Alan Brock
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SargentRay wrote:
WOW! Stellar seems to be the most appropriate term for your work indeed Alan.
Thanks for the detailed how to, much appreciated. I've been fascinated with the skies ever since i was a little kid, but never dared take up astronomy and much less astrophotography quite certain it would financially be out of my reach. Still as i grow older i still dream sometimes i take it up once i retire and have more time to learn, namely astronomy itself to start with. Having lived in a big city all my life i have never seen the milky way with my own 2 eyes ever. Just knowing the names of the stars and constellations and their positioning in the sky is already a challenge for me. Goskywatch app on my iPad helps but everything is just little white specks of light to my 52 y.o. naked eyes. I would have a zillion question to ask but i'll just ask one for now: Aside from camera gear how much money is involved in such an elaborate set up ? I mean i'd be happy just to be able to make good landscape pictures of the milky way with an astrotrac rig as i have seen Harshaj1 or Steve Perry so brilliantly display here, but i'm curious nonetheless i admit.
Again thanks for sharing your art and knowledge with us Alan :-)
P.S. About god, i too think that after seeing this how can one not believe ?...Show more →
Thanks for looking SargentRay! As far as budget goes, the sky is the limit. (Pun?) Astrophotography gets VERY expensive. Also, it depends on what type of imaging you want to do as the gear requirements vary greatly (widefield/Milky Way, planetary, or deep sky imaging). I tailored my gear to do deep sky imaging (nebula, galaxies, etc) and, IMO, it is the minimum setup for this type of imaging. I don't think any of it is considered cheap in terms of price or build quality, but I do think it's the least expensive setup that will still get good images. With that in mind, let's start with the mount. For a smooth tracking, solid mount, budget around $1500 minimum. Don't skimp here! For the imaging scope, a good entry scope is an 80mm doublet or triplet refractor; plan on around $900 for this. This will be plenty of scope to keep you busy on targets for years. You've got to have an autoguiding setup; buy one from Orion for $400 and enjoy the simplicity. Then there are tons of accessories that I consider absolutely necessary: mounting rings, dew control, portable power source, filter, optical field flattener, remote camera shutter. Plan on another $1200ish for these. You've also got to have a camera and laptop, but most everyone has those already.
So don't let the total number intimidate you, because it's a lot! I built my setup over a span of three years. I made a list of everything I needed and then bought a piece at a time. I remember it used to drive my wife crazy! She'd get me something off the list for Christmas, I opened it, and then stashed it in a closet not to be used for a few more years! But I researched what I needed, I had a goal, and slowly worked toward it; it's not like my intended subjects were going anywhere! Good luck with everything.
P.S. To get an idea of how astronomical (I'll stop now, I promise) the prices can get, Google Astrophysics Telescopes and look at the "Prices" tab...
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