Mike's Astro Photos

Something I learned later rather than sooner, is: buy used gear. I’ve already found myself wanting to sell my original scope. There is definitively a trade up mentality with astro photographers. You can usually get used items 30-50% off and most of the time things are in very good/almost new order as most astronomers take good care of their equipment.

Here’s a list of my gear:

• Celestron CPC 1100 with Heavy Duty Tripod – Jan 2009
• APT Astro Equatorial Wedge – March 2009
• Telescope Battery – Jan 2009
• Eye Piece Kit – Jan 2009
• Next Star CCD / Web Cam – Jan 2009
• DSLR Camera: Canon 20Da – This is a factory modified camera specifically sold for astro photography. Purchased used Jan 2009
• Canon cable release — Jan 2009 included with camera (this thing is awesome!)
• Stiletto Focuser / STI Razor Edge Sharpener – Jan 2009
• Right Angle DSLR finder
• SBIG STV CCD & Autoguider Jan 2009
• Celestron Rail & Lomsday Rings
• Lomsday Counter Weights
• Feather Touch Focuser
• Orion Guide Scope 90mm?
• Hand Laser
• Head Light & Misc Accessories
• Celestron Dew/Light Shield
• Night Light Filter
• Focal Reducer
• Mounted Laser
• Cleaning pen
• Vibration Reduction Pads

Software

• Stellarium
• Starry Night

CPC1100 Mounted on APT Astro Wedge

My first and primary scope is a Celestron CPC1100 SCT. It was purchased new in Jan 2009 for approximately  $2500 from telescopes.com. The scope came with a heavy duty tripod. I recently added an APT Astro Wedge so I could equatorial align (this is required for long exposure photography). The wedge is bolted into the Celestron heavy duty tripod and the optical tube gets bolted on top of the wedge.

This is still a relatively new setup for me and I’m still trying to perfect my technique. The biggest issue I have with this now, is it takes me a considerable amount of time to setup and align the scope. The base system is over 120lbs and it is difficult and time consuming to setup. It takes about 1/2 hour to position and level the tripod, hang the telescope, line up the bolts and screw them into the wedge tight.

Once things are put-together I have to run thru the alignment program on the scope and align with at least 2 stars. Then I have to go into a wedge alignment mode. In wedge align the scope is positioned perpendicular to the base of the wedge in a straight line that is supposed to be parrallel with the earth’s axis. If you were to extend this line into space it would intersect with the north star polaris.

Scope in wedge align mode

When you start the wedge align mode the scope points to where it thinks Polaris should be, 99% of the time, your wedge is not properly positioned and at this point you have to move the wedge and/or tripod to center polaris in the field of view. In order to take long exposures you really need to be perfectly polar aligned and perfectly level. This can be a very difficult, time consuming and frustrating task especially for a beginer.  Once you are successfully wedge aligned, you have to re-run the EQ 2 star alignment process. Right now its taking me about 2 hours to setup the scope from scratch and get aligned and I’m not even perfectly polar aligned. I’ve only set up with the wedge about 3-4 times so far and I’m getting better at it. I hope to eventually get the process down to under an hour. The time and physically intensive setup required for polar alignment with a SCT does not make it a good choice for a non-permanent astro imagining rig.