12 replies to this topic

[DouglasPaul]

I want to start using the 10vr for basic photography, moon, planets and terrestrial. Where to start? I'm completely new to this. DSLR? Mirrorless? Do I need extra lenses or just the camera? Will a T ring currently available work on this telescope. Will something like this get me started?  https://shopgoodwill.../item/146261675

https://shopgoodwill.../item/146314049

 

This is what I'm working with;

 

 

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[DouglasPaul]

[Terra Nova]

You’re really going to need at least a minimal tracking German Equatorial Mount to do much of anything. Even with very short exposures, using that pan head mount will be an exercise in frustration.

[DouglasPaul]

You’re really going to need at least a minimal tracking German Equatorial Mount to do much of anything. Even with very short exposures, using that pan head mount will be an exercise in frustration.

It should be fine for terrestrial though? I was hoping the adjustment controls of the 10tr coupled with the pan head would be of sufficient help to take single shots of the moon and planets. Maybe just wishful thinking, you would certainly know better than I. Well, I do have the Super Polaris I could mount it to I guess for the night time shots.

Edited by DouglasPaul, 23 June 2022 - 11:54 AM.

[randcpoll]

A T-ring for whatever DSLR camera you have should work fine. However, expect a lot of chromatic aberration with this telescope since the focal length is so short. Don't try eyepiece projection until you get familiar with shooting at the natural focal length. The high magnification will just frustrate you. 

[DouglasPaul]

A T-ring for whatever DSLR camera you have should work fine. However, expect a lot of chromatic aberration with this telescope since the focal length is so short. Don't try eyepiece projection until you get familiar with shooting at the natural focal length. The high magnification will just frustrate you. 

The moon had a pretty good ring of fire through this telescope,

[jgraham]

I have actually done a fair amount of imaging with a 60mm Tasco and similar refractors. The key is to keep is light and keep it simple. You definitely want to go with Method Cb. If using a DSLR you will need a DSLR to t-thread adapter which can then screw onto the t-thread on the telescope. The best celestial target is it moon. If your camera supports mirror lock-up use it. Also, plan on using a remote switch to trip the shutter. The overall Plan is to raise the mirror, count to 3 to let the vibrations settle, then trip the shutter. Plan on taking lots of pictures. My routine is to set the focus using a Bahtinov mask on a bright star, move over to the moon, position is a bit off-center so that it will drift to the center when I take a picture, and repeat 8-16 times to get enough images to stack.

 

Plan-B is to use a lightweight astro camera like a small ZWO (I use an uncooled ZWO ASI294MC) and SharpCap on a notebook computer.

 

Plan-C, get a lightweight eyepiece mount for a cell phone and go that route. These can actually work fairly well.

 

Food for thought.

 

The most important thing is to relax, take your time, and have a fun learning experience.

[CharlieB]

A DSLR hanging off the scope when using a photo tripod makes it impossible to balance the setup.  Any mirror movement will certainly blur the image unless you use a mirrorless camera.  I've tried that setup with my 9VR and was happier using a cheap, dedicated 400mm camera lens.

 

Charlie

[DouglasPaul]

A DSLR hanging off the scope when using a photo tripod makes it impossible to balance the setup.  Any mirror movement will certainly blur the image unless you use a mirrorless camera.  I've tried that setup with my 9VR and was happier using a cheap, dedicated 400mm camera lens.

 

Charlie

Please bear with my ignorance, 400mm lens attached to what?

[DouglasPaul]

 

This with my cell phone and a 18mm eyepiece. Surely a camera will do better?

[bulletdodger]

First off, congrats on your 10VR. They are a very decent Vixen made widefield telescope with surprisingly little CA for it's size. I have the Celestron version and love it.
Even though it is capable of being used as a telephoto lens, it isn't it's strong suit. Fun to see what you will be able to do with it, though. Please post pics once you get it ironed out.
The 80mm short tube gets a lot of use at my house.

[CharlieB]

Please bear with my ignorance, 400mm lens attached to what?

Just a DSLR.

[LukaszLu]

 

Plan-B is to use a lightweight astro camera like a small ZWO (I use an uncooled ZWO ASI294MC) and SharpCap on a notebook computer.

This is the only reasonable option. With a diameter of 80mm and a focal length of 400mm, even the 2.4 micrometer pixel, which is typical for many astro camera models, is too large. With such a diameter, it would take almost a meter of focal length to obtain an optimal image size in the focus, adapted to the matrix. In the case of DSLR and a pixel typical of such matrices (approx. 6 micrometers) the focal length should be almost 2.5 m!

Of course, even DSLR will record the image correctly, but the number of details will be a fraction of what could be recorded with a matrix with a smaller pixel.

As you can see, the best solution for photos of the Moon and planets would be an astro camera with small pixel, e.g. 2.4 - and a 2 or even 3x Barlow lens. Forget about DSLR.