Navywife66 Loc: NC

I’ve recently purchased a Canon Ra camera and am curious to if anyone here has one and what their setup is like. I’m thinking about purchasing a Williams optics lens or similar. I’m not wanting to purchase anymore regular camera glass as I have one lens for nightscapes a Rokinon 14mm 2.8. Nebulas and galaxies have intrigued me for so long and now I want to capture them. Any suggestions?

SHWeiss

For great results you need a goto tracking editorial mount like iexos 100, a lens is a reasonable start and much less complicated to set up the a telescope. A clip in filter like an optilong l-pro to tame light pollution. An ASIAIR will make the experience easier and more pleasurable. Next step up is to add a guide camera/scope so you can take longer exposures

Navywife66 Loc: NC

I should have added I do already own the Sky-Watcher Star adventurer 2i Pro and an Asiair plus. I am not looking to purchase a camera lens, this camera is only going to be used for astrophotography. Purchasing an expensive lens like that would be a waste of money for me. I am strictly looking for any suggestions for a telescope lens for my Canon Ra camera. This camera has a specialized IR cut filter which is optimized for astrophotography. I do also want to add a guide scope but wondering if anyone on this forum has this specialty camera with a telescope lens setup. Ive been eyeing a Williams optics RedCat 51, 71 and 81 for some time now and looking for any further suggestions for an astro camera set up. My other option is just a Smart Telescope such as a Vespera or Unistellar and selling the mount and the guide. The Canon Ra camera and the Rokinon 14mm would then be strictly used for nightscapes.

bwana Loc: Bergen, Alberta, Canada

The Canon Ra in combination with a RedCat 51 or similar scope would be a very nice package for most emission/reflection nebulas. It would also be light enough for your current mount. The only other thing I would suggest would be a dual narrowband filter such as the STC, Optolong or equivalent for emission nebulas. Band pass graph shown below.

Guiding is normally a pain! I'd recommend simply taking lots (~150-200) of short subs and stacking them, per the attached Horsehead nebula which was shot with an unmodded camera.

bwa

Horsehead (IC434) (274x15sec, ISO12800)

(Download)

SonnyE Loc: Communist California, USA

Hi Navywife,
Do you have any particular direction you'd like to persue?
Mine is Nebulae for example. So I looked into how to image those.

By going after a certain interest, you can save buying the wrong equipment.

But I agree with Brian (bwana). But refractors work very well for beginning Astrophotography.
I'm still a refractor nut.

But figure out what you would like to image, then find out how others are doing that.

I decided my telescope was going to be a camera lens specialized for space. Toward that end, the telescopes are fairly specialized. AP scopes are not visual scopes. But they can be used for visual.
But generally Triplet and even Quadruplet telescopes. (Lens configurations)