best camera setup for celestron 12046 Computerized Advanced VX 9.25" Schmidt-Cassegrain Telescope

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Barry Ziober avatar

best camera setup for celestron 12046 Computerized Advanced VX 9.25" Schmidt-Cassegrain Telescope

andrea tasselli avatar
What do you want to shoot with it and what is your budget?
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Barry Ziober avatar

thanks for response. i am new at this but would like to shoot planets, moon, nebula, etc. i have a nikon dlsr camera that’s quite old i could use. since just beginning i would keep price down until i get used to doing the photography

andrea tasselli avatar
Shooting planets and to a degree the Moon and the Sun is quite different from shooting deep sky subjects. A DSLR might be a good way to get your feet wet but a C9.25" is a rather challenging telescope to start with in astrophotography. For planets you can get started with a rather modest budget as these cameras are very inexpensive, you don't have to guide the mount and the focal length of the C9.25" is certainly more suitable for small subjects, possibly augmented with a decent focal extender (barlow lens). A DSLR would be a very poor choice for this area as you need a fast download rate and not much in term of sensor size. A DLSR would be a start but unless modified for deep sky photography wouldn't offer a good response unless: a) the camera is very recent and  b) you live in a very dark location.
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Barry Ziober avatar

thanks again, unfortunately I am stuck with the c9.25”. if i did not use a dslr what would you suggest i add to my telescope to take photos? is my telescope wrong for taking pictures?

andrea tasselli avatar
It is of very long focal length of 2350 mm which makes it not ideal to get started in astrophotography. I would consider it an intermediate to advanced imager scope but if that is what you have then might just as well use it. Find a cheap planetary imaging camera such as this: https://www.svbony.com/products/sv305c-planetary-camera  and you can use your current setup to start imaging right away. As with many things there is a learning curve there but it is all about framing and focusing as best as you can and then starting to take short movies of the planet/Moon and start learning how to stack the frames and process them. In fact you could do also some of the brighter and smaller deep sky subjects without even needing to guide.
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Barry Ziober avatar

thanks Andrea, i appreciate you help!

SkyHoinar avatar
The usual advice when getting into astrophotography is indeed to start with a short focal length. It's easier.
But you know what? Against all the recommendations, I started myself with a long one, with a Maksutov 1300 mm (not so long as your C9.25 though), a DSLR (astro-modified, it's true) and a guidescope. And the object I shot was a small planetary nebula (M57). And I was surprised with what I got from the first try. It actually opened my appetite for astrophotography.
So, I would encourage you to start with what you have and focus on the techniques (image acqusition, guiding, post-processing).
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