rmorrison1116 Loc: Near Valley Forge, Pennsylvania

My present telescope, a 8 inch Meade reflector, is getting old, really, really old and I've been looking into replacing it for a while now. I've done a lot of research on what's available today and have concluded there's way too much information out there to comprehend in my already overloaded mind. I'm looking for some meaningful help.

I'm looking for a scope that may be used for both celestial and terrestrial observations but mainly celestial. The image orientation doesn't really matter to me, upside down, right side up, inverse, since my main objective is astrophotography.

I'm looking for a complete package, the OTA and motorized mount and tripod. The scope needs to be portable and durable and my budget, according to the wife anyway, is under $2000 USD but there's a little extra room if needed. I'm leaning towards a Cassegrain type reflector, preferably a Ritchey–Chrétien but I'm limited by the budget.

Any useful suggestions or expertise on this issue is greatly appreciated.

SonnyE Loc: Communist California, USA

Welcome to the UHH Astrophotography Section!

I am far from any kind of 'Expertise', but I am pretty fresh from the "I wanna do Astrophotography" end of things.
First, I got hooked by Orion's Nebula, and maybe that has affected my desire to hunt Nebulae, as opposed to other deep sky objects.
So I started off looking for ways to take pictures, of deep space objects, and Nebula specific.
I like things kind of specific and simple. As I 'mined down' I found myself going from a 6" Celestron, which I soon realized was not really an Astrophotography telescope, through several other options. Save you from to boring a rendition, I had 3 wish lists I was grooming as I studied and refined where I was hoping to land.
I knew it was going to be costly, but I did not want to bounce my way up the learning curve. I wanted to get "the right stuff", then pull myself up to where I could use it.
Some things I've learned, Nobody has ever said, "That picture was taken with too good of a telescope."
So my desire for DSO's took me to Extra low Dispersion (ED), and Apochromatic lenses (APO), and other words of a foreign languish to me.
Reflector telescopes, to me, were with too much room for errors to come into the light streams. One of my lists did have an 8" Astrograph Newtonian Reflector on it, and I'd say it came in in second place, but lost to the refractor because of simplicity.
So I shied away from them. Call me Galilean, I just like a spyglass.
So I decided on glass, the best for my budget; and the CF tube (Carbon Fiber) for it's temperature focusing stability.
Then there was the host of other necessities to bring it all together.
My budget tight, I believe I still about tripled your desired ceiling. And it has taken me nearly a year to finally begin to bring myself up to the capabilities of the equipment.
But I'm glad I did it my way. (Me, and Sinatra...) :lol:

My advise? Figure out what you want to do, to view. Then begin building your list to that end.
Once you start building, you can see what it is going to take.
Bear in mind that there are a ton of "other things" you will want/need. Not the least of which is Light Pollution filtering for your location.

JimH123 Loc: Morgan Hill, CA

You can't go wrong with the Ritchet-Chretien scopes. They are very good. We have seen incredible images posted with that type scope. Its claim to fame is the use of a parabolic secondary mirror instead of a flat secondary mirror, and the resultant image is superb.
Good luck with your choice.

CraigFair Loc: Santa Maria, CA.

Honestly as Sonny implies $2000.00 is going to get you a good Scope and Mount with no accessories.
Assuming you are back in the 8" Camp.
With a 6" you could get some Optics etc.
It may leave you 'wanting' for an 8" though.
Craig
PS: Let's ask Jim he has scopes from 6" to 11".

rmorrison1116 Loc: Near Valley Forge, Pennsylvania

Since this is something I've been planning for a while now, reading books and doing research, and knowing my old scope is basically useless junk, at this stage I want to acquire the foundation, as good a telescope as I can presently afford. Accessories will come later as I get better acquainted with the scope and what it and I are capable of.

I've only done simple astrophotography with a big lens and a Vixen Polarie and tripod.

Now it's time to step up to a real telescope and learn how to use it properly.

Albuqshutterbug Loc: Albuquerque NM

Which Jim?
I find myself using my Celestron C8 scope more than any of the other scopes that I have. I pull the C11 out when I really want to reach deep but most of my imaging I do with the C8. Craig recently picked up the C9.25 but the tube alone is at the top of your pay scale.

The C11 would be well out of your scale as well. I was fortunate to pick mine up literally for a song.

NikonShooter has the same go to mount that several of us are using that he recently had serviced and is performing as it should that he is selling. You could then pretty much pick the scope you want to add to bring you to price goal and might be able to come up with a pretty nice system.

Or if you are interested in the idea of the SCT, this little package looks nice on Amazon.

http://www.amazon.com/Celestron-Advanced-VX-EdgeHD-Telescope/dp/B00CN8XGHG/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1456357203&sr=8-1&keywords=celestron+avx+8

The edge is supposed to be a very sharp scope but it is at the top of your range.

I know many people have great luck with Newtonian, but mine has been somewhat of pain to align and you are looking for more pull anyway if I read your post correctly.

Just my two cents worth.
I happen to really like what I get from the SCT's that I have and they work for me.
Good luck.
:thumbup: :thumbup:

SonnyE Loc: Communist California, USA

Just in, a 5400 second single exposure. I just got into a zone and decided to push the envelope.
$1000 ED80T CF Orion refractor
$719.00 AVX mount
The Flaming Star Nebula.

If you like a reflector, here is a $999.00 RC 8".
But a mount might break the bank. Or at least bend it a little.

Flaming Star Nebula

(Download)

After some dabbling

(Download)

CraigFair Loc: Santa Maria, CA.

Well done Sonny, beautiful Nebula.
Craig
PS: Did you get the Orion 8" Scope?????????

SonnyE Loc: Communist California, USA

Oh, no Sir. I just wish I could.
The Richy-Cretins were w-a-y out of my reach last year.
So I decided on what I have, and to learn how to use it.

Oknoder Loc: Western North Dakota

With a 2k budget I would invest almost all of it in the mount. The mount is by far the most important as it is the foundation of everything you hope to build upon. Most experts advice to begin with the DSLR and lenses you already possess. Good beginner scopes are refractors APO is possible. I use a RC and it was not the easiest by far to learn on.

Anyway you decide to go, post some pics and ask any questions you may have.
Matthew