I've always been a GEM mount fan. It just made sense to me to let the mount take me places, hold those places, and let me do what I wanted with them. (I've known some women like that...
)
Alt-Az mounts are typically for observers. Sure, back before GEM mounts could guide and track, folks used them for AP, but had to do the tracking by hand.
So if it were me, I'd approach it from there. As a visual mount. Unless you want to try your hand at very slow motion control.
Folks have attached clock motors to mounts to give them a steadier drive than by hand.
But the end result has come to a GEM type where the guiding and tracking is basically a computer controlled drive system.
I used a flip box when I first started out. It allows visual in one way, then you flip the mirror up and your camera sees the FOV so you can take a picture.
Orion Flip Box for AstrophotographyBasically, you adjusted it so your camera was in focus. Then adjusted the eyepiece part so your eyepiece was in focus.
Kind of a gap filler that allowed taking pictures, and doing observation, of the night skies. Crude, but effective.
But for long exposure AP, or for days and days of data collection like has become the norm for Astrophotography, a guided and controlled mount has found it's place. And they are not inexpensive.
Even doing it "Sonny Style" with a One Shot Color camera has drained my coffers. My new mount has pushed the mount alone into the $4,000 zone. But it's complete now.
I'm committed, even though my wife thinks I should be committed. She's watching me like a circling vulture.
Just be careful, Peter. This AP crapola is like a black hole. It just sucks you in.
But a great retirement sport! You get to tell your doctor of all the excersize you get lugging your stuff out and back in, in the wee hours. And it explains why you are tired all the time.
Day sleeping isn't so bad with some earplugs or cotton to dull the banging around coming from the kitchen.
And it's a lot quieter when you get the "silent treatment" for days on end.
I already have
an arrow in my quiver if things get noisy.
I mean, it's the natural progressing for me. I need a prop to keep the vortex from sucking me down....
Please send me another stimulus check to stimulate me to boost the post covid19 economy.
I promise to stay home, cooped up, and to only go out in the dark.
(It's too damned hot here for an old fart to go out in the daytime.)
If the guys in the white coats show up, run out the back!