ZWO ASI in stock??? visual guy goes for AP

[SkyHiker]

The other ingredient for planetary AP is a large aperture. You may want to look into an 11"-14" scope and a mount for it, too. There is no escape for Rayleighs criterion. Looking at my own roadmap I could have saved money by not buying an AVX first and getting the G11S right away. The 12" Newt that is still in the mail should work for planetery AP with a good Barlow on it, as well as DSOs with a good CC (its primary purpose). Apos are relatively slow and lack aperture while a focal reducer leads to loss of magnification. My Mak Newt at F/4.8 works much better than my 127 mm Apo because of the low F ratio while it has a small secondary and flat field. Just my 2 cents, don't cut too many corners when you start accumulating gear.

[Gordon]

My suggestion is to get the camera and play.

I have the ASI120mc and use it primarily for lunar / planetary. It does a great job for that! I might also suggest firecapture as a capturing software. It's free and has a bit more 'options' than sharpcap in MHO.

I didn't notice but which scope are you going to primarily use it with?

[helicon]

I already ordered it. I'm planning on taking some shots with the 6" refractor. Anyway, we'll see how it goes. Thanks for the suggestion of firecapture Gordon. If it doesn't work out I may get a 102mm or even a Mak-Cass. I've been looking at those.

[helicon]

Wow, Michael. All this time I thought you were doing AP already -- judging for you frequent comments on the forum.

So, welcome to the club.

BABO

Thanks Joe. I have to date have done a few nightscapes, some constellation photos, moon at a distance, moon terminator through the Dob but no real AP. I have spent several years photographing coins with good results, though it is somewhat different than AP. Need a solid base to hold the cam, and special attention to focus and lighting, and some post processing. I greatly admire the work of dedicated APers here such as yourself. Here's an example of coin photography:

Gordian III, A.D. 238-244

AR Antoninianus, 24mm, 4.9 grams

Rome mint, A.D. 241-243

Obverse: IMP GORDIANVS PIVS FEL AVG; Radiate, draped, and cuirassed bust right

Reverse: PM TRP III COS II PP; Apollo seated left, holding laurel branch and leaning on lyre

Reference: RIC IV 114

[BABOafrica]

The coins looks great. Very nicely captured.

The obvious question, which may have been covered elsewhere:

Do you have an equatorial mount ???

BABO

[helicon]

The coins looks great. Very nicely captured.

The obvious question, which may have been covered elsewhere:

Do you have an equatorial mount ???

BABO

While I can take images of the moon with my Twilight II alt-az mount I realize I will have to get an equatorial for tracking the planets and for more rigidity, though the Twilight II is pretty stable. Anyway, if I ever try DSO AP I'll need one and probably a different camera. Since the Twilight II cost a relatively inexpensive $475 I understand I'll have to pay a lot more for an EQ.

[bobharmony]

I strongly suggest you refuse shipment on the camera when it arrives, Michael - otherwise you are doomed!!!!!

Bob

[helicon]

The blue pill or the red pill, I'm already down the rabbit hole...

[SkyHiker]

The coins looks great. Very nicely captured.

The obvious question, which may have been covered elsewhere:

Do you have an equatorial mount ???

BABO

While I can take images of the moon with my Twilight II alt-az mount I realize I will have to get an equatorial for tracking the planets and for more rigidity, though the Twilight II is pretty stable. Anyway, if I ever try DSO AP I'll need one and probably a different camera. Since the Twilight II cost a relatively inexpensive $475 I understand I'll have to pay a lot more for an EQ.

Not just for AP, for planets too. You will see pretty soon that, at suitable magnification, the planets fly through the small sensor of a ZWO ASI120. Have no fear, swallow one of those pills and start a new thread about the mount! This is where you should go for 50 lbs. AP capacity at least to keep yourself from having to upgrade later on and spending again. I look forward to your next thread....

[JayTee]

Michael,

You've seen my planetary and lunar images. All of those were taken on a tracking (motorized) Alt-Az mount. An EQ mount for planetary/lunar imaging is not a necessity.

Cheers,
JT

[helicon]

Michael,

You've seen my planetary and lunar images. All of those were taken on a tracking (motorized) Alt-Az mount. An EQ mount for planetary/lunar imaging is not a necessity.

Cheers,
JT

Ah-ha. Thanks JT. Well, I'll start with the moon and take it from there. I've spent some of the afternoon here browsing the web for mounts. Those Losmandy ones sure are nice (if a bit on the steep side pricewise).

[BABOafrica]

I've spent some of the afternoon here browsing the web for mounts. Those Losmandy ones sure are nice (if a bit on the steep side pricewise).

You know you're in serious trouble when you start buying lottery tickets.

BABO

[SkyHiker]

Michael,

You've seen my planetary and lunar images. All of those were taken on a tracking (motorized) Alt-Az mount. An EQ mount for planetary/lunar imaging is not a necessity.

Cheers,
JT

Ah-ha. Thanks JT. Well, I'll start with the moon and take it from there. I've spent some of the afternoon here browsing the web for mounts. Those Losmandy ones sure are nice (if a bit on the steep side pricewise).

Yes the Losmandies are nice. The simplicity and rugged mechanical quality are beautiful. The HD tripod is very well constructed and is as solid as a pier. They are a piece of art and nice to looks at even if you don't do anything with it.

I agree with you about the price point; I opted for a G11S for $2495 IIRC that has no goto system just a 492 controller for tracking and guiding. As a result eventually I built my own OnStep controller with stepper motors. In general if you're not a DIY person you need to shell out the extra bucks for the Gemini system, that adds quite a bit to it.

As you may have read in my threads about the G11S, I was unable to set up the worms nice and tight. They have to be a bit loose or else stepper motors will bind up. The stronger Gemini motors may not, I don't know. The reason being, the large crown wheel is never perfectly round, heat expansion and contraction also plays a role. These are the reasons to keep the worms a bit loose and balance the mount East heavy. Once the worms are engaged the system works well.

Nowadays they sell the mounts with spring loaded worm gears. That should fix the problems that I had. In fact I added my own spring loaded contraption and from the one image I took with it, I can tell it really works. So make sure you get one with spring loaded worms and you'll be fine.

The mount with tripod is actually not as heavy as it looks because the tripod is mostly made of aluminum. Also, it is all American made and within driving reasonable distance for you should you ever need to visit them or want to pick it up.

[lostone]

Check Agena Astro, Woodland Hill and Camera Concepts. I just placed an order for an ASI 2600.

On a side note, I've been thinking of selling my ASI 1600 with Filter Wheel and filters. I've upgraded those to the ASI6200.

I finally am going to pull the trigger on a monochrome camera for planetary imaging. Finally!!! I've been debating which camera to get and reading reviews and stuff like that. So I go to the highpoint scientific site this morning and see that all of the models are out of stock. Does anybody know of an online retailer who has some in stock?

I checked around and seem to see the same thing on other sites.

Thanks in Advance,

signed,

New AP guy

[helicon]

Got the camera. Now I need to practice (and figure out what other stuff I need).

[helicon]

OK, I am hopeful to begin experimentation in the next week or two, maybe at the next half moon. Right now it's a bright full moon. Kind of busy lately because of the holiday, etc. and an uptick on some projects I am trying to finish before the new year.

[JayTee]

Get your practice done and everything dialed in so you're ready for the December 21st Jupiter Saturn conjunction.

Cheers,
JT

[Greenman]

Michael,

You've seen my planetary and lunar images. All of those were taken on a tracking (motorized) Alt-Az mount. An EQ mount for planetary/lunar imaging is not a necessity.

Cheers,
JT

Yep, the same here - planetary is more forgiving, er, in some ways. It's the atmosphere more than the planets themselves that is the tricky customer.

Lucky imaging all the way...

[helicon]

Get your practice done and everything dialed in so you're ready for the December 21st Jupiter Saturn conjunction.

Cheers,
JT

Oh Yeah JT!

[helicon]

Unfortunately I didn't get it set up in time for the conjunction. I did however, download the driver software and installed it as it was described in the instruction manual. Now I'm ready for some experimentation. It looks there are a lot of options as far as exposures/frames and other stuff. I was intrigued that you have to remove the lens before inserting it into the focuser (1.25") but it seems really cool that you can see the images on your laptop. The cord is USB 3.0 where it plugs into the camera and 2.0 where it plugs into the computer. Anyway, I'll figure it out. Should be lots of fun.