Newbie Camera for 8SE

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Redman67
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Newbie Camera for 8SE

#1

Post by Redman67 »


Hi everyone,

I'm a newbie to telescopes. Just purchased the 8SE for my son and I think I am more excited than he is. Just finished watching the moon during the day (I hope that is safe for your eyes). I thought one could get a closer look at the moon with this telescope. I can see the craters but i thought i could get a bit closer.. more zoomed in. Haven't aligned it yet because I lost my level bubble, I think I have to level it first right? Anyhow my question is I would like to get a camera for this to photo planets and stuff. Any suggestions? Is the Iphone adapter any good? Or is it better to get one of those dedicated cameras. Any suggestion on one of those ZWO cameras? Maybe an all purpose basic one. There are so many different kinds and don't know where to start. I think color would be better for a beginner and my budget is less than $500.. preferably much much less.

THanks in advance!!!!
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Lady Fraktor Slovakia
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Re: Newbie Camera for 8SE

#2

Post by Lady Fraktor »


Hello Redman, to get closer views of the craters you will need different focal length eyepieces for visual observing.
Reasonably level is good enough for getting set up as when you do a alignment the telescope will factor in the difference.

I will let the AP guys comment on cameras but be wary as they will have you mortgaging your home for gear :lol:

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sdbodin United States of America
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Re: Newbie Camera for 8SE

#3

Post by sdbodin »


OK, one of the AP guys, Don't, not yet. Get to know the scope like changing eyepieces to get the closer look you want. An 8 inch scope is plenty of 'horse power' to see many interesting sights. Then, after some months of getting to know your way around, consider a cell phone adapter for some quick snaps of the moon and maybe Jupiter and Saturn. Notice all that 'other stuff' is not accessible with an Alt-Az mounted scope like yours, you need to be 'equatorially mounted so the scope follows the arc of the sky. Otherwise the image will show as a series of short arcs, known as plate rotation.

I have viewed the sky for many years with an 8 and know that it can be fun and rewarding. Plus you don't need to sell that first child to get into the black hole of astrophotography.

Good luck,

Steve
Scopes; Meade 16 LX200, AT80LE, plus bunch just sitting around gathering dust
Cameras; Atik 460ex mono, Zwo ASI1600MC-cool, QHY5L-II color and mono
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Re: Newbie Camera for 8SE

#4

Post by JayTee »


Okay, one of the AP guys here. I actually agree with Steve. When you're dealing with a family telescope it's best to get to know what you have in front of you before you branch off into more complex forms of the hobby.

Here is an image of Saturn I took hand-holding my smartphone. Granted it was taken through an 11 inch scope but even an 8" scope would still give a decent image when you get lucky.
DSC_0006.JPG
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Re: Newbie Camera for 8SE

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Post by Graeme1858 »


Redman67 wrote: Sun Sep 12, 2021 2:19 am Hi everyone,

I'm a newbie to telescopes. Just purchased the 8SE for my son and I think I am more excited than he is. Just finished watching the moon during the day (I hope that is safe for your eyes).

Hello Redman

Probably not unsafe but a the Moon can get a bit too bright for comfort. A Moon filter screwed into the front end of your eyepiece will make it more comfortable and show more detail. Also, try looking at the edge of the shadow, the terminator, for detail, you will see a lot more going on there.

As for AP, a phone adapter is a good place to start but research is key. It is expensive and can be addictive though! Start reading now and be prepared to forgo any future holidays abroad, new cars etc! See you in the Astrophotography section of the forum soon.

Welcome to the forum.

Regards

Graeme
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Re: Newbie Camera for 8SE

#6

Post by helicon »


Hi Redman67 and welcome to TSS. I have the ZWO ASI 120 monochrome which I purchased for less than $200.
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Re: Newbie Camera for 8SE

#7

Post by gregl »


Welcome and congrats on the 8SE. I've got one and I've had lots of fun with it. You might want to visit the NexStar Resource Site, at https://www.nexstarsite.com. There are some good tips on using your scope there. One thing to know is that the SE mount runs in spur gears which results in some backlash. This means you have to pay attention when slewing and aligning so the backlash is compensated for. There is a little more to it than could be posted here but the site I referenced above has info on backlash correction.
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