>T-adapter

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01788LT3S/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I bought this for my binoculars a month ago when I'm out wildlife watching. I can use it in the lab on a microscope, when I'm at work (circuit designer). And I can use it on a telescope for the purposes here as well.

Things you'll want:
This book: http://www.amazon.com/Turn-Left-Orion-Hundred-Telescope/dp/0521781906/ref=sr_1_3?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1324830331&sr=1-3

Teflon pads as it is likely the pads on your dob suck and will make moving it suck as well.

A high field of view set of optics. I recommend any of the following (I have an 8" dob, you want a good wide-angle eye piece as it makes viewing a pleasure. Magnification is far from all important, esp. with a small telescope).

• http://www.universityoptics.com/eyepieces.html
  
• http://www.optcorp.com/ProductList.aspx?uid=30-718-1044-1046 (Baader planetarium)
  
• When picking out eye pieces, consider the magnification you'll get with your telescope (equations found online), the eye relief (bigger tends to be easier to use, basically how far your eye needs to be from the lens to be in focus), and the field of view (just how much of the sky you'll see).
  
  You need to collomate your telescope. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Collimated_light. Basically, your telescope's mirror is likely very off center. A dobsonian like what you have is two mirrors, the main mirror (the big one), and the little post mirror that reflects light off the main mirror into your eye piece. You need a laser collomator that will shine a light from the eye piece into the telescope. If your telescope was properly collomated, the laser would bounce off of the post mirror, hit the dead center of the main mirror, reflect back onto the post mirror, and back into the collomator. Look online for more information.
  
  Lastly, you probably want a Telrad. It makes pointing your telescope very, very simple, and almost eliminates the need to use a finder scope. http://www.amazon.com/Telrad-Finder-Sight/dp/B0000ALKAN (you don't need any accessories for this. Its wonderful).
  
  Happy stargazing!
  
  Edit: feel the need to qualify why I suggest Teflon pads. your telescope moves around on two axises, up and down, and left and right. Unlike a "conventional" refractor telescope (the ones that we think of as a good "my first telescope"), a lot of weight is placed on those bottom pads. If you replace the pads that came with your telescope's base with teflon pads, it will make it a lot easier to move it along that particular axis, asthere is less friction.

There is a totally safe solar thin film called “black polymer.” You might have been using that. It makes the sun look a light orange, dark yellow.

For starters, buy it a couple months ago. Don't mean to be snarky, but you are unlikely to find a decent one for sale now, except perhaps at a grossly inflated price.

Thousand Oaks Optical generally makes the best ones. Meade and Celestron also sell them, but might even get them OEM from 1000 Oaks.

Amazon is still advertising fitted filters and sheets, but it's a tossup whether they will actually deliver in time:

https://www.amazon.com/Solar-Filter-Telescopes-Binoculars-Cameras/dp/B00DS7IFQS/ref=sr_1_1

There are a lot of tracking mounts on the market. Just a few of the popular ones:

• Star Adventurer - $320
  
• iOptron SkyTracker - $280
  
• Polarie Vixen - $400
  
• Nyx Tracker - $89
  
  Of these, it seems that the Star Adventurer is the best performing at ~40 arcsec of periodic error. Performance of the Nyx Tracker scales proportionally with price, but still good enough to take 5x longer exposures than without a tracker. [A disclaimer - the Nyx Tracker is my product, designed as a budget option for those testing the waters or that want a portable, light, rugged, easy to use option].
  
  

Gosky Universal Cell Phone mount https://www.amazon.com/dp/B013D2ULO6?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share

https://www.amazon.ca/Gosky-Universal-Phone-Adapter-Mount/dp/B013D2ULO6/

Hi :-)

Great telescope!

> advice

"Turn left at Orion" - the missing manual on how to observe, what's worthwhile to observe.

A 6mm gold-line or so for planets, as the kit eyepiece(s) don't quite cut it.

• http://blog.pixelgiraffe.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/dobson8eyepieces1200.png
  
  
• Aliexpress, eBay, Amazon - Don't get an eyepiece set with Plössl or short Plössl (horrible eye-relief).
  
  
  And ideally, a collimation tool, e.g. a DIY collimation cap or a $12 cheshire-sight-tube
  
  
• http://garyseronik.com/collimation-tools-what-you-need-what-you-dont/
  
  
• http://garyseronik.com/no-tools-telescope-collimation
  
  
  > maintenance
  
  Never wipe the mirrors clean, dust doesn't matter much. Else you might damage the coating. If cleaning is required, http://www.skyandtelescope.com/astronomy-resources/caring-for-your-optics/
  
  Clear skies! Have fun, keep us posted :-)

You really need to decide if the goal is astrophotography or visual astronomy, because $1000 is a very tight budget for both and there really isn't a setup that will provide you satisfactory results for both at the same time at that price point.

If astrophotography is the goal. I'd recommend spending all the budget on stable equatorial mount like Celestron's AVX, then forget the scope altogether and just mount the dslr on the avx and start getting into imaging from there. The camera lenses become the "scope" and you can upgrade those as budget allows. Here's a nice article on budget astrophotography.

If the goal is visual astronomy then $1000 can get you a really nice setup. What you end up with depends on how portable you need it to be and what specific targets you want to look at. There's a lot of options. The usual beginners route is an 8 or 10 inch Dobsonian like the Zhumell Z8, Skywatcher 8 or Orion Xt8.

Here are 2 shots from the first night with the scope set-up below.
http://imgur.com/a/GVg3O

Here is the Scope used: 499.00 (Purchased a returned scope that had damage in shipping for 300.00...)
https://www.astronomics.com/astro-tech-8-inch-imaging-newtonian-optical-tube_p17402.aspx

Here is the mount used: 1,119.99
http://www.telescope.com/Mounts-Tripods/GoTo-Mounts-Tripods/Orion-Sirius-EQ-G-Computerized-GoTo-Telescope-Mount/pc/-1/c/2/sc/36/p/24336.uts

1618.99 total

You obviously will need a dslr camera with an adapter for the lens, but you can buy an adapter for cheap off of Amazon. For example.

http://www.amazon.com/Opteka-T-Mount-Adapter-Digital-Cameras/dp/B000KNCB7C/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1368734650&sr=8-1&keywords=canon+t+adapter

And

http://www.amazon.com/Celestron-93625-Universal-1-25-inch-T-Adapter/dp/B0000665V6/ref=pd_bxgy_p_img_y


It can be tricky learning how to align the scope, but plenty of resources online for learning. Also, you'll need to know how to set up your camera properly with the right ISO and accessories to allow for bulb exposure and mirror locking first... But... Holy shitballs it's worth it!!

> I screwed up the settings by accident, but it's not that bad.

Here's an honest critique, not to be mean, but you seem to have an interest in taking good photos. I started on a Canon 60D, which shares the same image sensor as the T4i. All of my images of Cleveland were shot with that camera.

This picture has two/three things technically wrong with it; focus, blur, and grain. You can solve all three of those issues by shooting on a tripod.

Shooting on a tripod will allow you to take longer exposure than if you were shooting handheld (because it doesn't move). Because you can shoot longer, you can also stop your aperture down a bit. Most lenses are sharper when the aperture is slightly closed a bit (around f/5.6 - f/8, but vary's depending on lens). You will also be able to lower your iso, which will help avoid noise/grain issues.

Also, when shooting longer exposures, its best to avoid any camera movement or interaction at all. You can buy a "remote shutter release" to avoid touching the shutter button. Also, use "mirror lockup", to avoid movement from the mirror swinging when a picture is taken.

I encourage you to read how to take clear nighttime image, find a solid tripod, and attempt to retake the picture. Part of the fun of photography is growing in your skill and this is a great opportunity to do so.

>So... my question is: where should I invest that money? Like, in photography, I was taught to spend my money on glass

Photographer here. It's the exact same in visual astronomy. Spend your money on either mirrors or lenses. Translating that to practical, it means don't buy an expensive mount.

You'll have to make a decision about whether you want to do primarily visual or astrophotography. For your budget, you can get top-of-the-line large aperture equipment for visual, or bottom-of-the-barrel equipment for astrophotography. Visual requires lots of glass, astrophotography requires expensive mounts and not so much on the glass.

If you are going with visual, you could get yourself a 12" dobsonian such as the Zhumell Z12 ($799) and and have enough left over to kit yourself out with a bunch of upgrades like a Telrad finder and a couple of very slick Televue eyepieces.

Someone else mentioned the Celestron 8SE, and that would be a good compromise - fairly big aperture but also capable of doing some astrophotography. But that is quite a bit more expensive than a 12" dob, and quite a bit smaller, so you're losing out on value if you really want to do visual.

If you don't have a solar filter yet and would like one, there still is some available in stock at various places if you're willing to pay for expedited shipping!

Agena Astro - Baader Astrosolar Sheet 7.9”x11.4”

Agena Astro - Baader Astrosolar Sheet 5.5”x6.1”

Cloud Break Optics - Baader Planetarium Filter (see drop down for sizes)

Cloud Break Optics - A4 size sheet

Cloud Break Optics - Star Guy Slip Filter (see drop down for sizes)


Cloud Break Optics - Threaded Camera Filters (see drop down for sizes)

Cloud Break Optics - Vixen Threaded Camera Filters (see drop down for sizes)

Amazon - Baader Astrosolar sheet 5.5”x6.1”

Amazon - Baader Astrosolar sheet 7.9”x11.4”

Amazon - Thousand Oaks Optical 4”x4” sheet

Let me know if any of these sell out and I'll remove them - I'll try and update with new ones if I come across any!

Edit: Well looks like they're all sold out!

I use this mount and this button with mine. It can hook up to spotters scopes and binoculars, though you may want to get a tripod mount for your binoculars if you use them. It's actually called "digiscoping" and you can get adapters for phones and cameras.

I'd suggest using a Telrad finder. I took the finderscope off of my C8 pretty much right away and only use the telrad for rough-sighting in. I agree with you - the finderscope always blew my reference way out of whack.

Is this them? Asking for....reasons....

SVBONY Telescope Eyepiece Fully Mutil Coated 1.25 inches Telescope Lens 66 Degree Ultra Wide Angle HD (6mm 9mm 15mm 20mm) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01MR78I42/ref=cm_sw_r_other_apa_i_Q4CEDbXMHV0W1

Just a heads up, there's a 6mm gold line on amazon currently going for $10 - that's cheaper than ordering it from China.

Not sure how long that deal will last, but it said "8 left - order soon!" when I bought one yesterday, and now it just says "In stock".

Here's the link: Amazon.com: Yosoo 1.25" Ultra Wide Angle Eyepiece Lens 6MM Focal Length 66-Deg Multi-Coated for Telescope (1.25 Eyepiece Lens)

Thanks to /u/KingRandomGuy for the tip.

I ordered this cheap filter and just fit it to the size of my telescope with cardboard, tape, glue, and aluminum foil.

I recently broke down and did this.

This telescope. (Heavy but great optics)

This phone holder

iPhone 7 Plus

VSCO camera app to allow control of exposure, ISO, etc.

Gets me this on the second try taking pictures

You will need a T adapter for your eyepiece holder (20$ at most) and a T mount to EOS adapter (10 to 15$). You can find both on Amazon: let me know if you have any trouble finding them (I'm on my phone on a train atm, sorry) see the links above. You can then use the free EOSMovrec software (on Sourceforge) to tether your camera to a PC and use the central part of your sensor to acquire near native resolution 1024x600 video. Beware: the binary Mac version is very outdated, you'll want to use the Windows version (or compile from the source). You'll then want to stack the video (e.g. in Registax).

EDIT: added links.

You'd probably need something like this, and a few other pieces (besides the actual telescope). You wouldn't use either of the lenses you have.

Just as important as the camera-to-telescope adapter is an extremely solid mount for the entire assembly. Most run of the mill telescope tripods and mounts won't be sturdy enough to eliminate the vibrations that will cause blurry pictures. A remote shutter release, mirror lockup, and a windless night would also be helpful in making blur free images.

Very specific personal recommendation that worked really well for me. Use it as a baseline, but there are plenty of options so compare this with other alternatives:

• Canon T6 or Nikon D3400 DSLR. The kit lens is very versatile until you're ready to invest in lens upgrades for specific purposes
  
  
• Tokina 11-16 f/2.8, or maybe a Samyang 14 2.8 for astro. I got the updated 11-20 and frigging love it.
  
  
• 50 mm f/1.8 is most folks' first good lens upgrade. Great for lots of photography and videography styles
  
  
• A nice tripod in the $100-150 range
  
  
• An intervalometer/remote shutter release
  
  Check Canon's refurbished DSLRs to save some cash. There are usually good deals on those and they're trusted.
  
  Poke around in Lonely Spec for great put together comparing a ton of lens options.
  
  This all should put you around the high end of your budget. You can start everything with just the kit lens, and upgrade lenses when you can identify your limitations

If you're just looking for a timelapse, you can buy an intervalometer off of amazon for pretty cheap for most DSLRs. you may be able to get a cheap dslr for $200 or so with a kit lens off of craigslist, and then buy a decent tripod, intervalometer, and an AC Adapter kit. You could probably get everything for less than $400, easily.



my canon version is this: https://www.amazon.com/Neewer-Shutter-Release-Remote-Control/dp/B003Q9RERY/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1492476395&sr=1-1&keywords=intervalometer+canon

A tripod for sure. Also, an intervelometer will open up more possibilities like remote camera operation (fire and forget) and time lapse.

Wow! You did an excellent job of explaining how DSLR users can easily get into astrophotography. Those are some great example pics too. I like the details like the icons for the equipment needed for subject you are discussing. I agree this should go in the sidebar here.

While following the links you provided I noticed that Gary Seronik, who wrote the howto on the barn door tracker, has posted another simpler design on his blog. I haven't built one yet but it's on the ToDo list.

And wow, that Dark Skies Finder site is amazing. Thanks a bunch for that link. I am thinking of heading to South Dakota to get me some dark skies. Any advice on getting a shot of an aurora? Go further north I suspect.

I'm not sure if you use affiliate links to Amazon but I like that method of supporting a web site. I'm using a $15 knock-off timer/trigger that you might want to link to. It's not fancy but it doesn't need to be.

Also, thanks for posting the Photoshop tutorials in 1080p. Great job. Subscribed!

You don't need much more than a portable 3" telescope to image the sun itself, and see planets. You will see the rings of saturn and moons and cloud belts of Jupiter, but not a lot of detail.

As far as being able to record stars next to the sun during a solar eclipse, that's hard to say, and could be very dangerous.

When there is a total solar eclipse, you end up seeing the corona around the sun. But this corona can be quite bright and dense, and obscure stars behind it. What's more is, you can't have a solar filter on during this time if you want to record the stars as it will completely block their light. So you have a very short window in which you can safely record images before enough of the sun shines brightly enough that it burns the image sensor on the camera (or your eye, if you're trying to position it).

Moreover, depending on how close the stars have to be to the edge of the sun in order to measure the effects of its mass, you may need high power. High power means you need a tracking mount, and that may be difficult to get for $250.

All that aside, you'll definitely want a DSLR for this because a cheap webcam will likely produce too much noise/grain and will have too low a resolution when trying to image potentially faint stars near the sun. To couple the DLSR to the telescope requires a T-Adapter and a T-Ring for the particular brand of camera you'll be using.

Congrats, and welcome to the club!

This time of year, definitely Orion nebula, Andromeda and Jupiter.
In Spring, Mars and Saturn should look nice through that 10" dob!

Also, if I may impart a tip. Invest in a Telrad finder. Seriously. They ROCK.

http://www.amazon.com/Telrad-Finder-Sight/dp/B0000ALKAN

If you plan to do a lot of Lunar observing, I'd suggest a Lunar filter. The moon is VERY bright through an eyepiece.

Oh man!!! Something like this?! https://www.amazon.com/dp/B003Q9RERY/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_YsFxDb33SQZJT

I didn't even realize that was a thing!! Of course it is now that I think about it... I was trying to take pictures of lightning and I literally sat on my porch for an hour taking 15 second exposures manually hoping to get lightning in it. This is super exciting and not crazy expensive. I assume I can use this method also for taking astro shots? Ive been doing it manually for too long... Thanks for the detail!

If you're not comfortable changing the firmware on your camera, an intervalometer like this one is a cheap solution to taking a series of exposures without needing to be near the camera.

The $20 Neewer intervalometer on Amazon is pretty hard to beat. It has several program modes and will work without batteries as a simple wired remote.

Just find the version that has the plug you need.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B003Q9RERY/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1503934437&sr=8-1&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_QL65&keywords=neewer+intervalometer&dpPl=1&dpID=41QMUZcPaLL&ref=plSrch

If you want to do automated HDR, look at a Pluto Trigger. It's pricey at $124 with a cable, but it works via Bluetooth and an app on your phone. 19 different trigger modes and extensible via ports.

https://plutotrigger.com/products/pluto-trigger?variant=26846149447

Not sure what your budget is, but you could get a 4"x4" Solar Filter Sheet from Amazon for $14 and try to rig up a filter for your lens.

The ND filter isn't dark enough to safely take pics of the sun. You want a solar filter, something like this:

https://www.amazon.ca/Solar-Filter-Telescopes-Binoculars-Cameras/dp/B00DS7S52W

get yourself a tracker and use whatever lens you want. :)

link

Otherwise the samyang 12, fuji 14 and fuji 16.

For eyepieces, I'd consider this goldline set...

SVBONY Telescope Eyepiece Fully Mutil Coated 1.25" Telescope Accessories Set 66 Degree Ultra Wide Angle HD 6mm 9mm 15mm 20mm for Astronomy Telescope https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01MR78I42/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_YCtVBb4T6TJV1

This sub often recommends goldlines to beginners because they are very solid with pretty good views for the price range. The entire set is a nice range of focal lengths. If someone breaks or damages an eyepiece, a replacement wouldn't cost too much.

And maybe a telrad finder?

I don't believe hooking it up to a monitor is a real option. The options that do exist would be relatively expensive and the results would still be pretty poor.

Have you looked for a local astronomy club that would be willing to help? Most clubs love doing public outreach projects and events. Or a local college/university that might have an astronomy department?

People swear by the "Goldline" 6 mm eyepiece. I don't own one, but almost every post asking for recommendations mentions them as a reasonably priced decent quality piece.

https://www.amazon.com/SVBONY-Telescope-Eyepiece-Accessories-Astronomy/dp/B07JWDFMZ4?th=1

I got an adapter for my smartphone to take pics... It works really well!

Gosky Universal Cell Phone Adapter Mount
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B013D2ULO6/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_z9jAybYPV6G5M

Really not purpose built, but what I'm using in this setup is an HP Elitebook with a microsoft 720p webcam (is actually the roommate's) literally just duct taped onto an Emarth 20-60x60. Alternatively to a laptop and webcam is to use your phone with something like this.


Better results could be had with better equipment, but it worked well enough for my purpose. Two side notes: For outdoors, reducing the camera's exposure settings helps reduce washout. The other thing is shoot and see type targets work well.

The price keeps fluxuating, but says in stock the 16th with prime shipping.


https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/ol/B00DS7S52W/ref=mw_dp_olp?ie=UTF8&condition=new

Sure! It's this one!

Short Body Nema 17 Bipolar Step Motor 3.5V 1A 18.4oz.in/13Ncm DIY CNC https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00PNEQ79Q/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_Hna9yb6CWH606

Jupiter & Saturn 7/8/2019 - Chicago, IL Area

Taken with my Skywatcher 8" Flextube 200P Collapsible Dob Telescope

Canon EOS Rebel T1i (500D) @ 3200ISO mounted via T-Ring EOS to 1.25" Adapter

SVBONY 2x Barlow

Captured with "EOS Camera Movie Record" using LiveView 5x Zoom for a 1:1 pixel ratio on my laptop

Videos Processed & Stabilized with PIPP, for Jupiter 4903 total frames, after PIPPing 4182 frames, Saturn 2027 frames

Stacked with Autostakkert 3.014, best 60% all settings used HERE for Jupiter

RegiStax 6 wavelets, RGB Align, RGB Balanced, wavelet settings HERE or in main pic

Slight contrast, brightness & shadows/highlights edits in Photoshop

Imgur Gallery HERE

-------------------------------------------------------------------------

This was my first ever attempt at Astrophotography with my new 8" Dob scope and I think it turned out very well! Seeing conditions where not optimal and I was in a light polluted park with lights all around and no shroud around the scope, but still the pics came out impressive to me! Please let me know which image you like the most, 1-4, and if you have any tips or comments let me know! I cant wait to get back out there and get some more pics!

I use one of these and it works great. Takes a bit of adjusting though to get the cam on view. Great low cost option.

Gosky Universal Cell Phone Adapter Mount

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B013D2ULO6/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_8rJEybNN3TSPK

I've been doing the same thing.

CPC1100

Luminos eyepiece set (wide FOV)

cellphone mount

If I were you, I'd go with a microscope that has a trinocular view. It really helps to be able to view what your are taking images of through an eyepiece.

This is the microscope I use and I have no complaints yet:

https://www.amazon.com/AmScope-T490B-Magnification-High-Resolution-Microscopes/dp/B004QEFO1Q/ref=sr_1_3?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1524069091&sr=1-3&keywords=trinocular+microscope&dpID=41a90GOXjiL&preST=_SY300_QL70_&dpSrc=srch

You can get decent photos / videos using a phone adapter if you're on a budget.

Something like this perhaps:
https://www.amazon.com/Gosky-Universal-Phone-Adapter-Mount/dp/B013D2ULO6/ref=sr_1_4?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1524069164&sr=1-4&keywords=microscope+phone+adapter&dpID=41riC-uLXTL&preST=_SY300_QL70_&dpSrc=srch

What's an iPhone telescope?

You could get an ordinary telescope and get a mount to attach your iPhone to it, so you can take pictures though the eyepiece.
Like this

I use this one personally. Works great.

It can be pretty hard to get everything lined up if you're trying to hold the phone up to the eyepiece, especially if the focal length is smaller. The easiest way that I've found is to use the smallest focal length eyepiece such that your phone's camera can only see the lens and there is no rim showing. Then, to hold it steady in that centered position, it's handy to have a phone camera mount like this one. I reserve one eyepiece and align everything in daylight, which is less frustrating. When I want to take a picture, I align the scope with a different eyepiece, then switch out to the one with the mount attached to it. It's pretty crude but it has worked pretty well so far! I hope this helps.

There are a couple products that basically hold your phone in the right place on the eye piece, a few 3D printable designs and things like this https://www.amazon.com/dp/B013D2ULO6/ref=sspa_dk_detail_1 . Unless you have a DSLR and the 1 or 2 lens adapters to hook it up to your microscope, your phone is probably the easiest thing to use.

Unfortunately, a $300 purpose-built microscope camera is going to have far inferior image quality than modern cell phones. Something like this will drastically help with getting shots through the scope.

That said, I still use this camera more than mounting my cell phone. The image quality is inferior, yes, but the convenience and software available outweigh it. At your budget, you could certainly do both and let him decide when to use which.

Hope that was any help.

This one!

Edited to add that I got it centered on Polaris first, because chasing and centering on a moving target at 200x is an exercise in frustration.

I went ahead and looked up the adapters you would need to hook up to an Orion telescope, the t-ring and the camera adapter. However, this looks like it can total to over $60 for adapters. Apparently the Orion T-ring and a Celestron camera adapter are most frequently bought together. I'm not sure of how the two different brands will work together.

> how can I find dark locations near me to look at stars?

Go to the physics department in your school, and talk to the professor who does astrophysics. He or she probably knows what to do. If this doesn't work, see if there's an amateur astronomy club in your city, and go to one of their meetings (they're likely to have monthly stargazing parties or something).

> Are there any photography-specific telescopes out there

Assuming you have an SLR camera, get a T adapter and T ring. The T adapter replaces the eyepiece of whatever telescope you get and makes it easy to hook T rings on, and the T ring has the same mounting mechanism as the lens to your SLR camera. Make sure to get both pieces made by the same company that makes your telescope, and get the T ring that's the proper size for the maker of your camera.

If you intend to do deep space photography (i.e., very long exposures of very faint objects), you'll need a computerized mount so that the telescope can keep the object in view as it moves across the sky. In particular, it should be a computerized equatorial mount, so that the object in your field of view doesn't rotate as the telescope tracks it. Nearly all computerized mounts are equatorial, just double-check that you don't get one of the unusual ones. Unfortunately, these tend to be expensive. It's much cheaper to start with a non-computerized mount and to photograph bright things like planets.

There are two parts that work together. There's the T-ring, which is particular to your camera; and there's the T-adapter, which is not. As a general rule, T-adapters are not specific to the scope - they either have a 1.25" barrel or a 2" barrel, so it's really a matter of what size focuser your scope has.

I'm not familiar with the particular T-adapter you've linked to, so perhaps someone else could offer more definitive commentary on it. If I understand correctly how it's intended to work, the wide end would screw into the rear cell on your SCT, where the narrower end would screw into your T-ring. I'm more familiar with this other model, which works as I described and should also, as far as I know, be able to work with an SCT.

Here is an example on Amazon for the 1.25" kind (the type the score you are looking at will work with. It goes in place of your eye piece.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0000665V6/ref=mp_s_a_1_6?qid=1413602179&sr=8-6&pi=AC_SX110_SY165_QL70&dpPl=1&dpID=211R69YGRGL&dpPlWS=1&ref=plSrch

I just bought a Orion 10" Skyline Dobsonian telescope. So far I'm having a blast with it. I did quickly by the book, Turn left at Orion and also I purchased a Celestron Eyepiece set. Celestron accessory kit . I wanted a lot of different options to start with. So far, not being an expert, they seem pretty cool. I will buy more expensive eyepiece in time. But for learning, I think this is lots.

​

The one thing I will say, make sure you're comfortable with the size of the 10" scope. It's a beast to lug around and store when your not using it. Not something, you can just grab and go with or throw in the car.

I don't think this review went far enough so here is my additions:

Pro's: A Dobsonian Telescope is a big-ass light bucket. It will get more light than any other starter scope you will be looking at.

Con's: Like boogiemantm said, There is limited functionality. You will not be able to do astrophotography and you will have to learn the night sky yourself. This is a tough task and COULD limit your enjoyment. It's really preference on a part of the buyer. Also, you might not be able to fit it into a small car. Make sure to check the size of your car vs the size of the telescope.

Note: There are push-to dobsonians, or "Intelliscope's" as Orion calls them. These will cost extra money.

If you do plan on going with a dobsonian (that is not push-to) you will need a couple more items. Such as: Star Map Book, a better finder scope such as The Telrad, Eyepieces (You will need for any telescope you buy), and most likely a laser pointer.

Here is my suggestion: Shop around and learn about the telescopes before actually buying one. You should be able to speak with your salesman fluently in their vocabulary (otherwise your paying for something your not fully understanding).

If you need some links, just let me know and I'll promptly spam you with a bunch of informational links.

I love my AD8.

I've bought tons of eyepieces and accessories. Without a doubt the best accessory I've bought is this adjustable height chair. Having this chair is the difference between seeing something in space, and observing something in space. The best eyepiece in the world is worthless if you're too uncomfortable to spend much time looking through it.

Vestil CPRO-800LP Ergonomic Worker Seat/Chair, 13-1/2" Width, 10" Depth, 300 lb. Capacity, 18" - 33" Height Range https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0052PJFCW/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_NCyoDb02ZGBPR

My next favorite accessory is the Telrad view finder. It's a game changer. After getting it, I just took off the viewfinder that came with the scope and I don't miss it at all.

Telrad Finder Sight https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0000ALKAN/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_xGyoDbJDEY6Q7

For eyepieces, I love the big 2" that comes with the scope. It's my favorite. Otherwise I use this 8-24mm zoom eyepiece.

Celestron 93230 8 to 24mm 1.25 Zoom Eyepiece https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0007UQNV8/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_QIyoDb0P2HZCA

I've bought tons of other stuff but most of it doesn't get used much. This three things I use all the time.

Clear skies!

The big dobs are super easy for kids to handle, too. They sit on the ground and you just grab the end of the scope and swing it around. I've had a 12 year old out having fun with mine, not scared in the least that they could knock it over or damage it.

For ease of finding things for the kids, I would add a Telrad Finder, and stick that thing on the side right next to the normal finder. Kids are short and have an easy time leaning over and looking up through the finder and pointing the scope at different spots in the sky. Took a minute for them to get the hang of guiding the scope.

The telescope is definitely going to come with a collimating device of some sort. I've only ever used a laser collimator, so I'm not sure how hard other collimating devices are to use. It never takes me more than 5 minutes to collimate my dob though.

I would get a 2x barlow (this one is pretty nice and also cheap), and some gold-line eyepieces. They're recommneded often on here because they're not too expensive but still pretty good. I would maybe get maybe the 15 mm and 6 mm. Those combined with the scope eyepieces and the barlow should give you all the magnifications you could want.

Whether a solar filter is worth it is entirely up to you. However, just note that if you don't want to put in $100s of dollars, you're pretty much limited to something made with Solar Filter Film or a basic glass filter. The views you get from that are definitely nice, but it might not be what you're expecting. You'll see something like this with those filters.

If the scope doesn't come with a 0 magnification red-dot finder scope, you might want to get one. Telrads are considered one of the best one's on the market (and I love mine to death), but they can be a bit pricey. A cheaper red dot finder scope (like this one) should also serve you just fine.

Besides that, I would definitely recommend getting the book Turn Left at Orion. It's essentially the complete beginners guide to all things Amateur Astronomy. It's absolutely fantastic.

One small other thing I can think of is a red-light flashlight (like this). It's definitely not necessary, but it's nice to be able to look at things in the dark without losing your night vision too much.

It's probably not bad. I have the orion shorty barlow which is probably the exact same piece of hardware made in the same company in china (http://www.amazon.com/Orion-08711-Shorty-1-25-Inch-Barlow/dp/B0000XMWQW/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1425240526&sr=8-1&keywords=orion+shorty+barlow+lens) and it is ok for what it is.

Jupiter and especially Saturn looked underwhelming for me in my telescope, but after cleaning up my eyepieces's lens and secondary mirror with just a wet and dry paper towel my quality was greatly increased. Weather conditions like heavy wind and humidity can also affect the view pretty badly. Collimating your telescope properly is something you probably hear all the time, but it really does make a big difference. As for eyepieces, the Celestron Omni has served me well but I've upgraded to a "Baader Planetarium 8-24mm Hyperion Clickstop Zoom Mark IV Eyepiece" (what a mouthful). The views are noticably better and the zoom feature is so, so, soooo convenient. It's especially handy for showing friends and family who are not into the hobby, as you don't have to change the eyepieces constantly for them. It runs for about 300 dollars which is a big asking point, but there are cheaper alternatives like the Celestron zoom eyepiece (https://www.amazon.com/Celestron-93230-24mm-1-25-Eyepiece/dp/B0007UQNV8) which are only 65 dollars. I would recommend getting one of those, a decent 2x barlow (shouldn't be more than 40 dollars), and a dedicated large eyepiece (in the 30-40mm range). That's all you really need for casual observing by yourself or to show friends and family.

Non-mobile: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0007UQNV8/ref=pd_aw_sim_p_1?refRID=0014SNKCY8APY6WBWKF4

^That's ^why ^I'm ^here, ^I ^don't ^judge ^you. ^PM ^/u/xl0 ^if ^I'm ^causing ^any ^trouble. ^WUT?

Do you shoot nikon or canon or etc? What camera?

For mac, Sofortbild is pretty cool. For nikons.
http://www.sofortbildapp.com/



If you shoot canon, consider checking out Canon's EOS utility.


Both of these should let you do timelapsing. My cameras have a built in interval timer, so I just used that for convenience.


If you shoot canon, you can also use a remote control unit that acts as the timelapse controller.
http://www.amazon.com/Timer-Remote-Control-RS-60E3-Canon/dp/B003Q9RERY/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1323590140&sr=8-2

Hope this helps.

> or buy an intervalometer.

Definitely the best, and relatively cheap, option if one doesn't want to muck around with firmware.
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B003Q9RERY

I use one of these and they work really well:

Neewer LCD Timer Shutter Release Remote Control

I was thinking of going with a mount ($800-$1000) and using my DSLR with this. Then when I have more money and experience, I'll buy a telescope to attach to this. Can someone give me their opinions on this? I've read around, and apparently others have done this and recommend it. I was hoping I could do decent tracking without a guidescope, then get one later.

Here's the mount I'm considering: http://www.amazon.com/Celestron-Advanced-VX-Computerized-Mount/dp/B00AYGIQDS

Do I need something to attach my DSLR to it?

Edit: After doing more research into this, apparently I need a vixen style dovetail plate? Could someone link me to one on Amazon that would work. That would be awesome.

It's just lens flare. If you try the same experiment with a solar filter, you will see that the size of the sun does not change. Getting a solar filter is not expensive, either. So why not try this experiment and see if you can prove us roundies wrong?

You have to have a solar filter. To save money you can buy the solar filter sheets like - https://www.amazon.com/Solar-Filter-Telescopes-Binoculars-Cameras/dp/B00DS7IFQS and cut your own filter and mount on like a UV filter...

Happy to help!

Putting the 80ED on a regular (non tracking GEM) tripod will unfortunately be a waste of time if you want to shoot galaxies and other deep space objects. The issue is that they are extremely faint, and you need long exposures to capture the little light that they give off. So if the mount on the tripod is not moving along the earths axis at the same speed that the earth rotates all you'll get is a bunch of star trails. And even with a GEM mount it's still highly recommended that you use computer guiding to make up for mechanical errors while shooting. So yes, keep saving...trust me it will be worth it.

So there are smaller mounts that track the Earth's rotation albeit not as effectively as a big telescope tracking mount. This isn't a major issue however because they're designed to mount DSLR's and not long focal length telescopes. Here are a few examples of what people have shot with their DSLR and the smaller mounts:

• Orion
  
• M31
  
• Lagoon & Trifid
  
  These were shot with DSLR's and the iOptron SkyTracker you can also buy it's competitor the SkyWatcher Star Adventurer
  
  You'll need to attach that head to a sturdy tripod, and I should say that I'm not sure if this is the latest gen...you might want to look into that.
  
  There are some large objects in the sky which widefield shots (DSLR lenses) are great for. M31 is about three times the size of the moon in the sky...it's hard to capture it all in a telescope but much easier with a DSLR and wider lens. I would say that if you want to get into it at a low cost, then this is your best bet. I don't want to encourage you to try astrophotography with a telescope and your current budget because it will be so frustrating that you'll risk giving up this awesome hobby entirely.

Not a problem. I'm not an expert on that type of scope either, which is why I linked and mentioned the other sub, but the general consensus is that they are decent entry level scopes that will give you a good start in the hobby, but leave you wanting more over time, and it seems $50 is about what they are generally worth, so I think you made the right call to get into the hobby and figure out if you like it or not.

You didn't mention anything about eyepieces, but I would assume it came with 1 or 2 plossl or kelners, likely around 25mm for 40x magnification. I would recommend getting one of the "gold line" eyepieces this sun always praises. They have great eye relief and about the same FOV as a plossl, so they are great for higher mag when plossls force you to damn near touch your eye to the eyepiece.

I generally wouldn't recommend an eyepiece kit, as they are generally not that great with overlap of ranges and being bundled with other useless filters and stuff, but this one is a bit better, though I would suggest getting only 1 or 2 of the eyepieces in the kit anyway (the 6mm for sure, maybe the 9 or 15 as well):

https://www.amazon.com/SVBONY-Telescope-Eyepiece-Accessories-Astronomy/dp/B01MR78I42/ref=pd_day0_hl_421_9?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=B01MR78I42&pd_rd_r=38600535-6f7e-11e9-8571-61275becdf34&pd_rd_w=lYs1c&pd_rd_wg=Ezw2r&pf_rd_p=ad07871c-e646-4161-82c7-5ed0d4c85b07&pf_rd_r=JGJ2X0WVDD2MC1DZSXRQ&psc=1&refRID=JGJ2X0WVDD2MC1DZSXRQ

The 6mm will give you 166x, 9mm 111x, 15mm 66x, and 20mm 50x. I'm getting these values by dividing your focal length (1000m) with the eyepiece focal length. Again, I'm assuming you already have a low power eyepiece around 25mm, so a 20 won't be much different. The 15mm or 9mm will be medium mag, which I like to use on larger objects like the Orion nebula, and the 6mm will let you zoom in on small objects, which based on your pic of Jupiter is probably something you are interested in.

In general, the mag limit of a telescope is about 2x the aperture in mm, but with the spherical mirror, you have have focusing issues before getting to that point, so I wouldn't recommend going further than the 6mm.

Eyepieces will transfer well from scope to scope, so if you are at all interested in continuing the hobby, I think it's well worth it to start getting slightly better eyepieces early.

There are some ~ $500 options that might be good for a photographer that already has a camera.

You can do /r/landscapeastro with a basic tripod and a wide angle lens. The Rokinon 14mm and the Rokinon 24mm are great lenses for Milky Way (widefield) astrophotography. With the camera locked down on a tripod you can do long exposures up to 30 seconds or so. You can shoot multiple exposures and stack them to reduce noise and bring out details. The lenses I linked to are fast and wide and have aspherical elements that makes them good for astrophotography.

The trick with shooting individual objects with a telephoto lens is that as the stars "move" across the sky during the night that motion is magnified in the viewfinder, so you have to shoot 1 or 2 second exposures so that the motion doesn't cause the stars to trail.

If you want to shoot with a telephoto lens you need a tracking mount. The motorized mount slowly moves the camera at the same rate as the sky, keeping the subject still in the viewfinder. This allows for longer exposures and better results.

There are some interesting low cost tracking mounts for cameras with lenses up to 300mm. I haven't used these (ended up getting a bigger mount) but I've seen some good results posted on the forums.

/r/astrophotography and /r/landscapeastro

SkyWatcher S20510 Star Adventurer Astro Package

Vixen Optics 35505 Polarie Star Tracker

iOptron SkyTracker Pro Camera Mount with Polar Scope, Mount Only

I was looking at this type of light duty tracking mount and what I didn't like is that you can't go "up" size-wise from there.

The next step up is a medium duty tracking mount like the

Celestron Advanced VX Mount

What I like about getting into a mount like this is that it can handle a decent size (and quality) telescope if you want to add that later. It uses the German Equatorial Mount (GEM) design that all top-of-the-line mounts use. So you're getting into a better class of mount that has tighter mechanical tolerances. You can use it with wide or telephoto lenses on your camera for now, and with a nice telescope later.

I recently bought a big ol' Atlas EQ-G tracking mount. It's $1500 new but I found a used one for $700. It didn't come with a tripod so I got a used Meade Field Tripod ($150) and an adapter plate ($120) so it was about $1,000 for that particular mount setup. I plan to use that with my Canon 400mm telephoto lens and expect to get decent pictures of Andromeda galaxy, Orion nebula and other deep sky objects (DSO). I need to tap some threads in the tripod and DIY a spreader and I'll be good to go. I guess my point is I got a heavy duty mount that will work with my existing gear and with a good sized telescope in the future. Worked for me, ymmv.

Check the classifieds at Cloudy Night forums for used equipment.

https://www.cloudynights.com/

Good luck!

FWIW, That 66° eyepiece set is on sale for $20 off today, if you know anyone else who needs one. Hard to pass up at that price, even if the one eyepiece is not entirely appropriate.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01MR78I42/

I can go over some of the math too. That telescope has a 130mm primary mirror, hence the 130 in its name. In inches that's about 5", this is also called the aperture. The maximum magnification on a very clear night is 50x your aperture. 50 x 5=250. So you don't want to go above 250 power. I looked up the focal length and it is 650mm. This is important because you divide the focal length by the mm of the eyepiece you're using to get magnification. Your telescope will come with a 10mm and a 25 mm, so 650/10= 65x and 650/25= 26x. These will be good for viewing the moon, and a decent view of the planets but not for galaxies, nebulae or star clusters. Reversing the math, if you wanted an eyepiece that gave you the full 250 magnification that you can theoretically get you'd need about a 3mm lens. 650/250=2.6.

The Svbony or similar Gold Line series is highly touted on here. Under $100 for 4 lenses that are very good you get a 6, 9, 15 and 20 mm lens. If you pair that with a 2x Barlow, which is a lens you put your other lens into that doubles its magnification, you can stretch those 4 lenses into also being 3, 4.5, 7.5 and 10 mm. So for ~$130 you can get the most out of your scope and not have to buy anything for a long time.

What I've been getting the most use out of is a Celestron zoom lens. It can go from 24mm to 8 mm by just twisting the body of it. At its lowest magnification it can't see very much of the sky, so it isn't super popular because it's hard to find what you're looking for, but when you zoom in it really opens up what you can see. If I can't find what I'm looking for I switch to a 25 mm lens with better field of vision then put the Zoom back in. The zoom is ~$70.

Lastly buy the book Turn Left at Orion. Note: Don't accidentally buy Turn Right at Orion!! This book gives you history, cool facts and will help you find hundreds of cool objects in Space. If you just cruise around without a guide you'll lose interest quick. Best advice I got for using this book is to rotate the book in your hands until it matches what you're seeing in your scope. Don't assume up is up or left is left. The book is on sale right now for a better price than I got, might want to scoop it up now. It's the current edition and just came out this year.

If I confused you with anything I can clarify!

Svbony Goldlines

2X Barlow

Celestron Zoom

Turn LEFT at Orion

Fellow novice here and I'm going to try to answer your question the best I can.

I'm sure folks will provide necessary corrections but yes, youre not going to find anything by specifically searching for "gold line".

The best way I can explain it is that it's more of a style/clone of existing more expensive eyepieces (for some reason I want to say celestron but I'm probably wrong)

Basically when people say gold line it's a clone of the original eye piece that has a gold line running horizontally across the eyepiece instead of the blue line that the original had.

I only say it's a style because all "gold lines" seem to replicate all the dimensions and specifically have a 66 degree view, and way better eye relief than plossl eyepieces.

Meaning you don't have to move the scope as much to keep the object in sight, and you can put your eye all the up to the rubber around the eye piece without your eye or lashes hitting the lense.

Link for example : SVBONY Telescope Eyepiece Fully Mutil Coated 1.25 inches Telescope Accessories Set 66 Degree Ultra Wide Angle HD 6mm for Astronomy Telescope https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07JWDFMZ4/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_mAptDb511ME51

I haven't tried it (yet), maybe Make your own cardboard planisphere can be of some use.

A few smart folks on this sub have explained why the maximum 'sharpness' magnification equals the lens diameter in mm (and 2x diameter for a bigger picture but without more detail), for your scope that would be an 6.7mm eyepiece.
An Svbony 'gold' line 6mm, FOV=66º. eye-relief=16mm is well regarded, and (slow boat from China) AliExpress and Ebay are even cheaper.

Most scopes of that vintage don't use standard parts. The eyepieces are likely .965" diameter, not the usual 1.25" used with today's scopes. If they are .965, I'd get a hybrid diagonal that will convert the .965 so you can use 1.25" eyepieces. Then get a few new eyepieces, the goldline series is good for the price.

As u/schorhr mentioned... Field of View (FOV) can play a big role in this. Wide field eyepieces are usually advertised for nebulae and star fields and stuff like that, but they improved even planetary viewing for us immensely since it was easier to locate the object to begin with, a more enjoyable view (better overall opening on the EP), and an easier task to keep it centered in view.

Assuming a dob with a focal length of ~1,200mm (like Orion, Apertura, etc.) you'd want a ~6mm EP to hit a magnification of 200x:

• Economy 6mm 66° EP
  
  
• Very Nice 6.7mm 82° EP

> The main reason for making a post and not taking the suggestions from the sticky post is because I am looking for something that has a camera or camera mount or something like that so we can photograph what we see. I have no idea how this is done so I don't know if I am overreaching but I would appreciate any recommendations.

Unfortunately astrophotography works nothing like daytime pic snapping does. It's a complicated and involved process, and often requires significant equipment and time investment. It's not something I would suggest for a complete novice to start with.

Instead, an AWB OneSky is well within your budget, leaving you also with enough for some extras, like a planetary eyepiece (the 6mm one, and the 9mm is also good if you want to upgrade the kit eyepiece later). Also, don't forget to get the missing manual!

And you'll have the perfect starting kit!

Svbony makes a goldline, has a golden ring near the top. I hear others make then as well.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B07JWDFMZ4?aaxitk=6iUk8FfxTKuiD0yNM3ODYg&pd_rd_i=B07JHKP9D2&pf_rd_p=30dbdc00-03a0-42f0-976a-08a7c08bd014&hsa_cr_id=8785284320301&sb-ci-n=asinImage&sb-ci-v=https%3A%2F%2Fimages-na.ssl-images-amazon.com%2Fimages%2FI%2F6197Xxj4hHL.jpg&sb-ci-a=B07JHKP9D2&th=1&psc=1

I'm confused...I've been trying to do my own homework and figure out what filter I need but I'm lost...

I have a Nikon D3100 and I plan to shoot the eclipse with a 55-200 kit lens. Would anyone be kind enough to link me a filter that would be sufficient? Also, it might look a little bootleg but could I get some of the solar filter sheet material and rubber-band it to the lens?

Anybody know where/if I can find some solar film to make a filter for my telescope? Something like this

If you've already got the ring, you can get an 8x8 sheet from Amazon for $47 and just cut it.

Here ya go!

I ordered this: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00DS7S52W

At this point it's a bit of a "good luck getting them" thing it seems as nearly everything is out of stock or absurdly priced.

Here's the pancake stepper I use. It works well and was only $10 on Amazon Prime:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00PNEQ79Q/

Any multi-coated Barlow will do. I use this one: https://www.amazon.com/SVBONY-Broadband-Standard-Telescope-Eyepiece/dp/B00WW0TC32/ref=pd_cp_421_1?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=B00WW0TC32&pd_rd_r=T2AXC89H2SKA6KHSWZ7R&pd_rd_w=RN4fp&pd_rd_wg=hMNA7&psc=1&refRID=T2AXC89H2SKA6KHSWZ7R

With $100-150 you could probably either (1) get a nice tripod and try to take some wide-field shots of the Milky Way or certain constellations from a dark location (i.e. very far from Chicago) or (2) Get yourself an okay-ish telescope and take lunar and planetary shots. I took this and this with a ~$120 telescope + $35 barlow lens + $10 camera adapter and a very similar camera, and while they're definitely far less impressive than what most people on this sub can do, they were a lot of fun to take and (imo) a great way to get into the hobby. I'd recommend paying a bit more for a better telescope since this one is definitely not ideal, even for this price range. Unfortunately, AP gets expensive really quickly, so you'll most likely have to shell out at the very least a few hundred dollars to get some nice and crisp space shots. It's probably better to pay more now to avoid later feeling the need to upgrade your equipment immediately, especially if budget isn’t a big issue. I say this as someone who’s been using the same cheap equipment for several years, though, so it definitely depends.

Edit: The t3i also has a really great crop video mode that’s perfect for planetary photography, if I remember correctly.

If you’re trying to photography the Milky Way or galaxies/nebulae/etc, going for a sturdy tripod (and then eventually getting a sky tracker for ~$300 to really kick up your shots, if you enjoy the hobby) might be the move to get your feet wet without breaking the bank. Check out the “What Telescope?” page on the wiki for more info, but I’m not sure how recently it was updated. Hope you can find the equipment that’s right for you

To be clear, afocal involves mounting the camera (with a camera lens attached) in such a way that allows you to take pictures through an eyepiece inserted into the telescope's focuser. This method is also known as "eyepiece projection." Link to adapter, which only fits eyepieces of a certain maximum size.

It sounds like what you have in mind instead is prime focus photography. For this you replace your camera's lens with an adapter (available here for $14) which can then be inserted into the telescope's focuser (no eyepiece involved).

I don't have any personal experience with your scope, but that camera might also be a bit heavy for your scope's focuser. Someone else here might have a better idea about that, though.

Nice. A televue powermate is great. Do you have a local astronomy club you could get involved with. It's sort of hard to suggest a camera without trying things out given your scope and its limitations. Even if you don't have a nearby club, I would suggest finding someone who will lend you their DSLR. Get a cheap t-ring/ nosepiece adaptor for it (Canon example) and try it with the powermate. Try focusing on the moon.

Do you already have a cellphone and a spotting scope?

The telescope eyepiece was designed to focus on an eyeball. The eyeball is actually quite inferior to the smart phone camera (CMOS sensor). With HDR, the stacking is done with hardware. There are a whole bunch of telescope eyepiece adapters, usually less than $20.
https://www.amazon.com/Gosky-Universal-Phone-Adapter-Mount/dp/B013D2ULO6/ref=pd_lpo_vtph_421_bs_tr_t_1/133-8554002-5688201?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=Z8XCB6EE0BNZNFA6EC6J

The other nice feature of a smart phone camera is it can be controlled over Bluetooth from a laptop in the nice warm car with hot coffee.

No need to be fancy: https://www.amazon.com/Gosky-Universal-Phone-Adapter-Mount/dp/B013D2ULO6

https://www.amazon.com/Gosky-Universal-Phone-Adapter-Mount/dp/B013D2ULO6

I bought this mount about a month ago. So far it has worked pretty well. I took a picture of the moon about a week ago using that mount with my LG V20 attached to my telescope. You will want to use a bluetooth remote camera shutter as well.

Thank you very much! I use this: https://www.amazon.ca/Gosky-Universal-Phone-Adapter-Mount/dp/B013D2ULO6

It looks good. Of course, it won't be as good as attaching a dslr or a dedicated planetary camera, but it does really well considering its only 20 dollars.

Have a look at one of these. I have two different kinds, im liking this one best so far. The other one I have was the first Carson Universal phone mount.
Gosky Universal Cell Phone... https://www.amazon.com/dp/B013D2ULO6?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share

If you have any questions about it, let me know.

There are cheapo mounts that will clamp down onto the eyepiece and then clamp onto your phone, like this one: https://www.amazon.com/Gosky-Universal-Phone-Adapter-Mount/dp/B013D2ULO6/

You will have to line up the camera with the eyepiece first though, which can be a tad difficult in the dark.

These are great.

Something like this will let you take pics of the moon

https://www.amazon.com/Gosky-Universal-Phone-Adapter-Mount/dp/B013D2ULO6/ref=sr_1_3/133-6757998-2915363?ie=UTF8&qid=1527358550&sr=8-3&keywords=phone+to+telescope+adapter

For anything else sorry to say but you’d need a different scope

This cheap one on Amazon.

I use this one. https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B013D2ULO6/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1478576632&sr=8-1&pi=SY200_QL40&keywords=gosky+universal+cell+phone+adapter+mount&dpPl=1&dpID=41Syg5BOS4L&ref=plSrch

It's okay, it can be a bitch to line up the camera with the eyepiece in the dark. It will probably make your scope heavy on one end so if you can adjust the scope so it doesn't drift all the time it will help.

My scope just has a twist helical focuser which tends to be kinda loose (it's just a threaded tube that goes up or down basically) when you have to crank the focus so that can wobble a little bit too but that's mostly an issue with my scope.

another option is to buy binoculars and buy a phone to binocular adapter ,zoom will depend on the binoculars not the best choice but it is an alternative option

I wish I could help :/

I use something like this for my microbial photography. If you're interested.

Couple bucks cheaper here.

I'd think a 6mm Chinese Gold Line would work well.

Still, here's the hardware:

http://www.amazon.com/Adorama-T-Mount-Adapter-Autofocus-Cameras/dp/B0002E3WRC

http://www.amazon.com/Celestron-93625-Universal-1-25-inch-T-Adapter/dp/B0000665V6/ref=pd_bxgy_p_img_y/180-3872360-3150301

and for really high powered viewing screw this to the t-mount adapter:

http://www.amazon.com/Celestron-93230-24mm-1-25-Eyepiece/dp/B0007UQNV8

The t threads are under the eye cup.


In bright sun light, this telescope will work as a 1000mm lens, but telescopes, especially cheaper ones, are not as well corrected. So it's going to have more aberrations than even cheap photographic lenses have.

Here's my revised advice, get this telescope and this adapter.

I'm not thrilled with the aperture value (f7.8 or something at 1000mm) but it does come with cheap German Equatorial mount. You can use the finder piece and the mount controls to manually track stars and planets. I believe the German Equatorial mount, if my memory serves me correctly, can be set to various angles so that you will only have to adjust one knob to track any body in the sky (as opposed to having to turn two knobs like an etch-a-sketch to track).

Long exposures are needed to photograph planets, stars, galaxies, etc. You'll want the tracking ability, even if it is done manually.

For a Cell phone, just hold it up to the eyepiece. For extra stability, you could get an eyepiece adapter. With few exceptions (newer cell phone cameras are getting sophisticated enough for long~ish exposure on bright objects), the only objects you will be able to snap will be planets and the Moon.

For a DSLR, you will need 2 components, a T-Ring which acts as a lens attachment (and you will need to find one for your specific camera brand), and a T-Adapter which will allow the camera to insert into the telescope like an eyepice. Given you are going to an actual observatory, they likely use 2" eyepieces, so a 2" T-adapter will probably be needed.

You should also make sure they are OK with you taking pictures like this. I help run a local public observatory (ie no research, just open nights for the public to look up) and we host monthly photo nights, but setting up the scope for photography requires changing the focus and if you are taking photos that means you'll be tying up any lines behind you for several minutes. On the other hand, if this is a private observatory and you don't have to worry about lines, then great. I would call ahead to make sure either way - maybe they already have the adapters you need

Basically, yes, but you'll also need a few relatively cheap things to make sure you have power and a way to mount the camera to the scope. And you can definitely go much cheaper (especially on the camera). I just had the camera prior to getting into astrophotography because I do photography as well.

To answer your question, the only other thing I purchased separately that was involved in my setup for this shot was the battery pack that powers the mount, a T-Ring, and a T-Adapter that allows me to mount my camera to the scope.

Power Tank

T-Ring

T-Adapter

Again. You can go much cheaper on the camera and can actually just use a webcam to shoot the video that you'll stack into a still. Registax is free. Autostakkert is free. And there are free photoshop alternatives. You'll also want to use this program called BackyardEOS to shoot the videos at 5x zoom (My computer was acting up for this shot, so I didn't use it this time around) but it's well worth the $30 I think I paid for it. You can get even clearer shots like this one I got a while back. The program allows you to digitally zoom in at 5x using and use only a part of the camera's sensor. Please let me know if you need any other information. I'd be glad to help. Hope this helps some!

Hello,

I'm planning on making an astrophotography setup. I've used this subreddit's guide to assemble something's, but I just wanted to check if all the items in my list are correct. I'm also confused on where to buy some items required for the setup.

Here are the list of things that I have/am going to buy.

https://www.firstlightoptics.com/skywatcher-mounts/skywatcher-heq5-pro-synscan.html - Skywatcher HEQ5 Mount

https://www.astronomics.com/astro-tech-6-f-4-imaging-newtonian-optical-tube.html - AstroTech 6 inch imaging Newtonian Telescope

https://www.otelescope.com/store/product/4-backyardnikon-20-premium-edition-otl-byn-p/ - BackyardNIKON premium edition

Nikon D850 - DSLR (Already Own)

https://www.astronomics.com/t-ring-for-nikon-35mm-and-dslr-cameras.html - T-Ring for Nikon DSLR cameras

https://www.amazon.com/Celestron-93625-Universal-1-25-inch-T-Adapter/dp/B0000665V6 - Universal 1.25 inch camera T-Adapter

https://www.astronomics.com/astro-tech-7-short-universal-dovetail-plate-for-vixen-style-mounts-black.html - ASTRO-TECH 7" SHORT UNIVERSAL DOVETAIL PLATE FOR VIXEN-STYLE MOUNTS

https://www.telescope.com/Orion-Magnificent-Mini-AutoGuider-Package/p/99631.uts?keyword=orion%20magnificent%20mini - Orion Magnificent Mini AutoGuider Package

https://www.astronomics.com/astro-tech-photo-visual-coma-corrector-field-flattener-for-fast-focal-ratio-newtonian-reflectors.html - Coma Corrector

TUBE RINGS - Don't know where to find one for my telescope!!

I would really appreciate any help on finding the missing items, and suggest additional items if I didn't include them in this list. Thank you so much for taking the time to read through this post!

Lots of people use the 8" for pics. I have one, but I don't have a good enough camera yet. From what I've read and seen, it really is just as easy as buying a t-ring and the adapter.


This:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0000665V6/ref=ox_sc_act_title_3?ie=UTF8&m=ATVPDKIKX0DER

And this: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0000XMUKK/ref=ox_sc_act_title_2?ie=UTF8&m=A1MX591ICBLWRE
(assuming it fits your camera)

Should be all you need. However, if you don't have one of them motorized mounts, you won't be getting the best pictures of up close stuff. For me, Jupiter leaves the scope in about 20 seconds max. Then again, I view it through my bedroom so the scope sits on carpet. And I have the springs on, so maybe that's messing with it too.


Anyway, I hope I helped. Can't wait to see some pics!


Edit: what kind of camera do you have? I'm in the market for one.

If you find a NX to a T2 mount you can attach it to pretty much any telescope using a T-adapter.

The problem with using a camera with a dob is it is very hard to use. With no tracking only planets/the moon will be valid target and even then keeping it on target can be hard.If you need more help come vist us at /r/astrophotography.

I own a Canon DSLR. Do you know if it is possible to buy an attachment so I can use the camera I already have or would I need to buy a special camera to use with a microscope?

Thanks for all of the help so far. If I could upvote you more than once, I would.

Edit: it looks like I would be able to get a T-mount for my camera and then a T-adapter maybe? Is that correct?

I did the same but the t adapter doesn't let you use any lense. I got mine on amazon for £23. I didn't use it much in the end.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B0000665V6/ref=oh_details_o07_s00_i00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

You generally get one of these to adapt from the telescope eyepiece tube to the "T-mount" standard (a dead simple lowest common denominator camera lens mount originally used by Tamron – basically just a threaded ring), plus a T-mount to whatever your camera takes – e.g. Nikon F mount, or Canon EF mount in the OP's case – adapter ring.

So about $15 for the telescope to T adapter and $9 for the T to EF ring.

I have the XT8 and I agree that there is no better scope on the market for the money. I do recommend spending another $125 on Celestron's Eyepiece and filter kit though. It will make a world of difference.

http://www.amazon.com/Celestron-94303-Accessory-Kit/dp/B00006RH5I/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1397408068&sr=8-1&keywords=celestron+eyepiece+kit

A great set of eyepieces and filters for a beginning astronomer and it all comes in a sturdy foam fitted case.

Here is what I bought:

Orion 5691 LaserMate Deluxe II Telescope Laser Collimator https://www.amazon.com/dp/B008XEGXMO/ref=cm_sw_r_awd_iXYTub1Z3HSD4

Celestron Accessory Kit https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00006RH5I/ref=cm_sw_r_awd_MYYTub0G8V843

Turn Left at Orion: Hundreds of Night Sky Objects to See in a Home Telescope - and How to Find Them https://www.amazon.com/dp/0521153972/ref=cm_sw_r_awd_bZYTub0ZKHRFC

I got the accessory kit as a Christmas present. I wanted to get a range of eyepieces then upgrade the ones that would benefit, I'm going to get the eyepiece mentioned by someone else.

Orion 8920 6mm Expanse Telescope Eyepiece https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0000XMXXO/ref=cm_sw_r_awd_g0YTub1471RN7

As I'm having issues with my current 6mm eyepiece . Great scope!

Thanks so much for the reply, yeah the scope is normally set up about an hour before I want to use it :)
Yes using the focus dose help sharpen the image or make it worse but compared to some of the Pics I have seen people post of the sky from there scope (the same one or next moble down) the images always look a lot clearer and always seem to be of objects at a far greater distance than good old Jupiter lmao.

Am I right in thinking that a 2x barlow will help with this a bit?

Is this set worth getting or is it a bit OTT for this budget scope?

Again thanks so much for getting back to me so quick and thanks for the help and advice :)

I see from your other comments that you're in the UK. I got this scope and I'm in Ireland, so I know from experience the anguish of having the scope set up and it being cloudy for three weeks. It takes a bit of time to get used to the Equatorial mount, but once you do, it's awesome.

Once you've gotten the knack the scope, if you can justify it to yourself, get this set of accessories: http://www.amazon.com/Celestron-94303-Accessory-Kit/dp/B00006RH5I/ref=pd_cp_p_0. With the 8mm and 6mm eyepiece provided here, you can clearly see the rings of Saturn. Jupiter's been down since I picked up this kit, so I haven't had a chance to observe it with the more high-powered eyepieces, but damn, Saturn is exciting. When I get home, I'll upload a shitty Saturn pic that I took through the eyepiece with my cell-phone.

I actually think I found a better eyepiece/filter kit earlier while shopping around on Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00006RH5I/ref=ox_sc_act_title_1?ie=UTF8&m=ATVPDKIKX0DER

Overall, not bad but its one of the smaller kits I've seen. http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00006RH5I/ref=redir_mdp_mobile would give you three more EPs plus a couple extra filters for only $30 more.

[sorry for causing confusion --- we're still describing the same thing]

here's a better explanation -- a display behind an infinity corrected lens is basically a Reflex Sight -- see the animation on the wiki page there -- no parallax, see? Then they stick a lens array in front of that.

So:
Go buy a reflex sight like this one (for aiming telescopes) and replace the LED reticle with your LCD screen, then put a lens array in front of that, see if that works for you.

I'd strongly advise against getting a goto dob. They dont work that well and for the most part make it less likely you will use your scope.

Instead teach yourself how to star hop using:

https://www.amazon.com/Turn-Left-Orion-Hundreds-Telescope/dp/0521153972


Then mount a telrad quick finder on your scope:


https://www.amazon.com/Telrad-Finder-Sight/dp/B0000ALKAN/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1502122336&sr=8-2&keywords=rigel+quickfinder


Dobs are all about setting the scope on the ground and getting to viewing quickly and easily, a cheap goto mount will just fight you in doing that.

What's your current setup? What parts comprise a "S4 on a stick?"

Because there are special followspot yokes for Source Fours. City Theatrical makes one that I think is garbage, as you NEED to thread it onto a pipe and cheseborough that to another pipe, and generally add another pipe to stabilize everything. I have also seen another kind that has no markings and they've been there longer than the house ME, so he doesn't know what brand they are. But they kind of look like this, with a clamp on top to make it easier to use them in a catwalk.

You should also have an Iris in there already.

And then some handles.

And then a telrad, which are pretty cheap because City Theatrical doesn't make them.. And I can speak from experience, having a telrad makes a huge difference for your spot ops. I have high school actors who have never done tech before run spot, and they were a hot mess before we got the telrads. But now, you would never know that opening is their third time running spot.

If you say that a 26º already works pretty well, why the need to change it?

Using source fours as spotlights is done all the time in professional places. Just because it doesn't come with a stand and say "FOLLOWSPOT" on the side of it doesn't mean it's a bad choice.

Hi, cool idea, but:

I would strongly consider not looking for a new telescope with that budget. It's possible you can pick up a used one, but if you don't know your way around them, that way is fraught with issues.

A lot of people also end up disappointed with lower-end scopes because they expect to be able to see much more (you most likely won't be able to see the rings of Saturn or the moons of Jupiter, that sort of thing).

Some ideas:

• if the person has a telescope or some knowledge, how about offering to contribute to a telescope purchase? Or buying accessorries like an eyepice, some filters, or a good green laser collimator? I recently bought a Telrad sight and love it.
  
• a decent set of binoculars is a pretty neat thing to have, and more versatile than a telescope - my old military binoculars that I always keep in my car surprised me by letting me see the Pleiades really nicely
  
• some good astronomy / stargazing books (the Backyard Astronomer's Guide, for example]
  

With my ETX 90 (just the optical tube)being a grab and go, sitting by the door,scope, I was set up for visual viewing, so when I threw on the eyepiece point and shoot camera mount, the moon filter was already on the Meade 26MM Super Plossl LP I had set up and focused for a quick moonie session. My 8 inch Dob is extremely bright, and I use the same eyepiece for moon viewing, but it is blinding, so, hence the Moon filter shot.
http://www.amazon.com/Orion-05662-1-25-Inch-Percent-Transmission/dp/B0000XMUWS/ref=pd_cp_p_0
13 % Transmission reduction of light, bright white light, bouncing off that rock up there.

I started off with a 100 dollar 4.5 inch (70mm is 3 inch i think) orion tabletop. Then I added a barlow lens and a 6mm eyepiece for about 40 dollars each. You can find cheaper pieces though.


The tabletop I had is pretty good for beginners, I could see dark objects like the andromeda galaxy and orions nebula. Planet views are good too but the eyepieces that come with the scope dont get you a lot of zoom which is why i got a 6mm and a barlow.


https://www.amazon.com/Orion-10012-SkyScanner-Reflector-Telescope/dp/B00D05BIIU/ref=sr_1_11?keywords=orion+4.5&qid=1562969551&s=gateway&sr=8-11

https://www.amazon.com/Orion-8920-Expanse-Telescope-Eyepiece/dp/B0000XMXXO/ref=sr_1_2?keywords=6mm+orion+eyepiece&qid=1562969593&s=gateway&sr=8-2
https://www.amazon.com/Orion-08711-Shorty-1-25-Inch-Barlow/dp/B0000XMWQW/ref=sr_1_3?keywords=orion+barlow&qid=1562969613&s=gateway&sr=8-3


You can find cheaper eyepieces and barlow lens though.


The smaller the eyepiece, the more zoom you have, the barlow lens doubles your zoom.

Im super happy with the scope overall. When you use it you should either put the scope on a table or something or have a stool to sit on because its pretty short. The eyepieces that came with it work great and give super clear images.. you can see saturns rings and the bands on jupiter well with the 10mm but for amazing views of the planets you should pick up this 2x barlow. http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0000XMWQW/ref=oh_o01_s00_i00_details. So you get 182x with the 10mm.

Planets are easy to find with just the finder scope but for DSOs its hard to tell where you are looking for star hopping so I just ordered a telrad which used in combination with the finder scope should help a lot. If you have any questions Ill be happy to help.

Oh ya and theres a eyepiece cover thing with a little hole it it that is for collimation so dont lose it. Heres where I learned to do it http://www.skyandtelescope.com/howto/diy/3306876.html

An ok scope on a flimsy/shaky tripod will annoy you real fast. And a shaky equatorial mount is doubly annoying. The scope you list may be ok but their mounts are suspect.

You should leave some room in your budget for additional decent eyepieces (think plossl), a moon filter, and maybe a 2x barlow (don't go crazy with 5x.. you won't be happy). An ok zoom eyepiece may be pleasing to start.

Dobsonians have a sturdy base and are great suggestions. You may need to columnate them now and then and they can be bulky so travel is tough even sometimes getting it in and out of house/apt especially if stairs are involved.

Consider a small Maksutov such as Celestron c90 on a sturdy photo tripod. That should leave you plenty of room in your budget for accessories.

The c90 comes with erect image finder and diagonals so you can use this system during the day, too, for bird watching or whatever.. increasing its usefulness.

https://www.amazon.ca/Celestron-52268-Spotting-scope-Black/dp/B0038QYRDO/

https://www.amazon.ca/Celestron-93230-24mm-1-25-Eyepiece/dp/B0007UQNV8/

https://www.amazon.ca/Gosky-Variable-Polarizing-Telescopes-Eyepiece/dp/B010UH5SL8

https://www.amazon.ca/Celestron-Omni-2X-Barlow-Lens/dp/B00008Y0TM

edit:
Don't forget to save some budget for a solar filter such as....

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00OXKGUS4

What is your price range? Does size of the scope matter? Do you want tracking abilities?

Some good brands would be Orion, Meade, and Celestron.

Astronomy is not necessarily about getting the best and most expensive scope. The telescope is only a tool. You need to have realistic expectations on what you're going to see. Also, you want a telescope that you will be able to use. If its too big and clunky to bring outside easily, a smaller telescope will be much more useful.

I would recommend buying a simple reflector to start off.

Here's a cheap, tabletop reflector.
Very affordable, very portable. I wouldn't go any cheaper than this.

Although, depending on how much you want to spend, you can get This tracking dobsonian. 600 bucks, 8 inch. Could be what you're looking for.

I would just hop on the bandwagon and get a classic XT8.

You also need to do some research on what kinds of eyepieces you want. Thats a whole new world you need to know, on top of getting to know telescopes.

Personally I have a classic XT8 accompanied with a Celestron 8-24mm zoom eyepiece.

After all thats done, go grab some free astronomy software, and once thats done, start exploring the skies!!!

Consider a zoom eyepiece. It offers a wide range of magnifications at an affordable price, while sacrificing some FOV. There's a decent celestron on Amazon... I have it and enjoy the convenience.

The C90 is actually pretty compact. Smaller than a lot of spotting scopes actually.

http://i.ytimg.com/vi/sMAz87iC-ok/maxresdefault.jpg

It's also only $170:

http://www.amazon.com/Celestron-52268-C90-Mak-Spotting/dp/B0038QYRDO

Add this $52 eyepiece to get all the way to 156x zoom:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0007UQNV8/ref=pd_aw_sim_p_1?refRID=0014SNKCY8APY6WBWKF4

Then all you'd need is a tripod.

Appreciate the response! Those do seem like very good recommendations. I believe I have decided on this one: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0038QYRDO/ref=crt_ewc_title_dp_3?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER. I already have a mount that the poster who suggested this one said would work with it.

Think I will be adding on these two lenses as well, unless you have a better suggestion?

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B005G4HT6I/ref=crt_ewc_title_dp_2?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0007UQNV8/ref=crt_ewc_title_dp_5?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER

​

And you're right, I know I will eventually get the "bug," and I will eventually get something that would be considered higher end, but that would be for me and me alone. This is something I want to share with people, and if I'm at a music festival and someone on LSD knocks it over, I won't be out thousands, just a couple hundred, but it would be well spent it to blow some peoples minds.

http://www.amazon.com/Neewer%C2%AE-Shutter-Release-Control-Hasselblad/dp/B003Q9RERY

or

http://www.amazon.com/Polaroid-Shutter-Release-Control-Replaces/dp/B008FBMSWY

Ok. All the recent Canon cameras can take a cheap interval timer, which allows you to do star trails, nightscapes and wide field pictures. It will also be necessary for deep sky images, but that that you'll also want some way to track the movement of the earth. Pentax's K-r and K-5 can take a GPS unit that does this, which is nifty. But you're limited in the focal length and time you can expose for. A more robust solution is a German equatorial mount, like for a telescope, but you wouldn't need a telescope. If you get a sturdy one, that can track for a long time. But it's heavy and requires some setup. The K-5 can also take the cheap inteval timer, but for the K-r, you'll need one of those, and this http://www.gentles.ltd.uk/gentled/trigger.htm, which someone on here just recently told me about. It uses the IR port of the K-r for shooting. It looks cool but I haven't heard about any first hand experience with it.

As far as lenses go, as I said elsewhere, the Canon 18-55 IS is decent. Their 10-22mm is also good for really really wide angles, but expensive. The 50 f/1.8 is cheap and great optically, but at 50mm, you can only image about 12 seconds without trails, unless you point towards the north star(or south celestial pole). Since the stars move less there, you can image longer. You can use many old prime lenses to save money like M42 screw mount, Pentax, Nikon, or Olympus with just a metal adapter. But you can't use old manual focus FD mount Canon lenses, they wont focus to infinity. If you get a Pentax, you can use all old k-mount lenses, and m42 mount lenses with a cheap adapter as well. Old prime lenses are usually much better than the old zoom lenses.

To save money you could also get a used Canon XS better yet an XSi. They are both decent for astro. You definitely want Live view to help in focusing, which they both have it.

Some good concrete advice here: http://www.backyardastronomy.com/Backyard_Astronomy/BAG_Blog/Entries/2009/12/10_I_Want_to_Shoot_Deep-Space_Objects!.html
here http://astropix.com/HTML/I_ASTROP/TOC_AP.HTM . For more stuff. Also have a look at the cloudynights.com forums' astrohphotography section.

Let me know what further questions you have.

I prefer the $17 version

On the side of your camera there is a little port that looks like a smaller headphone jack. You get a remote control that plugs into that. Then you set the remote to take a picture every X seconds for Y shots. For instance, you could set it to take a picture every 6 seconds for 300 shots, which would take 30 minutes. Once you have your pictures, you use video editing software to create a video out of the frames, and voila, a time lapse video is born. In this case, you would have condensed 30 minutes into about 10 seconds, at 30 frames per second. That make sense?

Example remote [amazon]

The upper port on the left

The biggest bang for the buck is a tracker. It makes your pics 50x better. Even an older camera like the 30D with a kit lens on a tracker is better than a sweet 6D with a fast prime lens on a tripod.

Allow me to refer to my comparison of exposure times. Again ;)

With a modest telephoto lens you are limited to a couple of seconds exposure. Compare that with what you see at 60 seconds in my example above.

Tracker's are pretty simple. Add an intervalometer, so you can get a lot of vibration free photos.

​

​

I'd grab an intervalometer from Amazon, and if possible set your focus ahead of time (set up your bike in the spot you want focus) use f/8 if possible. Have the intervalometer to start ripping away photos (can have it go continuously until manually stopped), make a run or two and go check it afterwards.

• I'm probably posting a cliche photography gift here but I absolutely love mine: Lens Mug
  
  
  
• Can't go wrong with a BlackRapid Strap
  
  
  
• If your brother takes a lot of landscapes and doesn't already have this must have tool in his gear which he should: Camera Remote Timer
  
  
  
• If he's always on the go and seems struggle w/ carrying his tripod everywhere, I recommend getting him a Gorilla Pod
  
  
• If he doesn't already have a great backpack for travelling while he is shooting his landscapes, I recommend Amazons Backpack for holding his gear. It's essentially a generic version of Canon's basic backpack.
  
  
  You can also find some fairly cheap "like new" film cameras on Craigslist along with some film.
  Film cameras are the best and it will probably be very nostalgic to the person you are gifting it to.
  
  
  I'm making the assumption that he has a Canon DSLR but you can find most of this gear if he has something like a Nikon, Sony, etc... One thing I love to receive to as a photography gift is more batteries! I use to shoot a lot of landscapes and I could never have enough of these.
  
  Anyways, hopefully you find something for your brother! Good luck!

So to be clear. I could do this with any camera that is compatible with an intervalometer. Such as this one; could be used with a Canon

https://www.amazon.com/Aputure-Remote-Shutter-Release-Intervalometer/dp/B003Y35VJA

How do you deal with the camera's battery dying? Are they able to be plugged in the wall, say if I required the camera to film for a month.

Does the intervalometer turn the camera on and off to combat having an excessively long video.


I fell in love with stop motion. My uncle gifted me a digital camera when I was a kid. It was just some run of the mill $80 but it came with a build in stop motion. I would leave it on my window sill and watch the moon set. It was wicked.

Thank you very much for your response !

An external intervalometer still works

Certainly! For example, it comes with an intervalometer, which would normally costs $20-40 on its own. Everything I mentioned in my original comment (except movie remap) works for photo mode as well. Honestly, there's no reason to not install it!

http://www.amazon.com/Aputure-Powershot-Compatible-Inexpensive-Intervalometer/dp/B003Y35VJA/ref=sr_1_12?ie=UTF8&qid=1373244043&sr=8-12&keywords=canon+remote

best investment I've made for my camera for long exposures (aside from tripod). I know there are Nikon ones about the same price

Built in intervalometer (which can do timelapse) is one of the things I love about my D7000.

For cameras without it built-in, you can get a cheap stand-alone intervalometer.

That said, I will be picking one of these up as I love arduino and was planning on making a trigger like this anyways.

Never say never.

• Canon T3i (modified: missing IR cutoff)
  
• Celestron AVX Mount
  
• [Skywatcher 80ED \(600mm f/7.5\)](http://www.amazon.com/Celestron-Advanced-VX-Computerized-Mount/dp/B00AYGIQDS/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1406820193&sr=8-1&keywords=Celestron+AVX+Mount)
  
  
  Learn Photoshop and photography!

Thank you so much for the help! Watched a few youtube videos on it and that also helped, thank you for the suggestion. If you wouldn't mind checking this and letting me know if I need anything else if you have any time, I would highly appreciate it.

mount

Telescope tube rings (Does the size matter, like is there a way to tell if it's good for the telescope or not? this is my telescope

mounting plate

[T-Ring adapter] (https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0140U9IWQ/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1) (The camera I am using is a Nikon D750)

camera adapter

And possibly this autoguider

Once again, thank you for the help.

Thanks for the reply! :)

Sometime tomorrow I'll be sure to check out both of those sites, and if I find the time I'll also be sure take some more photos to post as well. Although research is definitely something I should do more of... As you said.

Additionally, there's a stand of some sort in our garage which appears to be a Celestron Advanced VX. Lots of weights and other accessories as well, most of which having never, or hardly been used.

I would like to point this out:

>And don’t settle for a 99% partial eclipse just outside the path. “There’s no comparison between partial and total solar eclipses when it comes to sheer grandeur and beauty,” Michael Zeiler, longtime eclipse chaser and creator of the Great American Eclipse website told Universe Today. We witnessed the 1994 annular solar eclipse of the Sun from the shores of Lake Erie, and can attest that a 99% partial eclipse is still pretty darned bright!

Do yourself a favor and make the short trip up to the Nashville area where you can see "Totality" for up to 2 minuites and 40 seconds.

I also recommend a good pair of solar sunglasses and maybe a good pair of binoculars with a solar filter.

Do not ever stare directly at the sun without protective gear on

I am using autofocus, but sometimes it doesn't want to focus. When that happens, I manually focus as close as I can get and then autofocus and it works out.

I am using this filter but I don't know how many stops that equates to. I cut out a circle of it and applied it to one of the cheap Vivitar UV filters. I haven't done anything with white balance; the only things I have adjusted are the ISO, shutter speed, and aperture.

I am brand new to this, coming from phone cameras, so my knowledge is based on a 12 minute youtube video and some light googling.

I will be in the path of totality for the solar eclipse and would like to photograph the stages of the eclipse. I looked up solar filters for my camera and the cheapest I could find was around US$70, which is far out of my price range (I was hoping to spend no more than $30.) Would something like this sheet work, if I affix it to my camera somehow? https://www.amazon.com/Solar-Filter-Telescopes-Binoculars-Cameras/dp/B00DS7S52W

I have a Canon Powershot SX400 IS for reference. I am not a huge fan of this camera but I was able to get some beautiful, high res images of the lunar eclipse with it. Also, any tips on photographing a solar eclipse are very welcome as I am by no means a photographer!

You said you live in the Berkshires, which google says is in Massachusetts, there's a partial solar eclipse which will be visible in your area on August 21 at around 1:30pm and ends at around 4:00.

You can buy a solar filter. Here's a link for one that should cover the aperture.

https://www.amazon.com/Solar-Filter-Telescopes-Binoculars-Cameras/dp/B00DS7S52W

Be very careful when looking at the Sun, make sure there are no holes in the filter by holding it up and making sure no bright points peek through. Cover up the aperture securely. You might have to aim it by eye and making adjustments with the hand control but use a low power eyepiece and I think it won't be too much trouble.

Set your telescope to tracking Solar, and have a great couple of hours!

Glad you're loving the telescope, I've had the same one for almost a year and I absolutely love it. I'd recommend you get rechargeable batteries because in my experience, it uses them up like crazy, or maybe I just stay out at night for too long. :)

Also, you could buy a camera to attach to it. Decent ones are a few hundred dollars, I'm not sure which would be best for you. It depends on the objects you'd want to photograph.

Anyway, Jupiter and Saturn will be pretty high up in the night sky for the next few months, so you could see those. Although for the next few days the Moon might create a problem.

I have an old basic go to scope from Mead. I believe it's a 4.5" Meade refractor. I bought this eyepiece adapter for it but my Olympus micro4/3 camera needs to be closer zoomed in. I mean it needs to be closer into the scope. The focus knob needs to be more screwed in. I need less throw on it.

Celestron 93625 Universal 1.25-inch Camera T-Adapter https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0000665V6/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_wRACDbC77S135

I don't know how to describe it. I need the focus point less deep than this item allows. Do they make things like this?

This refractor on a CG-4 EQ mount looks to me like a good starting point for astrophoto for less than what you want to spend. You have to add motor drives, a polar finder scope, a camera adapter, and T-ring to connect your camera but then you are good to go.

There is a version of this setup using a 150mm reflector as the imaging scope that has given very impressive results. "Jarrodnb" has posted his images here over the last several months. Whether to go with the refractor or the reflector is probably a matter of preference. The reflector gathers more light and has a shorter f/ratio, both of which enable shorter exposure times.

I don't think you can get an imaging setup with autoguiding like the CG-5 for the money you are looking to spend, but a lot of people may say that it is needed for decent results.

I am using a wedge-mounted Celestron 8 I got on Craigslist along with a second hand Canon 400D, and so far I have this image of M13. It's FAR from perfect but I enjoyed the process of making it.

Thanks a lot it's been really helpful.

Right now I'm looking at this and this. I'll be good then?

I know it's a 1.25 and you said to get a 2" but right now I'm going cheap. When/if I decide to really start doing things hardcore I'll get the nice stuff.

For reference, I just recently bought these two:

• http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B002APX3VQ/ref=oh_details_o00_s00_i00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
  
  
• http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B0000665V6/ref=oh_details_o00_s00_i01?ie=UTF8&psc=1
  
  I wont say for certain, as I'm just getting into this myself, but I imagine you'll need similar kit for your scope. A t-adapter to fit into the telescope, and an adapter for your camera to attach to it!
  
  Hope that's somewhat helpful

1. Get the collimator
   
   
2. Get the collimator
   
   
3. Get the collimator
   
   See the pattern?
   
   Edit:
   Ok more info. Your telescope is a reflector just like mine. There are two mirrors, one at each end of the tube. Your eyepiece has to be lined up correctly with the front mirror, and the front mirror and back mirror have to be lined up properly. The collimator (Celstron calls it the collimation eyepiece) helps you to line up these optics. Without doing this first your experience is going to be like mine was, very disappointing. Unless you're incredibly lucky most everything will be blurry, or smeared to some degree. Once you have collimated the scope properly everything becomes much much sharper. The effect is kind of like shining a flashlight on a wall. If the flashlight is lined up properly the light is sharp and round, if the flashlight is at an angle to the wall the light becomes distorted, stretched out and oval shaped. This is similar to what I experienced with my scope. It's well worth the extra 30 bucks.
   
   Get yourself a set of eyepieces of various sizes. Celestron has a decent entry level one for about 130 bucks I think. This will allow you to really get the best use of your scope once it's collimated.
   
   Have fun!
   
   Edit 2: Here is the collimation eyepiece and here is the eyepiece kit

I'm new to astrophotography. Can I get a view like that with this telescope? (I also have these accessories)

Thank you so much for your time. I think I'm going to to go with the Onesky. I really meets nearly all of my needs right now.

I don't know how I haven't seen the Onesky before, it never came up on my google searches. Also I guess while reading through this subreddit I ignored ABW because I didn't recognize the acronym, and had never heard of the maker. I think the mobility of the Onesky is really right up my alley, and the aperture is better than most of the other mobile scopes in this range. I think the 8" or 10" dobs will be a bit too big for my liking, and I'd probably use them a little less often because of that. Also, the dobs are much harder to store in my apartment (which is definitely a factor).

From most of the review I have read, a Barlow is strongly recommended for the Onesky. As the scope is a great value, and I have some wiggle room, is there a eyepiece set or any other accessories that you think would really enhance this kind of scope?

I was looking at the Celestron and came upon this Gosky set. Any thoughts/experience with either of these?

Imho it looks vastly overpriced for what it is - the standard 650mm FL celestron tube with a computer mount.

Better would be this

Or maybe a dobsonian


Also allow some room to buy some eyepieces

Check out the links in the side bar.

Okay I went with the XT8, this is the kit you recommended. You'd recommend that one over this one?

Thank you so much. Will this work? I just bought it
http://www.amazon.com/Celestron-94303-Accessory-Kit/dp/B00006RH5I/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1453675615&sr=8-1&keywords=celestron+accessory+kit

I got one of these a few years ago although my weight setup is slightly different than yours; they changed it. I did remove the attached finder and added a ScopeStuff StarFinder Mount for my green laser:

http://www.scopestuff.com/ss_sfind.htm

I calibrate it during the day off someones license plate, etc. to get it centered in the eye piece.

Oh yes, be sure to get a collimator... The mirror was pretty off when I got it out of the box. I also got three 5 pound divers weights that contain shot for the tripod that I lay on the tree points in the tray area. It's not all that sturdy.

The Celestron Accessory Kit also helps too:

http://www.amazon.com/Celestron-94303-Accessory-Kit/dp/B00006RH5I

If you have any questions, let me know!

I just picked up that exact model as the best combination of size/portability/performance. Any recommendations on eyepiece upgrades? I was thinking this as a decent survey kit to get a bunch of pieces to try.

As a recent XT8 owner, here's what I've purchased so far:

Rigel or Telrad finderscope. I bought the Rigel as I think it will be a little easier to use than the Telrad and take up less horizonal space.

Right Angle Correct Image finderscope like the Orion 9x50 is also helpful.

Wide angle 2" eyepieces, between 26mm and 38mm is what people talk about. It will probably become your primary eyepiece too. I picked up a set of used Orion Q70 that I'm waiting to be delivered and try out. Explore Scientific is also a brand that gets good reviews.

As for mods, I've installed an Ebonystar ring laminate kit on the azimuth base to provide smoother rotation. And replaced the teflon pads with higher quality pads on the altitude base. Though I think I probably should have only replaced 2 of the 4 pads. I have too little friction now so the scope (being top heavy) tends to slip downwards on its own.

The scope was used and it came with the Celestron accessory kit listed below. I only use the 32mm Plossl, the Barlow, and maybe one other eyepiece. The rest of the eyepieces (the ones with small aperatures) are almost impossible for me to use since I wear eyeglasses. I've used the Moon filter a couple of times. The rest of that kit is useless IMO. I wouldn't purchase the kit, and would recommend simply picking up the eyepieces separately, preferably used on one of the many astronomy forums.

Agreed completely. I have an Astromaster EQ 130, and couldn't even find the moon with the stock finder. I got one of the Telrad finder scopes for it, and it blew my freaking mind!

If I were to order from the site the scope came from I dont see the "gold line" ones people are recommending and that is in your sources.

They have the Orion eyepieces. The Expenase and the bit more expensive "Edge On".

I don't mind splurging a bit more for the 6mm since I imagine that will be a lot of my initial viewing.

Then they have the Q70 for the wider field. Says "pre order" but I'll see if they have it.

They don't seem to sell the Telrad but amazon.ca has it. I assume I would also need to buy some kind of base?

Thanks for all your help!

EDIT: For the 6mm would it also be better to pay a bit more and go 2" on that as well? I dont mind the bit of extra money but sometimes more isn't always better I imagine. Thanks!

So to basically make a shopping list:

• [Skywatcher Skyliner 250PX Dobsonian w/ standard eyepieces] (https://www.firstlightoptics.com/dobsonians/skywatcher-skyliner-250px-dobsonian.html)
  
  
• [1.25" Orion 13% Transmission Moon Filter] (https://www.amazon.co.uk/1-25-Orion-Transmission-Moon-Filter/dp/B0000XMUWS) (That should still fit on this scope despite being made by Orion, right?)
  
• [6mm gold line] (http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Skywatcher-Ultra-Wide-Multi-Coated-Telescope-Eyepiece-1-25-Fitting-6mm-ONLY-/131812806041?hash=item1eb0a7cd99)
  
• [9mm gold line] (http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Skywatcher-Ultra-Wide-Multi-Coated-Telescope-Eyepiece-1-25-Fitting-9mm-ONLY-/401120425032?hash=item5d64a3f448)
  
  > - There is also [this] (http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/1-25-6mm-9mm-Ultra-Wide-Angle-Eyepiece-Set-Fully-Multi-Coated-for-Telescope-Hot-/322443541463?hash=item4b1321fbd7) one selling both 6mm and 9mm together, but they're as priced much lower than two individually would be and it's a different seller, what do you think?
  
  
• [Philip's Moon Map] (https://www.amazon.co.uk/Philips-Moon-Map-John-Murray/dp/1849073996/)
  
  
• [Turn Left At Orion] (https://www.amazon.co.uk/d/Books/Turn-Left-Orion-Hundreds-Night-Objects-Telescope/0521153972/)
  
  Anything else that'd be recommended?
  

Get a moon filter for next time - pretty cheap and makes for some fantastic moon-viewing as it reduces a lot of that extra light.

Fun fact that I didn't realize (I was looking at it a couple nights ago) is that the side visible in your photograph actually comprises the locations of the moon landings. Pretty neat!

Would this be a good purchase?

Hey, sorry i'm a little late to the party. I just got the same telescope last week, and it is awesome! I just picked up a couple things.

• A 2x Barlow Lens
  
  This One.
  
  and
  
  
• A Moon Filter
  
  This One
  
  The moon is still fairly bright with the filter, so you may want to get the 25% instead of the 13%, although im happy with it.
  
  I also got this sky chart, but it's obviously not that necessary. Keep in mind, i'm still a newbie, so take my recommendations with a grain of salt. Have fun! :)

After doing more research I narrowed it to these 3, for a moon filter, planetary viewing and wide-angle viewing to spend around $180. I am open to outside amazon if you know anywhere that has these. Here they are:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000M89H72?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=ox_sc_act_title_1&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0000XMUWS?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=ox_sc_act_title_2&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0000XMWXA?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=ox_sc_act_title_3&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER

It looks like your telescope is a newtonian (reflector) telescope, so the T2 adapter shifts the focus point out of range. The easiest (and least expensive) fix is to buy a barlow lens, which shifts the focus point back to range.

Sorry for the slow reply. I don't have a lens in the focuser, so I have the 150/750 I assume.

The eyepieces I was graciously gifted by a member here last year are these:


http://www.amazon.com/Orion-08711-Shorty-1-25-Inch-Barlow/dp/B0000XMWQW


http://www.meade.com/series-4000-super-plossl-9-7mm-1-25.html


and http://www.meade.com/series-4000-super-plossl-20mm-1-25.html

Iv'e had the scope for many years so I can't return it. I'd just like to get the most out of it I can.

Thanks for the advice!

Thanks :) This orion shorty seems pretty popular, is there something better around the same price or is this pretty much the standard first barlow? Also would you recommend a moon filter?

I bought this one for my first one LINK accompanied by this. I can see Saturn's rings, Jupiter's moons, and Mars.

I have a 10 inch, with eyepieces from 36 to 2.3. I really wouldn't suggest anything less than a 6mm. I would probably point you towards a varifocal instead since it's nice to not have to swap out eyepieces and use barlow's sometimes.

https://www.amazon.com/Celestron-93230-24mm-1-25-Eyepiece/dp/B0007UQNV8/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1484563795&sr=8-1&keywords=1.25%22+eyepiece+zoom for example.

Very inexpensive, you can target in on a larger 30's, and then swap to this, and click in/adjust/drag/focus, and click in, etc. and continue that down to 8.

I think you'll be a lot happier this way.

You dont really have to spend so much. I can see Saturn pretty well with my Telescope. The Scope is around $340 and I got a 8-24mm Zoom Lens which is around $40. That'll do. I'll add the links when I get home.

Edit: Links:-

• Celestron Nexstar 90SLT
  
  
• 8-24mm Zoom Lens

A telescope is not out of your range if you know what you really want and can save for it. I have a "smaller" one, but having a larger diameter opening allows you to capture more light and peer deeper in to space. You should get what you want and strive to save for it. I want to go bigger, maybe an XT10 computerized.

My telescope is good, in fact it over-preformed every time I went out. The one gripe I have about almost almost every inexpensive telescope is that it is not motorized. We live on a spinning rock in the galaxy so the telescope needs to be constantly adjusted. All you do with the motorized is find 3 stars and it can take you on a tour of the universe. It does a lot of the work for you so you wont accidentally lose what you were looking at.

I'd also recommend buying some filters, It helps when you look at the moon or nebulae.

Also, instead of swapping eyepieces for closing in on objects, this zoom lens is extremely helpful. With just a twist you can go from 8mm to 24mm. I own that exact model and it's great, plus you cant lose

It seems expensive, but if you really want it, you'll find ways to save and get it. I hope this helps and when you DO make a final decision I'd like to know what its is.

Billions and Billions

I've had a lot of success with this, I have an 8 inch dob and it does everything I need it to do. The only other thing I recommend, and this might be something you look for later on, is a larger (38-42mm) wide angle eyepiece for larger objects like the Pleiades and the double cluster.

http://www.amazon.com/Celestron-93230-24mm-1-25-Eyepiece/dp/B0007UQNV8/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1417238580&sr=8-1&keywords=8-24mm+lens+telescope

This is exactly what I was looking for. Seriously, thank you for taking the time to write this out.

I think I'm going to get a decent 8-24x zoom eyepiece so that I can get an "o.k" look at everything on different magnifications on a budget.

But I'm going to get one nice eyepiece along with that for ideally planet viewing. So I'm looking at either a 5mm or a 9mm Celestron LX (I'm not a die hard Celestron customer, they're just easiest for me to get online here in Canada). I thought I read that really low focal length eye pieces aren't good for shorter focal length telescopes.

I'll be getting a decent barlow eventually (when the budget allows). So I'm kind of torn on the 5mm or 9mm, since I'll have the 8mm option on the zoom piece. Do you think the 9mm Celestron LX will be a much better view than the 8mm on the zoom? If it's barely noticeable, I'll get the 5mm. But I like the idea of having a nice eye piece in the magnification I'll be spending 90% of my time in.

I'm probably over complicating things... I'm a student with a low paying job though. I've gotta get bang for my buck and buy smart.

I'd also add a zoom eyepiece as an option. It's not a big deal to swap eyepieces, of course, but if you've got the financial flexibility, something like this is a nice investment:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0007UQNV8

1. Set your drive mode to burst.
   
2. Set your exposure mode to manual.
   
3. Set the shutter speed to 5 seconds as a test (Looks like 5" in the LCD)
   
4. Leave the lens cap on.
   
5. Hold down the shutter button and see what happens.
   
   Now pretend you had selected 30 seconds in step 5. That's all there is to it. You can hold the button down forever and it will take one 30 second shot every 30 seconds.
   
   The question is: How do you hold the button down for so long without having to actually hold the button down? That's what a remote release is for. Most of them have a mechanism to hold the button down for you. Usually you hold the button down then slide a switch up while still holding it down. The switch locks it into place.
   
   I don't know if the IR remote you have as a "Hold" feature. It might not. But a wired remote release is very cheap. Here's one for under $7. Notice that the plate surrounding the button is actually a switch that locks the button down if you slide it upward.
   
   However, if you're going to spend money, you may as well get a fancy one! That one is programmable, and will still work like I said above, even with no batteries. When programmed, you can do all sorts of things with it: time lapse, delayed shots, timed bulb shots. Even repeated, timed bulb shots, so you can take repeated exposures longer than 30 seconds, if you wish.

Here's a cheap one. I got the same thing for my camera just the one for sony instead. It does the job nothing really to say other than that lol.

something like this:
http://www.amazon.com/Timer-Remote-Control-RS-60E3-Canon/dp/B003Q9RERY/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1325360741&sr=8-2

I've got the magic lantern now on my camera, but haven't took the timelapse function for a spin. ML is free, you might want to try that for a built in solution.

Thanks for the detailed information. Helps a lot. Please read my comments below.

1. I already have this intervalometer. Forgot to mention that.
   
   
2. I have this tripod. Do I still need those mounts you mention?
   
   
3. I use Photoshop and Lightroom for processing photos. Of course, they don't do any special processing. The price on the Pixinsight looks a bit steep for now. I might look into purchasing it once I actually start taking good photos :)
   
   
4. The polar scope looks expensive too. For now, if I can get by with the bare minimum, I would prefer that. How bad will it be if I don't use this?
   
   
5. Is there a reason I can't use longer lenses with the Vixen Polarie? The longest lens I have is the 250mm, but I would be okay shooting at 100 too.
   
   Other than milky way shots, and maybe some nice night landscapes, what else could one do with a wide angle tracking? Those equatorial mounts are way out of my budget.
   
   I did look into some manual screw barn door trackers, but thought the Vixen Polarie would be way better than those.

What do you think of this?

http://www.amazon.com/Neewer%C2%AE-Shutter-Release-Control-Hasselblad/dp/B003Q9RERY/ref=pd_cp_p_0

Neewer LCD Timer Shutter Release Remote Control for Canon 700D/T5i, 650D/T4i, 550D/T2i, 500D/T1i, 350D/XT, 400D/XTi, 1000D/XS, 450D/XSi, 60D, 100D, and Pentax https://www.amazon.com/dp/B003Q9RERY/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_tai_28-IDb2K14JJ3

https://www.amazon.com/Neewer-Shutter-Release-Remote-Control/dp/B003Q9RERY/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1538492951&sr=8-3&keywords=neewer+intervalometer+canon This is the one I have for my SL2 (200d) and it's great! Cheap enough that I don't have to worry about throwing it around, easy enough to use, and pretty darn handy!

I don't know of any tutorials off hand but you could just google "timelapse photography".

My setup was a tripod, Canon T1i DSLR, 8mm fisheye lens, and a cheap intervelometer.

A lot of newer cameras have timelapse functions built into the camera. GoPros, for instance. Otherwise you need an external intervelometer to trigger the camera shutter at whatever intervals you want to use.

My goal was to make a video about 1.5 minutes long so I made sure to use an interval that would equate to at least 30 frames per second in the final video, in order to have a smooth looking video. I shot for about 5 hours and came up with about 3500 individual photos.

To make a video out of those photos I used Adobe Premier and they make it pretty easy. I think(it's been a while) you just drag and drop them into the editor and it automatically creates a video clip which you then export.

To make the star trail photo I used a free program called Star Trails that stacks each photo on top of one another but only adds in differences between them. Photoshop can do this as well.

Lol my bad, I totally misinterpreted your original question.

Doing it with a camera is a bit more complex, but it isn't hard! Any basic DSLR would work. I'm most familiar with Canon, so like a used Canon t2i or something would work for you. Someone else can maybe chime in with other suggestions. Hopefully any camera you would get would come with a lens. Prices might be all over on this. You just need any camera with an auxiliary shutter port.

You'll also need something like this: https://www.amazon.com/Neewer-Shutter-Release-Remote-Control/dp/B003Q9RERY/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1537801810&sr=8-1&keywords=neewer+intervalometer

That device is called an intervalometer and it lets you take pictures repeatedly and at set intervals.

Finally, you'll just need a tripod for the camera. You probably don't need a super fancy one and can get one for less than 30 bucks on Amazon.

Put the camera under an umbrella or get a water cover for it, again, less than 20 bucks.

You'll need an SD card to store your photos on too.

Finally, once you have all of your photos taken, you need software to put the time lapse together. There is a ton of time lapse specific software out there, and you can snag that, or you can use Lightroom and some of the available plugins for it to create your final video. I've always used Lightroom in the past and it works pretty well but if you find yourself doing this on a regular basis you might wanna invest in the specialized software.

Hope this helps!

That one will work, but there are many less expensive options that are the exact same product, just branded differently.

I have this version, (as you can see, it's the same product) - only $18 - which works beautifully for any kind of intervalometry (time lapses) and also, the main button will trip the shutter remotely. If you have the camera in bulb mode, it's great for fireworks, since you can hold the shutter open as long as you like.

If you don't need any kind of intervalometry or programmability, but need to be able to hold the shutter open manually, this one is even cheaper yet. It's the one I use for fireworks.

You'll have to buy a third-party remote control that is compatible with your camera's remote port. I'm not vouching for it (I don't know how good/reliable it is), but here's an example of what you are looking for.

You're looking for an intervalometer, and luckily they tend to be relatively inexpensive.

You might look into this camera release. It acts as a cable release and a time-lapse unit.

http://www.amazon.com/NEEWER®-Timer-Remote-Control-RS-60E3/dp/B003Q9RERY/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1369785653&sr=8-3&keywords=time+lapse+camera+release+Canon

You could also consider buying a remote shutter release (Here is what I bought for $20).

Having to press the shutter button will shake your camera and possibly make for a more frustrating imaging session, but using one of these lets you time shots and take pics without having to touch the camera body. I haven't personally used BackyardEOS or any of the apps but they offer similar (and more) benefits.

I actually just ordered one of these for my camera to see if it can do what I am thinking. Dunno but will give it a shot!

You can also pick up something like this pretty cheap, and just set it up to continuously take shots at your specified settings (0 interval).

I mean, if you're too lazy to sit there pressing the shutter release every 5-10 seconds.

This?

http://amzn.com/B00FP1BQ1Q

Or this

http://amzn.com/B003Q9RERY

I think a majority of Canon remote shutter releases work with most Canon DSLRS. I am wrong. Thanks /u/CarVac for correcting me.

1. you need to buy an intervolameter to attach to your Canon so you can go beyond the 30 second limitation. I used one of these regularly.
   
   
2. In PixInsight the red is the mask, so you can see what's masked and what's not masked. There's a dropdown at the top under Mask to allow you to show mask, unshow mask, invert mask, etc. If you're mask is too red, then you just need to adjust it before applying. It's also possible you've created a non-linear mask, which will cover up more stuff than a mask that's linear. Create a linear mask in how you want it, then apply a histogram transformation to it to make it linear, and then apply it.
   
   I might try your data later, I'm not on my computer with PixInsight on it at the moment.

You need an intervalometer. I've read on this sub that you don't need to get the expensive ones, a 20-25 USD one would do the job. I cant recommend you one as I haven't bought any, but others have suggested this one:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Aputure-Powershot-Compatible-Inexpensive-Intervalometer/dp/B003Y35VJA

You may be able to get something like this for your DSLR. http://www.amazon.com/Aputure-Powershot-Compatible-Inexpensive-Intervalometer/dp/B003Y35VJA/ref=sr_1_sc_1?s=photo&ie=UTF8&qid=1326320491&sr=1-1-spell

You can use a manual release like this.

Or, if night photo is something you get really into, I suggest a cable release with a built in timer. Not only will it time your shots for you, but usually they let you program any number of shots. This is perfect for star trail stacking and the like.

This was shot on a Canon 5d Mark II with a Tokina 16-28mm f/2.8. These were taken at 16mm, f/2.8, 25 seconds (I think). There are 250 photos in this sequence.

I used an iOptron SkyTracker Pro on a tripod for the tracking. The stars aren't supposed to move that much, but my camera set up weighs more than the recommended weight for the mount and I didn't have a counterweight. I used a cheap intervalometer.

This is not a bad purchase

http://www.amazon.com/Aputure-Powershot-Compatible-Inexpensive-Intervalometer/dp/B003Y35VJA/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1376081142&sr=8-1&keywords=canon-intervalometer

Good timer/intervalometer I can get for my camera? I've been using one from Apperature up until it just recently broke. Anything better I could get?

What scope should i mount on this with a $1000 budget?
https://www.amazon.com/Celestron-Advanced-VX-Computerized-Mount/dp/B00AYGIQDS/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1466471593&sr=8-1&keywords=celestron+advanced+vx#Ask

$200 for a scope worth it?

I have this telescope and am looking to fit it onto this mount and replace the stock finder with this finder scope.

My question is, what do I need to make sure everything fits properly together? Searching "celestron VX tube ring" or anything of the sort doesn't bring up anything - almost seems like the mount is meant to be exclusive for their telescopes, and I don't know where to start for the finder.

Edit: I found this for mounting the finder scope, which seems like it'll work, but I still need some advice for the equatorial mount.

Edit 2: Doing a bit more research, would this do the trick for the mount? And then I find rings that fit my scope?

Two questions, somewhat dependent on each other. First, out of these two scopes, which is the better option? They pretty much can be taken to the same focal length and ratio (I think) given reducer/barlow and their apertures are the same. Orion ED80 f/7.5 or Astro-Tech AT80EDT f/6. I guess the main difference is one is a doublet and the other a doublet? How significant is the color correction on a triple compared to triple? (Keep in mind cost for second question).

Second, which mount? I'd likely eventually upgrade to some autoguiding. Explore Scientific EXOS2GT Motorized Equatorial GoTo or Celestron Advanced VX Computerized Mount or maybe you guys have another suggestion?

I do have a budget, not too certain what it is though. Which would be the better compromise, better scope or better mount?

I started with a Nexstar in LA and would not recommend that to a newbie astrophotographer. Nexstars are fine for visual observation and even planetary imaging but they’re the worst for everything else. Instead, get him this telescope and this mount . That should keep him busy for a long time in astrophotography. Plus both have good resale value in case he doesn’t stick with the hobby ;-)

Oh, and bring him to the LA Astronomical Society’s HQ in Monterey Park! We have open house every Wednesday. Anybody there will be happy to show him the ropes

Specs -

Celestron Advanced VX (available on Amazon).

Canon EF 400mm f/5.6L (available on Amazon).

 

Credits -

Created by Mike Hollingshead for his website stormandsky.com

http://stormandsky.com/sky-tracker

Thanks! I used a Mylar solar filter that I made out of a sheet. You can get one from here when they become available again: https://www.amazon.com/Solar-Filter-Telescopes-Binoculars-Cameras/dp/B00DS7IFQS

Can I use either of these as a solar filter?

https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1319799-REG/daystar_filters_ulf90_90mm_universal_lens_filter.html

https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1340604-REG/celestron_94220_eclipsmart_white_light_solar_filter.html

https://www.amazon.com/Solar-Filter-Telescopes-Binoculars-Cameras/dp/B00DS7IFQS/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1502359266&sr=1-1&keywords=solar+filter+sheets

There are a few things you can do. You can get some solar film and rig it up to sit over the front of your lens. You could do this a number of ways, this being more complicated but probably the nicest way: YouTube video.

The problem is that 105mm on a crop sensor will not render a large image of the sun. It'll probably be too small to see Mercury.

The better solution might be to do the solar film on the telescope and rig up your phone camera to it. I've never tried it, but others have gotten good results from it. Other than that, I would suggest looking at renting a lens and doing the solar filter over that.

Don't fret too much if you miss it, I'll likely miss it in my location, the forecast shows clouds and rain all day. It's not like Venus transits; the next one being 100 years from now. The next Mercury transit is in November 2019.

> https://www.amazon.com/Solar-Filter-Telescopes-Binoculars-Cameras/dp/B00DS7S52W

Yeah, that stupid moon is SO bright right now. We've gotten some good looks at Jupiter and its moons, but I'm really looking forward to Saturn. What resources are you using to know when Saturn will be high up?

Is there a good way to mount a flexible sheet as a filter? I'm talking about something like this: https://www.amazon.com/Solar-Filter-Telescopes-Binoculars-Cameras/dp/B00DS7S52W/ I'm not super familiar with square filters, but the mounts I see on amazon seem specific to a particular square filter system? Or can you mount any sheet of material that's the proper size in them?

I've found the best nights are super black with no moon. Have a dark sky preserve near you? If you're in the northern hemisphere, the weekend of May 26-28 would be excellent for some night sky photos if skys are clear. Moon rises at 6am, milky way rises at roughly 2-3am, so 3-4 am would be an excellent time to start taking some pictures.

You might know all of this, but some basics: I always start with a super high ISO (16000 is max on the 80d) to frame the picture, then actual shots are always max aperture. I explained in another comment how to focus in the dark. Once you've framed what you want, drop that ISO way down and set the exposure up to your lens' max (500 rule). Vary the ISO from 400-3200 to find the balance between noise and light. That's the basics of getting a night shot.

For more advanced: The best photos are a stack of multiple light (basically high ISO) shots and dark (low ISO) shots. Since noise from ISO is random, taking multiple shots will average out the noise to an unnoticeable level, while start light will shine through. One caveat: the earth rotates, so the starts will move in your frame of reference. You could either ignore the slight trails/misalignment or build/buy a star tracker. You can build a barndoor tracker for like $30 (all manual) or purchase one on amazon for ~$300 (iOptron is usually a solid brand)

One of the best intro lenses for land(star)scape photography is the Rokinon f/2.8 14mm. It's all manual, but is a sharp, fast lens at under $300. I own one but my primary lens is a Sigma 18-35mm f/1.8 lens (designed for APS-C cameras).

Start basic before spending lots on trackers/tripods/lenses, that first time you capture the milky way is exhilarating. for more, check out /r/astrophotography

How does this setup look?


EOS T7i
iOptron
Rokinon
Remote
Tripod

I'm looking to buy a small portable tracking mount for my DSLR... something I can just use to replace the head on my camera tripod. I'd love to have that sort of portability because I can just lug my Losmandy G-11 everywhere (lol). Ideally, I would want one with a polar scope for easy alignment. Here's a couple I've seen:

iOptron Sky Tracker

Skywatcher Sky Adventure

This $400 Vixen thing

There are several more on the market too, I just saw an ad for the mini version of the skywatcher in the most recent S&T. Has anybody used any of these?

Yup, I’m also hearing good stuff about these svbony goldlines: Svbony 3,2 cm Teleskop Okular Zubehör-Sets Kits vollständig Mutil beschichtet 66 Grad Ultra Weitwinkel HD 6 mm 9 mm 15 mm 20 mm für Astronomischen Teleskop https://www.amazon.de/dp/B01MR78I42/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_VHuuDb815047C
My question to you astro-gurus would be if these are comparable with something like the Orion Expanse line, because at this price they are quite a steal.

Thank you for the reply. I was looking at getting the goldline eyepieces(which are the ultra wide I think?). I'd like to get a kit if possible. Would These Eyepieces be sufficient or would you recommend something else? I didn't see any kits with the ones you linked me. I'm just trying to make sure I buy the ones that will be right for me because it seems I wasted money with the plossl set from Celestron, so I'm just going to sell it on eBay. Any kit suggestions would be great so I can view everything I'm wanting to ASAP (I go to Nags Head the last week of August and want to have them by then). Thank you for any replies and suggestions. I greatly do appreciate it!

Thanks for the reply. My parents got this scope for our oldest son (22 now). I used it more then he did. I was amazed by how much I could see of Jupiter. Yeah it was fuzzy but I could make out the cloud bands and the red dot.

And thanks for saying that the gold line is the SVBONY brand. I see it was mentioned in the faq but when I searched it it brought up SVBONY. I thought that was some boot leg china stuff, well I guess it kind of is, you didn't touch with a 10 foot pole. So would this be a good "kit" to start with?

I do not recommend getting a barlow, get a 6mm goldline their like $35 off of amazon and a 20mm wide fov one.

The reason i dont recommend a Barlow is its a temporary solution to a permanent problem, people think that their doubling their collection, but in reality it does, but at a cost, you cant see as much detail, which in my opinion is not worth it in a scope this size

On Amazon. Unfortunately, the price went up and it's not available until 8/20/17.

8"x8" Solar Filter Sheet for Telescopes, Binoculars and Cameras https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00DS7S52W/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_79BLzbQ45T2E8

You don't need a filter during totality but you need a special solar filter up to and after totality or you'll fry you camera. I bought this filter and I am making a rig to pop it on and off quickly. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00DS7S52W/ref=cm_sw_r_other_apa_VPFIzbVG6AYXP

This video might also be helpful if you have not shot the sun before

https://youtu.be/S_nnEDwv19k

Have Fun and Good Luck!😊

Is this good enough? http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00DS7S52W/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?qid=1462740584&sr=8-1&pi=SX200_QL40&keywords=solar+filter&dpPl=1&dpID=41vp2KLkxGL&ref=plSrch

I'm using this solar filter sheet. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00DS7S52W/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o05_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Made a makeshift solar filter from it out of cardboard and electrical tape. My camera is a Nikon p900. Certainly not an sophisticated astrophotography set up, but I make due with what I have.

is it this one?. I need to get a cheap filter that just works.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00PNEQ79Q/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_ANMFDbTMYV3KF

It will work perfectly for a 3:1 direct drive setup.

Qunqi NEMA17 Stepper Motor bipolar 4 leads 34mm 12V 0.4A 26Ncm https://www.amazon.com/dp/B017B8UF4O/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_KgrQybA1SQS9A

These are the two new ones I bought

Short Body Nema 17 Bipolar Step Motor 3.5V 1A 18.4oz.in/13Ncm DIY CNC https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00PNEQ79Q/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_zhrQybAF00AD8

This is the short body one.

I know you didnt ask me but im using this one: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00PNEQ79Q/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I could be wrong about the stock extruder specs, but I believe it's right around 42 Ncm. The BMG is a 3:1 gear ratio, so you're getting 3x torque output at the filament at the cost of the stepper running at 3x speed. 42/3=14 Ncm, so anything around that will give you about the same torque as the stock setup. That being said, I picked up a 13 Ncm pancake stepper for my direct drive setup which is working well for me, albeit running a bit too hot for my tastes. This one specifically. You could likely find something similar on eBay or Amazon.ca that would match that.

Personally I'm still using direct-drive, not Bowden, which is why I'm swapping out the extruder motor for a smaller one. The one I'm using is this one, and you can find details about how to set up the wiring harness on soliforum if you're not confident in rewiring it yourself just going by a multimeter and the spec sheet.

If you're just gonna do a bowden setup though, you may as well just stick with the stock motor since there's no real reason to change it- the whole idea of a bowden extruder is to keep the weight of your extruder off the moving parts of the nozzle, so you can print faster, meaning you won't need to reduce the weight of the motor itself.

I would like to buy this: VITE Metal T-Adapter/2x Barlow Lens 1.25-Inch Fully Multi-Coated APO (Black) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00WW0TC32/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_ctgtxbZXRRZ26 to mount a camera onto my telescope. At this point, I just need to buy a ring that fits that specific camera, correct?

Is there anything else I need to buy?

Simple question about Barlow adapter and DSLR. I just got a T-ring adapter for my Nikon and a 2x barlow that can also be connected to.

My question is, are you not meant to put an eyepiece in the Barlow AND attach your camera? If I understand this correctly, the Barlow is acting as the eyepiece itself, right? I was just wondering, because I was putting my eyepieces inside the Barlow and the 17mm one looked like it would be hitting my mirror. The 6mm eyepiece looks like it should fit, but I didn't want to chance it and mess up my stuff.

[The SVBONY Barlow in question] (https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00WW0TC32/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_1rMgzb9RNV8J3)

For a 130SLT, yes. However there is a limitation.

You'll need a T-ring for Sony. Example: https://www.amazon.com/Gosky-Telescope-T-adapter-Adapter-Cameras/dp/B0163XEXPU ($13)

However, the 130SLT may require a barlow to reach focus. Sony's A mounts have a shorter flange focal distance than the Nikons I use (Which couldn't reach focus), but I'm not sure it's enough.

Example of barlow (I have used for my nikons, and it's actually a decent/good barlow) https://www.amazon.com/SVBONY-Magnification-Multi-Broadband-Telescope-Astronomy/dp/B00WW0TC32/

The other option (the one I opted for eventually) is to get appropriately length M5 rods and coupling nuts, and move the primary mirror forward 30mm-ish. (As I recall, I need to measure that sometime.)

The advantage for the Barlows is that it's easy. However that effectively doubles the focal length, and the focal ratio becomes f/10 as opposed to f/5, making imaging much harder.

You will have tracking issues, as it's supposed to update about every 30 seconds, and the motors seem to stall on those updates. So I would recommend keeping it to 15 or maybe 20 seconds. You can shoot 30 sec or longer, but you will need to discard a fair number of images.

Here's an example from 2ish years ago, with I think the barlow solution: https://i.imgur.com/gz5gVCn.jpg

Thanks for the help! I had no idea the mirrors were so delicate.

For now I'm probably going to pick up the 6 and 15mm eyepieces that Schorhr and GreenNinja139 mentioned, but I'm definitely going to want a light pollution filter later on. Obviously dark skies are preferable, but getting anywhere with low light pollution for me is going to mean a two hour drive each way, so I'll be stuck at home for most of my gazing.

As for the Barlow, does this look like a decent one?

You should post this on /r/telescopes

But if you can scrape a little more money then the AWB Onesky 130 has got really good reviews.

A universal smartphone mount can be got for around 20 bucks

GOSKY this clamps to eyepiece, less likely to drop off when inverted

I was also thinking of this one - might be better?

I remember seeing some of your posts! Things seem to be going well with your new scope :)

Appears to be this one.

Yep! Although it's much easier to buy a holder for your phone like this one.

https://www.amazon.com/Gosky-Universal-Phone-Adapter-Mount/dp/B013D2ULO6/ref=mp_s_a_1_1_sspa?keywords=Telescope%2Bphone%2Bmount%2Bgosky&qid=1558458771&s=gateway&sr=8-1-spons&psc=1&th=1

I chose the big one in "colors", works great with all sizes of eye pieces.

Cheapest way to do it is to get a decent telescope and one of these adapter Smartphone adapter for telescope

I’ve seen results from these setups and they’re pretty impressive.

Hey guys, I have an Omegon N 150/750 EQ-4 Telescope (German site). I also got my hands on a Canon EOS 350D.

On astroshop.de, they point out, that an DSRL probably isn't best for that telescope and an webcam would be better.
Does that apply to planetary and DSO imaging? I will definitely do not but I hope to get especially decent DSO shots.

Should I use an Adapter like this one (or do I even need to buy all these parts?) for my 350D or would I be better of using an mobile phone adapter like this one for my Xiaomi Mi A1 camera?

there is software out there that lets you combine multiple images or video into a single image. Doing this lets you tease far more detail than you could get with a single shot.

I use PIPP for preprocessing and RegiStax for the stacking.

Give me a little bit to find the model of mount i got for my phone (i have since upgraded to a system where i can plug in my DSLR

Edit: I have this cellphone mount. it is sturdy and seems very well made: Gosky Universal Cell Phone Adapter Mount

https://www.amazon.com/Gosky-Universal-Phone-Adapter-Mount/dp/B013D2ULO6/ref=sr_1_1_sspa?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1549039136&sr=1-1-spons&keywords=Gosky+Universal+Cell+Phone+Adapter+Mount&psc=1

Hi and thanks for posting!

There’s actually some depth to this - but the basics are pretty easy.

First - you want a mount.

Gosky Universal Cell Phone Adapter Mount https://www.amazon.com/dp/B013D2ULO6/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_DjXDCbK4SMB9N

That one works nicely for me! Nothing wrong with a blue tooth shutter control if you can find one either. Keeps you from vibrating your own shot by touching the phone to take the picture

Second - remember that you’re trying to get your camera to see what the eyepiece is projecting. Your life will be much better if you use an eyepiece with a large field of view - typically longer focal length (lower magnification) eyepieces have wider fields of view (unless you’re prepared to spend a decent amount).

Third - no filters during photography - not even a “moon” filter. Adjust the exposure levels on your phone if you can (I posted the nightcap camera app for iPhone earlier- it’s amazing), to brighten nebulae or dim the moon. There’s nothing wrong with a little post processing (that’s where things get interesting)

As far as post processing goes... that can range from a little photoshop magic to either taking video (or a lot of photos) and “stacking” the frames/photos on top of each other. This brings out an insane amount of detail that would otherwise be lost.

A few computer programs i want to try, once I have a working computer (I destroyed mine a bit ago, been modding this sub from an iPad lol) are PIPP, autostakkert, and registax.

If I missed anything you had a question on, lemme know!

Edit: nightcap let’s you take long exposures like a DSLR camera... really worth $3 if you have an iPhone 👍🏻

I looked it up ( Gosky Adapter for Phone ).

Most reviews are for using with telescopes or binoculars to look at wildlife or for astronomy.

The 2 things that stopped me from ordering one right now were:

>(1) Review for Microscope: "It's really difficult to get it set up right. On our microscope scope you really need to hold the phone further from the objective than this allows. Nobody in the lab uses it."

So I thought I would order it and see how it does with a microscope to photograph cells, & just return it if the images were bad or adapter was difficult to use. Buuuuuut...

>(2) No Returns: " Terrible design squeezes the sides of the phone right where the buttons are located, making it useless for my OnePlus 5T. Further, the way it clamps onto the eyepiece is pretty weak and will not support a steady setup, even if it doesn't compress your phone's buttons as it does mine. I wanted to return this item but Gosky has a "gotcha" return policy. They never even responded to my return request.
STAY AWAY from this bad product and disreputable seller."

I will see if I can find a different one that allows me to return the product though. I'll share if I find one.

Edit: Many of the 3rd party vendors on Amazon (if not all) do not offer free returns or even returns. I contacted Amazon (after reading they their epically long policies) - if you file a form called "A to z form" with your Amazon account, then Amazon sends you a box with prepaid postage so you can send it back, then Amazon refunds you. Customer service also said "usually a phone call to make a complaint, especially if you have Prime, is enough to get Amazon to refund you without having to file a form and send the item back". Coolio!

They make smartphone mounts specifically for telescope eye peices. It's actually a great way to see what the telescope is showing without bending down to put your eye to the eyepiece.

Gosky Universal Cell Phone Adapter Mount - Compatible Binocular Monocular Spotting Scope Telescope Microscope-Fits almost all Smartphone on the Market -Record The Nature The World https://www.amazon.com/dp/B013D2ULO6/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_9uiUCbAAV14NN

You might want to start with a simple compound microscope and get a cell phone adapter to view with. A stereo microscope is great but it's difficult to view "together". Buying a microscope used will cut the price a lot, but beware the objectives could be dirty and need cleaning. also, high magnifications like 1000x can be difficult to use, because of low field of view, high light levels required and may be difficult for a kid to focus. A few hundred dollars isn't going to cut it for those magnifications. Stick to a scope that has 4x, 10x and maybe 20x objectives.

This type of basic microscope is great for learning, has LED lights for both reflection and transmission viewing, works on batteries, easy to use. https://www.amazon.com/TELMU-Microscope-Magnification-Illumination-Microscopes/dp/B07DQQKJNZ/

Cell phone adapter I've used with great success: https://www.amazon.com/Gosky-Universal-Phone-Adapter-Mount/dp/B013D2ULO6/

I have this one from Gosky, but I didn't check the specs. It doesn't fit my 2" focuser, (I need this one) and I have yet to try it on my binoculars, but it's very well made for a cheap phone holder. Made of metal; quite heavy, too.

You can pick up something like this and find a telescope in a thrift shop or pick up a beginner one from Amazon. I'll run you $100 on the high end but will dramatically improve your results.

I keep this one in my range bag.

Gosky Universal Cell Phone Adapter Mount - Compatible with Binocular Monocular Spotting Scope Telescope and Microscope - For Iphone Sony Samsung Moto Etc -Record the Nature of the World https://www.amazon.com/dp/B013D2ULO6/ref=cm_sw_r_other_awd_NpmIwbD3K88BW

if you're okay with having an absolute potato of a spotting scope because you're only shooting at 100~300 (like I am as well), I have a "Celestron Upclose 20-60x60mm". you can usually find them on ebay for sub $100, I got mine for like $35.

​

obviously to read wind and see hits nice and clearly you should get a much much better optic, but, if you just want to see hits on a shoot-n-c target without walking downrange this does the job. the ocular focus on mine is loose by now (its base came unglued and rotates if you don't restrain it), but for $35 I'm not arguing.

​

you can also pick up a cell phone mount for pretty cheap on amazon, which helps because you don't have to plant your face next to the optic and futz around getting the right eye relief.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B013D2ULO6/

​

granted...I can arguably see the target just as well with my Tract FFP 4-20 mounted on my tikka. I'm kind of wondering whether it was worth it, but it's handy when I don't happen to have brought the Tract for the day.

I'm using a Orion Maksutov Cassegrain 90mm, https://www.telescope.com/Orion-Apex-90mm-Maksutov-Cassegrain-Telescope/p/9820.uts on a dobsonian mount, it's small enough to fit in my backback but has powerful magnification (has a 1250mm focal length).

I use a t-adapter to mount my camera right to the scope, no eye piece is used. it's called "prime focus" mode, it's simple and the light from the telescope falls directly on the film (or image sensor if youre using digital). Best way to go by far in re image quality.

HOWEVER, to get started, I think there is no better way than using ANY scope you can buy, and using your iphone/android with a camera mount: https://www.amazon.com/Gosky-Universal-Phone-Adapter-Mount/dp/B013D2ULO6/ref=zg_bs_3426051_1?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=YWC66GBKMH57CV86FY3W this approach is called "afocal imaging" which is fancy speak for "holding your phone against the eye piece"

Digital astrophotography is 10x easier than film astrophotography because you get instant feedback and can make adjustments on the fly. I do film because I love the "light falling on film" aspect of it. But I started out on digital and 99% of my astro-gear is digital.

re which telescope: really pick whatever you can find, and don't go to large. A 90mm reflector or reflector will be able to see the SAME exact things as a 135mm reflector...only REALLY large scopes can see very far into the universe, and large scopes require large 5 thousand dollar tripods to track the objects correctly for imaging...so it's all a moo point

any of these scopes + your phone would make a great set up: https://www.amazon.com/s?k=90mm+telescope&ref=nb_sb_noss_2

oh and check out craiglist, soooo many people get into telescopes for a month then sell them later dirt cheap.

love discussing this stuff, dm me if you have any q's

TL;DR: 220 for scope plus a t-adapter

Cell phone mount: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B013D2ULO6/ref=ox_sc_sfl_title_4?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=AHQ6VCR020F8X

I recently got a gosky adapter and it works perfectly.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B013D2ULO6/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1522721906&sr=8-1&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_FMwebp_QL65&keywords=digiscope&dpPl=1&dpID=41Syg5BOS4L&ref=plSrch

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B013D2ULO6/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

This should help you out oc!

I sent them an email, but then I used my Google-fu and bought this one from Amazon. We'll see how it works.

https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B013D2ULO6/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o03_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Works with Microscopes too! I do it at work every day. If I have to take several pics, I bust out this thing; which is meant for telescopes, but I use it on several microscopes.

You’re welcome! I can’t find mine at the moment, but it’s very similar to this one. You can find ones that are electronic but they can be crazy expensive.

Vankey Cellphone Telescope Adapter Mount, Work with Binocular Monocular Spotting Scope Microscope for iPhone, Samsung, HTC, LG and More https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01788LT3S/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_vYhzCb3MVZW20

This is amazing! Even though I do not have a telescope yet, I want one for my binoculars. That would be awesome for wildlife watching.

​

Oh wait, I'm in Canada and it costs a lot more here, about 38 USD instead of under 15 USD :-(
Will have it in my wish list for now.

Edit: Found a similar one that has a more reasonable price when bought from the North. This one is less popular based on reviews so I hope it is as good!

Vankey Cellphone Telescope Adapter Mount, Work with Binocular Monocular Spotting Scope Microscope for iPhone, Samsung, HTC, LG and More https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01788LT3S/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_.evZDb24W2VK2

So we tend to watch when someone is selling a batch of these at a good price, usually short-lived, and there is a reseller selling some for a paltry $17 buzz on Amazon right now. I can seriously recommend picking one up. I've got the 6 and 9mm if these, and combined with my 20mm Plossl and 32mm Plossl are basically the 4 EPs I use the most.

Currently being sold here:

Yosoo 1.25" Ultra Wide Angle Eyepiece Lens 6MM Focal Length 66-Deg Multi-Coated for Telescope (1.25 Eyepiece Lens) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01L1HBIME/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_bcgADb6VNXKB2

Edit: also I've got the 8-24mm zoom eyepiece (which is basically the exact same optics resold by Meade and Celestron) and am fond of it, much better than stock junk eyepieces, and almost as good as base model branded Plossls, but these out perform it at low focal lengths.

Is this the one? https://www.amazon.com/Eyepiece-Length-66-Deg-Multi-Coated-Telescope/dp/B01L1HBIME

You can buy a goto mount with the money you save on the scope:

https://www.amazon.com/Celestron-Advanced-VX-Computerized-Mount/dp/B00AYGIQDS

I'm just gunna leave this here
http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B003Q9RERY/ref=pd_aw_sim_p_6/182-1305519-4191902?refRID=1KVN2R4PNFG0NKY533WR