Astrophotography.

theforce

theforce

theforce

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Joined
5 Jan 2005
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2,238
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Cyprus
Hi. I was really interested in getting into this. I am an amateur photographer for quite some time and planning to get an Orion X8 which will help taking the pictures since my funds are a bit low at the moment and can't afford even the Russians to take me up for some piccies any more :p
Would anyone know what good DSLR for the job at hand. I currently use a Konica Minolta DS6 and if i have the chance i nick my mate's Nikon D200 but i would be happy to listen to some suggestions.
Thanks for your help. :)
 
I used to try it with my canon s30, but it was not really that good for astrophotography. I have just got a D70, and I will definitely be trying it out. Hopefully it willwork with the adapter.... Just have to hope for some clear sky.
 
For whatever camera you pick, make sure you can find a T-Ring & T-adapter to fit the scope. Having not used my scope in a few years and neglecting to clean the primary, the tube had some dust floating around in it. After doing some astrophotography, you may want to check the camera sensor for signs of accumulated dust.

DSC03818.jpg

In my setup, the camera is at the bottom , dust and mavity!
 
Surely you don't need a "special" DSLR for taking pictures via your Telescope? Just the appropriate T adapters as listed above?

I plan on getting back into astronomy and I want a DSLR to go along with this but don't plan on dropping £1000+ on the camera or even the telescope!

Anybody got any example shots?
 
Messiah Khan said:
The problem with most DSLRs are the agressive IR and UV filters which you don't always want for astrophotography.

PS. Awesome sig.;)
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Maybe if I get seriously back into Astronomy and seriously into photography I'd get a special DSLR. Until then I am willing to live with the compromise. £2000 buys a hell of a lot of telescope! :)

Oh and cheers on the sig!
 
Nice replies here and lots of information going on. Since i am on a budget i am thinking of getting a Canon EOS 400D which doesn't cost an arm and a leg and it seems from the reviews i have read that it a very good camera or at least it's going to be a major leap from my Konica Minolta G6. I have searched for the D20a but with no avail and since it's a discontinued and specilized product it will cost a fortune to get it. In addition there was something about requiring a filter to shoot "normal" pics without messing the colors up.
What are your takes for the D400? Shall also be getting one of those remote controls things rather than pushing the button myself.
As for the telescope i was thinking for the SkyQuest XT6 IntelliScope or SkyQuest XT8 IntelliScope. I have read some reviews about them and both models faire good with the XT8 fairing better offcourse. What i am wondering is if those two Dobsonians type telescopes is the best thing to do for taking pictures aswell.
 
You might want to consider a Nikon D70s if you can find one. they have much weaker low pass filters than most cameras, so would be quite good. Also look out for cameras they have mirror locup feature, as this will be usefull to minimise camera shake.
 
theforce said:
As for the telescope i was thinking for the SkyQuest XT6 IntelliScope or SkyQuest XT8 IntelliScope. I have read some reviews about them and both models faire good with the XT8 fairing better offcourse. What i am wondering is if those two Dobsonians type telescopes is the best thing to do for taking pictures aswell.
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Nice telescopes. Didn't see anything about T-Adapters for them in my quick google but as far as telescopes go I like.

Just wondering how bad my savings plan would be affected by having to save for the XT8 + InteliScope package. :(
 
I am staying away from the little computer that gets you where you want to go for starters for me to get some quality time with the telescope and that will force me to learn a bit more about the sky :D Later on you can get it as an add-on but it costs quite a lot.
As for the adaptors for the camera i have searched in Orion's website and there are some converters but there isn't much information there about what cameras is for .etc
It seems to me that when pointing those kind of telescopes at very high angles there is going to be no way for you to see what the camera is gettting since it's gonna be near the ground and also there is the possibility of the camera hitting the stand of that thing.
 
theforce said:
I am staying away from the little computer that gets you where you want to go for starters for me to get some quality time with the telescope and that will force me to learn a bit more about the sky :D Later on you can get it as an add-on but it costs quite a lot.
As for the adaptors for the camera i have searched in Orion's website and there are some converters but there isn't much information there about what cameras is for .etc
It seems to me that when pointing those kind of telescopes at very high angles there is going to be no way for you to see what the camera is gettting since it's gonna be near the ground and also there is the possibility of the camera hitting the stand of that thing.
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I should think you can get the correct adapters for the telescope as you can for ones that are a lot cheaper. Also you don't look through the bottom of the telescope! The eye piece is at the top otherwise it would be a bit hard to see anything with your head stuffed on the floor.
 
James07 said:
Well aint you the brainy one, the name of that particular one, brains.
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Thats an old Celestron C8 2000mm/f10 SCT. No fancy gadgets or gizmos on it. Literally just a SCT telescope. Back in the 80's it was about £800. Think I bought it from David Hinds. No idea how much it is now, probably a lot cheaper with better drives, GPS and and tripods.
 
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