. Lunar and planetary imaging is a different world, but a small APO will please you with nice views through an eyepiece. Cheers Robert |
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Hey guys, Thanks for all your input! I'm thinking about going with a SW EQ5 GoTo Mount and a SW ED72. What do you guys think? I'm also concerned that my interest in astrophotography may fade after time, as I have the tendency to pick up hobbies and drop them easily. Do you guys have any tips to avoid this? Obviously I dont want to launch unto buying equipment too soon, but I also don't want to drag it out too long and lose interest in it altogether. Thanks! |
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| I just joined this site today and saw our 1st telescope question. I might suggest that you find a local astronomy club that is active with open observing events. Try to get out there and take a look at the various types of scopes and ask a lot of questions. It's been my experience that everyone will be willing to share their experiences and suggestions. Seeing first hand helps in the decision process. Just a thought! |
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I started with an HEQ5 mount, Esprit 80 and my Nikon DSLR camera 4 years ago and have added all sorts since then - e.g. auto focuser, Polemaster, CCD cooled mono camera, Filter Wheel etc. I have learnt a lot of new skills - its a tough steep learning curve so start in a small way, keep it simple and keep adding to it - in some ways capturing the data is the easy bit, I find processing much harder. Its the best hobby I ever got into and I think its because it is difficult and there is always room to get better that I've stuck with it. I tend to flit from one hobby to another, I do things intensively, get bored, then often go back to them but I have stuck with this. There were times in the first couple of years when I got close to saying "its too difficult" and it can be pretty frustrating when you wait for a clear night then something doesn't work - but it is massively rewarding and you will amaze your friends with your achievements. I also have a Star Adventurer which I bought really to take on holiday and it is very good, the problem I have is that the HEQ5 is so much better that when I have both I really haven't used the SA. Its sat in a box next to me now and I desperately want to use it but I guess, in anything, if you have a favourite that's what you use. I'm not knocking the SA it, and similar mounts, are very good - it depends on your circumstances and what you want to do. I just paid to have my HEQ5 Stella Tuned and the improvement is massive, I'm now getting an RMS in low 0.20"'s with OAG on 703mm scope. Its a great mount for small to medium refractors. Not sure how your budget converts to £'s but if you can run to it I rate both the HEQ5 and Esprit 80 very highly. The images on my page here are all taken with this set up and SX814 but I also have similar images taken with my DSLR, albeit a bit more noise is present. https://www.astrobin.com/users/midnight_lightning/ |
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Hey guys,Thanks for all your input! I'm thinking about going with a SW EQ5 GoTo Mount and a SW ED72. What do you guys think? I was in your exact similar situation 3 months ago, when I first got into the hobby, and received a lot of advice on Cloudy Nights and my local SGL in the UK, so I thought I would give you some feedback. You mentioned you might lose interest and regret your purchases, and that is an important point. For the above reason, it is important to buy the best quality equipment you can afford, so that you can then sell on at a minimal loss if you find that AP is not for you. My advice is to get a widefield refractor, which will be very forgiving and help you learn the ropes. A good quality medium range is paramount as well. Do not worry about guiding as you are starting out. Stick to tried and tested setups. SW72ED or 80ED are reasonably priced, and have good glass, and if you change your mind, you will sell them as used for minimal loss. A celestron AVX or SW EQ5 level mount is also a solid choice. Good luck! |
