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mathteacher
Carpal Tunnel
Reged: 05/13/07
Posts: 2477
Loc: Oakland, CA
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Don't frequent this forum much, but really enjoy everyone's work. Been observing for over 1 year. Just started to take simple astrophotos, but in the long run I see sketching as a more sustainable activity for me.
What kind of mount do you prefer for sketching? EQ or altaz? Driven or undriven? I know different targets may require different mounts. Let me know!
Regards,
Mr. Wang
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Regards, Mr. Wang . . . . . . . Images and Gear. . . . . . . Let's Go Observing
CR 150-HD - The Hammer, Vixen ED100sf - The Skipper, Orion ST80 - The Pug
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super member
Reged: 11/22/05
Posts: 109
Loc: Finland
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Everything has its advantages. Tracking capabilities are always useful when sketching with high magnifications but not necessary.
I've had my 8" Orion DSE for 6-7 years now and don't have any complaints. Yes, it is not particularly nice sketching tiny details @ 600x when the object disappears from the view in few seconds but one gets used to it. Here having tracking might work wonders though!
Just remember to keep the sketching simple (round stars, yes they're round!) and enjoy the whole thing. And no Photoshop 
/Jake
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Jaakko Saloranta - Some basic sketches.../
8" Orion DSE
4" Sky-Watcher
3" Konus RFT
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rodelaet
Post Laureate
Reged: 04/28/06
Posts: 3064
Loc: 50°56' N - 4°58' E (Belgium)
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Hello Mr Wang,
I started with a goto-mount a few years ago. Later on came a scope with a simple alt-az mount. It does'nt matter to me, as long as the viewing position is comfortable and you feel relaxed. So grab a chair. An hour runs by very quickly while sketching. From a portability point of view: The alt-az is faster and very straight forward to set-up. No fiddling with power supplies, control boxes, alignment stars and the like.
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Rony
My Astronomical Sketches
My Binocular Sketches
Callibrate your Monitor with this little strip.
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RLTYS
Carpal Tunnel
Reged: 12/18/04
Posts: 2333
Loc: New York (Long Island)
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I really have no choice. I use my 10" dob for sketching. At times I've been able to sketch Mars and Saturn at 503x (when seeing permits) with this scope. It just takes practice.
Clear Skies.
Rich (RLTYS)
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10" F4.8 Refl.
4" F5 Refr. (Genesis)
3" F4 Celestron FirstScope
50mm F12 Refr. (Tasco #6TE-5)
12x63 and 10x50 Binoculars.
"I want to do more then just look."
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Erix
Toad Lily
Reged: 12/25/04
Posts: 22539
Loc: Ohio, USA
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I've used both non tracking and tracking. Non tracking isn't that difficult once you get used to it, but I have to say I really enjoy being able to concentrate on the sketching/observing without worrying about fiddling with keeping the target in the FOV.
I have an LXD75 that I enjoy. It's a German equatorial and is such an easy mount to use for my ED80 and the Maxscope. I don't bother with the GOTO on it and just unlock the clutches to manually move to the target. Then I lock the clutches for tracking or slow slewing to nearby targets.
The LX200 is on a pier and wedge and is great for high mags and tracking. Very easy on the back and neck and very simple "after" you get it up and running.
The ETX I have on a plate that acts similar to a wedge. I don't bother turning on the computer for it. I simply adjust the tilt angle of the plate for the target (this is my dedicated white light solar scope...I don't bother using it for anything else now) and unlock the azimuth clutch so that all I have to do is gently move the scope westerly to by hand for longer solar work.
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Erika
Automatic doors make me feel like a Jedi. 
Zhumell 16", 10" LX200 Classic,Orion ED80, ETX70-AT, DS Maxscope 60mm
My CN Gallery * 2007 July - tracking NOAA10963
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rolandlinda3
Carpal Tunnel
Reged: 01/24/06
Posts: 2309
Loc: Crozet VA 22932
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I tend to echo Erika's comments. We find not having to fiddle with the scope very helpful on longer sketching periods so we tend to use tracking scopes. Go-to is nice if you sketch a couple objects that are pretty hard to see...it reduces the time struggling to find something. Notwithstanding, we still sketch naked eye views, binocular views, and bare bones scope views. The good news is that you can get quite a bit of bang for the buck these days that includes decent tracking and some other things thrown in. An important consideration is field of view. If you like big objects, having a scope with decent field is wonderful. This is a contrast to planet hunting or moon detail where you want to crank up the magnification. So, if you have a scope that can give you field of view and still be able to nail the planets pretty well, then you have something that will last a long time.
Roland
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Roland
Sketches in members galleries: rolandlinda3
Inspirational stories/sketches at:
www.christworksministries.org
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