I posted this over at CN but would love to hear from some of the club’s local astrophotographers.
I started in astronomy about 3 years ago with an 8 inch dob and like ZWO probably intended the Seestar in my Bortle 6/7 backyard has functioned like a gateway drug into astrophotography. I have been doing lots of reading (this forum, Backyard Astronomer’s Guide, Deep Sky Imaging Primer) and watching YouTube videos (Astrobackyard, etc.) and have come up with what I think is a reasonable course for getting started. I’d appreciate the feedback of some of the more experienced imagers and see if this rig is on the right track. I’d like to stay within a reasonable budget but also understand that going cheap isn’t the right way to go to be successful.
Equipment I already have:
AT72EDii (can I build a rig around this with the 0.8x focal reducer or would a different small APO be better from the beginning?)
Tak DC 100FL (not looking to start with longer FL imaging though)
Canon Rebel T6 (non astro modified)
iPad
Macbook Pro
Equipment I’ve been looking at:
Mount: SW HEQ5 with belt mod (from FLO) vs CEM26 vs GEM28 vs AM5 (more $$). If weight weren’t an issue I would just go with an EQ6R Pro but I’m not sure about dragging that much weight outside to my yard or to CRO.
Guiding/Control:
ASIAIR (plus/pro/mini?)
ZWO ASI 120mm guide camera
ZWO/SVBONY 30mm guide scope
Camera:
Start with the canon T6 vs buy a used astro modified DSLR vs ASI533MC Pro vs ASI294MC Pro?
I’m open to any feedback some of those more experienced might be able to offer!
I just got interested in amateur astronomy and astrophotography last December, and looked through everything I could absorb. I’m using a Canon EOS RP (stock), 4" triplet refractor with flattener or reducer, ASIAIR Mini, and the EQ6-R Pro. My experience is fairly minor, take all below with plenty of grains of salt
Current Equipment:
AT72 and Tak should be fine to get started since that’s one less expense. Plenty of other parts of workflow and troubleshooting you can spend your time and money on first.
Good to go with the Rebel. Plenty of things to get excited for in the night sky with a stock DSLR. If you haven’t yet, just try some astrophotography with a regular camera lens and a non-tracking mount/tripod, it’s great fun.
Make sure you get your back-focus sorted out with details from the scope and camera manufacturers. And be prepared to potentially experiment with spacers or different adapters. There is a cool adjustable, variable length back-focus adjuster available from Askar, assuming they make one that fits your adapter threads. I think they do M48 and M54.
To get a feel for the best targets for your field of view, set up your scopes, reducers, and camera in Stellarium desktop (using the panel on the upper right). Fish around for targets you enjoy, flip back and forth between equipment, and find some good combinations of target/equipment. Focus on them first as you get started taking photos, and get in some good data with them to play around with in post-processing. You’ll probably prefer targets that aren’t pure HII nebulosity with your stock DSLR.
If you’re worried about aberration from the doublets, it’s not a big deal. A lot of aberration can easily be reduced in software these days if you make the monetary or time investment, depending on your choices (PixInsight, Siril, etc.)
Future equipment:
Most people seem happy with the AM5, seems like a good mount. My experience is only with the EQ6-R Pro, and boy is it a heavy piece of kit. But weight is stability (esp. with the winds here), and its stock mechanisms allow you to skip the need to mod a new piece of equipment like you’d want to with the HEQ5. I’ve used its weight as a motivation to do more resistance training for long-term health. If you go EQ6-R Pro, buy it on sale (or used)-- it regularly dips to ~$1,750 or less new.
The ASIAIR Mini has been great for me so far. I like that it’s smaller than the Plus. So far as I recall, the major advantages of upgrading are on-board memory and USB 3. With still photography and a thumb drive, neither of those are a concern. If you want to do solar or planetary photography with lucky imaging and video, the USB 3 might be a bigger deal. Wireless connectivity is good – always fine in the field, and in Station mode at home it manages good speed at ~100ft and through two walls to my router.
ASI120mm Mini gets the job done no problem. With its pixel size, it’s best suited to a guide scope of ~200-250mm FL or more, which you would want anyway if using your Tak. With the AT72ED and reducer, you’re wide enough that any short comings of the ASI120 w/ the 30mm guide scope would probably be insignificant.
The ASI533MC seems like a great starting camera, I’ve got my eyes on it for my next purchase. I’ve also gotten to play around at CRO with a modded Rebel T3i, which took fantastic pictures of the Great Orion nebula. The Rebel didn’t play well with my ASIAIR Mini, but I think they’ve added explicit support for the T3i since then. Switching out batteries can get annoying, so powering the ASI533MC with the ASIAIR Mini does sound nice-- but you can also get a USB power adapter for a DSLR/mirrorless camera.
If you start to look into mobile power, I’ve been enjoying my Bluetti EB55. Lots of options available in that area, but I’ve heard Lithium-iron (LiFePO4) batteries may be preferable to Lithium-ion. Iron is lower power-density, but allows for more charge cycles and is stable over wider operating temperatures.
Clear skies!
Edit: Take Andy’s advice below for sure. He has years and years of photography and astrophotography experience.
Sorry for the delay. Honestly, and unfortunately… it’s all about your budget.
Not wasting money on “beginner level” and “junk” will help you in the long run. I have lots and lots of older “beginner level” stuff, you end up stuck with it after you outgrow it.