Retired a few years ago. I had always been interested in astronomy, but the difficulties involved with using film to capture astro images had made that a non-starter for me.
Our first 'big' telescope was purchased around 30 years ago - a Meade 10" newt and equatorial mount that I used with my daughters a few times. It was a chore to move it in/out of the house, so it sat more than it was used.
Fast forward 30 years and retirement. Based on the lessons learned from that early newt, I know I wanted something that doesn't or seldom requires collimation and is relatively lightweight and easy to handle. I also wanted a mount I can really depend on to 'disappear' into the background. I decided that Astro imaging, not visual is where my primary interests lie.
I tested (challenged) my enthusiasm with with some instruction from YouTube and my DSLR camera and a wide-angle lens. I just propped it up against a piece of wood and used an intervalometer to snap a 100 x 10s exposure of the Milky Way. And I was hooked!
Today, my OTA is a Skywatcher Esprit 100ED on a SB Paramount MyT mount on a pier in the backyard. I started out using an ASI294MC-P OSC camera, eventually moved to a 2600MC-P, then went to the dark side (monochrome) with a 2600MM. There is always something new to learn about this hobby, you never really become an expert, just experienced.
Job
Retired
Hobbies
Astrophotography, hunting, reading, computers, golf
