Astrophotography P2: Choosing & Using Telescope Mounts

[@danhervey2721]

My name is Dan Hervey, I'm 70+ years old and I'm just getting started in Astrophotography, "who says your ever to old to take on a new hobby challange" ! I have a Celestron NexStar 8SE Schmidt Cassegrain telescope and I'm ordering the Celestron Advance VX mount & tripod. Forrest, you present yourself to be a very intelligent person on this subject and an old green horn like me really appreciates the education and advice on this subject. Thanks, Dan Hervey.

[@Dudleydogg]

Your never too old t his is a great hobby to get started im going on a few years now and just getting into the photo part of it all.

[@nlanni]

Forest, I want to express a very sincere, deeply felt thank you for the videos you produce. The 'tube is full of videos where the author may have the right intent but for whatever reason they are poorly executed. That is not the case with your videos. One of your first videos I watched was how to do panoramic (panos) photography and within a short time (couple of weeks) I was able to produce a beautiful HD pano for which I have received many, many complements. You videos about astrophotography are even better! I've watch 3 or 4 of your videos on the subject which brought me up speed very fast to the point that I quickly can read, associate and discuss other materials on the web with some intelligence in a matter of a of days. Please keep it up!

[@OlivierSuire]

I agree 100 %

[@67madchops]

I also agree 100%

[@gregscriba2655]

Thank you for a great tutorial. By the way, Backyard EOS now supports Nikon. Again, thank you, these tutorials are right on target.

[@4xoverland]

VERY well done. Thank you for taking the time to produce this so well.

[@DonkeyMusic777]

Forest Tanaka you are one fantastic teacher!! Some folks are able to give information while others know how to teach. You dear sir are a great teacher. Top shelf for certain. Thank you a bunch.

[@TimTools99]

Thanks Forrest for your willingness to share your knowledge in this way. I appreciate the time you put into your videos.

[@johnmcevoy1840]

Can't thank you enough. I am a complete novice to astronomy and astrophotography. I have spent spent many months trying to obtain information about telescope, their stands/mounts and reasons for using specific items / types of equipment. I learnt more in 43 minutes watching you video than I learnt in 12 months asking questions in the astronomy groups I'm in. I found it very informative and practical. So Thank you for taking the time to produce your videos - I will now look on youtube for your other videos. John McEvoy UK.

[@_J.F_]

Having just very recently found the interest for astronomy, and not yet even contemplated astrophotography, I still find this video to be one of the most useful and interesting videos for understanding how tripods, mounts, and polar alignment works, and of course how these will impact on astrophotography. It is like a brand new world opening to me and I am very grateful for the effort you have put into making this absolutely fantastic video.

[@michaellewis4732]

I realize this video was posted 7 years ago and I previously saw this video a year ago. I've just gotten my EQ goto mount and the concept of RA/DEC continually throws me off. You've done a fantastic job of explaining this with visual examples, which help a lot. Thank you!

[@ForrestTanaka]

Thank you! Part 3 will arrive after summer in the Northern Hemisphere. I’m hoping to do one or two non-astrophotography videos between now and then.

[@drt9424]

Thumbs up! ...and I'm only 10 minutes in. Thank you Forest! I'm currently doing research on how to breach the hobby; i'm very excited about it. And videos like this are helping to find the good entry point :)

[@RyanNehring]

I just have to say thank you... I don't think I've ever even left a comment on a KZbin video before but both this and part 1 are OUTSTANDING. Your use of visual aids/graphical models cleared up some confusion for me that hours of reading couldn't. Can't wait for part 3 and again thank you so much!

[@nathanhassey4724]

I cannot begin to tell you how amazing this video is...Sometimes I wonder if people in the astrophotography world just do things because they know they should. This taught me why they do the things that that do! Thank you!

[@kieran.stafford]

Forest, your videos are fantastic. For myself, a person who has no knowledge of astrophotography whatsoever, watching these videos is like a a very informative crash course on everything I need to know in order to start making decisions. Thank you.

[@MonteOlsen]

This is the best explanation I've ever seen regarding these two mounts. Honestly, I never understood the difference until now the way I do after watching your video. This deserves an award, in my opinion. Thanks a lot.

[@hwmanges]

Mr Tanaka, my interest in astrophotography has grown exponentially since purchasing my Canon T2i 3 years ago. So much so, I am looking at purchasing a scope/mount/tripod to be able to explore not only the heavens, but astrophotography a bit more, as well. The 2 videos you have produced thus far: Astrophotography Parts 1 & 2 have been INCREDIBLY helpful to me. Having only looked through a telescope once or twice in my life, you have really clarified a lot of the questions I've had. Thank you very much for taking the time to produce these.

[@FF7824]

Whole heartedly agree that the quality of your videos (both visualizations and explanations) is superior to many on the web. Thank you very much for your efforts.

[@publiux]

Forrest, this is a great and extremely education series! Thank you for taking the time to make these 2 videos!

[@Len44039]

I bumped into these tutorials by accident. It was my lucky day. Thanks Mr. Tanaka. I can't say how valued & appreciated these tutorials are.

[@Casey6996]

Hi Forrest this would be the best video on the tube .Clear and not rushed . 100% agree with dooma

[@Mehdital89]

By far the best astrophotography video on youtube!! One video to explain all in detail, all my questions have been answered, and no other channel could do that, let alone in one video. Thank you so much Forrest for the great work

[@RC21114]

Excellent video. I'm getting back into the hobby after 30 years, and it's like I'm starting from scratch. So much has changed, of course. Thanks to you and folks like you who share their wealth of knowledge with the rest of us. I happen to have just purchased an AVX on which to mount my older Super Polaris C8, so this is even more timely. I feel like I have a much better idea of what I'm doing. Can't wait to watch part 3!

[@akacagen]

Simply a fantastic explaination.I started with a Sky Watcher 103p with a Goto Mount. Thank you for your explaination. After 8 years, I'm picking up and have just purchased my first Sky-Watcher EQM-35 PRO Go-To

[@mhuser78]

Thanks for posting this instructional video, Forrest. I own the Celestron CGE Pro mount along with the Orion 10 inch f/3.9 Newtonian Astrograph and this video was very helpful in setting up and aligning my telescope to track celestial objects in the sky

[@mehammered]

For real, I have watched so many videos and guides trying to learn this. This is the only video that really gives the meat of what is really needed with the little details that keep you from banging your head. Amazing work!!!!!!!!!

[@amiablerogue1550]

I just recently got a telescope with an equatorial mount, and didn't know a lot about how they worked. This video really helped me to understand the concepts. You are a lifesaver! Thank you!

[@floydchen7523]

Fifty years ago I ground and polished a 6" 1000mm mirror from a 1935 edition of "Armateur (sic) Telescope Making." Made holder and mounting saddle from mahogany, etc and mounted it on EQ of 2" pipe. Crude but fun. Recently my son has me revisiting all this and I discovered the world had changed. Your presentation has bowled me over. What a fantastic instructor. So much information without verbosity. Anyway, I'm spinning up with a EQM-35 mount that might bear the 6" and thinking carefully about a more practical refractor. Thanks

[@davew1234]

All your videos have a fantasticly slow pace. You’re a great teacher 👍

[@kingdom777866]

Im blown away buy your excellent videos, you have a calm relaxed way of explaining detail that many others are not, and your night camera work is great, and i know that aint easy.. you do a really good job.. well done !! of cause ive subscribed !

[@dmlchannel3262]

Forrest: Absolutely BRILLIANT tutorial regarding Alt-Az versus GEM mounts. I can't imagine a more informative video than this.

[@carstenwartmann8010]

Thanks! Goes in depth but still very easy to understand for a beginner! And very practical solutions.

[@markmayer9290]

Fantastic! I'm about a week into understanding astrophotography. Telescopes were relatively easy to understand, but mounts ... another story. This explained the basics so clearly. Should be read by every novice. 7 years after production, and still great. Thank you.

[@JohnS916]

Excellent tutorial Forrest. Well thought out with good props and video interpretations. You broke the processes down simply enough for most beginners and novices to understand. Good work.

[@brown55061]

Forrest, you are very good at these kinds of tutorials. I think I prefer the old school tripod point & shoot and stack lots of images. There is A LOT of technical aspects to getting alignment with a scope. But you did an awesome job at showing people how.

[@federgeist_art]

i am pretty new to astrophotography. what kind of tripod would you recommend to buy? any suggestions? :)

[@brown55061]

Cathy H Honestly, for astro it doesn't matter. Because no photography tripods have refined adjustments for tracking objects. I use a cheap chinese plastic tripod and just manually track the objects in the sky and use the same deep sky stacker Forrest uses. The trick is using a specific star/object to center your frame on and just continually track it.

[@federgeist_art]

first: thanks for the quick answer! :) second: is it possible to take good photos of planets this way?

[@brown55061]

Absolutely. I have taken shots of Jupiter hand held with a superzoom Nikon (P100). If you are connected to a scope and zoom in on a planet as bright as Jupiter or Venus, you'll have to take very short exposures, like 4-8 seconds max. Because the objects move too fast past your view and you get star trails. There are lots of good videos here to help, also check the forums at cloudynights. Lots of good info there!

[@federgeist_art]

thanks for the information, brown55061, i will look it up!

[@majormojo]

This is hands down the best explanation of the coordinate systems and mount types I’ve seen. Well done, thank you so much.

[@DeanFuller1960]

By FAR...THE best astrophotography video on the web. Finally a reference that's not "over my head" !!! You explained everything very well for people like myself...trying to understand even what to shop for and how to use it properly. Tons of help!!! I am starting to think I can do this. Thank you for the help and look forward to many more videos by you on this subject

[@NeilAubrey]

Thanks for including directions for those in the Southern Hemisphere. Very refreshing for presenters to acknowledge that there is a second half to our planet. So much good content is only talking to an American audience.

[@trevorpinnocky]

this was insanely excellent production value and content. i'll be watching these several times over the coming months as I decide how i want to start my astrophotography. you have no idea how useful these videos are. thanks so much.

[@saulrosales8822]

This is by far the best and most professional video about mounts I have ever seen. Thank you so much !

[@graphguy]

Best astrophotography videos on KZbin.

[@infringinator]

in bloodsport mr. tanaka explained everything with a very zen way of explaining things. I don't know if Forrest has any relation to a fictional character, but he's the king of photography tutorials.

[@michaelk8642]

I just want to say thank you very much for the detailed explanation regarding the types of mounts. Your video has a lot of information and has definitely helped me with making an informed decision when the time comes for me to purchase a telescope.

[@ForrestTanaka]

Yes. The software (I use PHD from Stark Labs) has pretty tight limits on what it can correct, and if your alignment is way off, it just can't correct it that much. But I have heard people say they like to keep the Dec axis a little bit off alignment so that the software always has to correct the Dec axis in one direction only, so that you don’t run into gear backlash issues there.

[@KingRasha]

You are awesome... Thank you for this video

[@peterbrown9036]

Thanks so much, after watching this video I have finally correctly polar aligned my mount / telescope ( CPC 1100 + wedge). It has taken me a little over a year to do this. Using Backyard EOS and the DARV method is so simple to do too! My alignment is now spot on. Thanks again.

[@GregConquest]

Great video, Mr. Tanaka. It was well planned and organized, and you had very good illustrations of the technical points. Thank you.

[@jamespavlock9615]

Forest presents is an organized and well thought out fashion. I'm just a beginner, and I learned a lot just watching this particular video

[@FMasamune]

Best drift align tutorial I have seen yet. Thank you so much. You made it so clear and showed me how to do it in BackyardEOS.

[@jeffbird2983]

Forrest, you're a great teacher. I'm hoping to photograph Ison. I'd also like to shoot the planets and moon. But I know nothing about astrophotography. I watched both parts 1 and 2. Found them informative, easy to understand and very, very helpful. Thank you for taking the time to make these videos.

[@gwzapo]

Super video. This should be required viewing for anyone interested in purchasing a telescope. Very informative in beginner terms. Wonderful effort! Thank you for the time and effort to put this video together!

[@MrBrightlight66]

One of the best introductory videos which I have come across on KZbin. Well illustrated and explained. Very well done indeed.

[@dleivam]

Great tutorial forrest... I watched it long time ago before I bought my telescope and now, 6 months later I have my own telescope I watched your video again and I could understand a lot more than before and I really appreciate all the knowledge you have and how great your video is. Thank you very much.

[@followthetrawler]

I love your videos Forrest and this one was superb. I wish more videos on KZbin were made to this standard. Your explanations are very clear indeed. Thanks for the time you put into creating this.

[@1kriga]

Your tutorials help emensly, all your efforts are appreciated.

[@RHAlbers3]

Excellent video, Forrest. I particularly liked your coordinate system animations and your terminology pop-ups. Great job. :-) And thanks for the shout-out. Clear skies!

[@calvinfarrow1720]

By far the best instructions I have found on the internet! On my bucket. list of people I want to meet!

[@ForrestTanaka]

Thank you! I made all the animations, but the software (blender) - though it looks weird on a Mac - makes it all pretty easy.

[@ForrestTanaka]

The mount has worked really well for me. The EdgeHD 8" is 6.35 kg, and it looks like it has a compatible dovetail (not that it’s hard to change dovetails), so they should work together really well.

[@asgio27]

Well done. videos, no comedy, nonsense, clear, concise, well explained. Thank you.

[@douglasrom40]

I´m from Brazil and I would like to thank you for all effort to this series. It helped me alot to understand the astrophotography techniques. Thank you.

[@blakebrothers]

Thanks so much Forrest - this is EXTREMELY helpful. I learned more in your 2 videos than the last countless others I watched! Cheers, Greg

[@mgolczewski]

Forrest, thanks for this. Even though this is seven years old, it was very valuable. Your presentation style is easy to understand and comfortable.

[@jcj2249]

Thank you so much Forrest for what you bring to the community . Your explanations are clear, concise and very pleasant to watch.

[@mr.obvious5745]

Wow finally so simple and true thank you so much you earned a new sub :-)

[@KetansaCreatesArt]

Forest Tannaka, whats up? Where are you? Long time no video?

[@mikel9656]

i can't describe how good this video is at getting started with astrophotography!

[@justtim9767]

Sir, this the first video of yours I've watched and I feel it is the best video of this type on KZbin. I'm a novice and this has been a great help. I've subscribed and I'm sure will learn an awful lot more. Thank you.

[@1VperOctave]

I know this video was posted a while ago, but I just discovered it. Thank you so much for putting so much effort into creating and posting this series. Your explanations and demonstrations are very clear and thorough.

[@thomaslawson9429]

Great presentation and as clear an explanation as I've ever heard. Very well expressed directions on how to use equipment that comes from the manufacturer with only basic set up information provided. Your no doubt at the professorship level and obviously have years of experience. Great listening to someone I can understand and enjoy learning from. Thank you Sir!

[@aamir122a]

Great work you made the complicated work so simple, as a beginner it would have taken me some years and lot of money to figure all of this out.

[@spamboli]

i'm not sure if i'm ready to make the leap just yet, but your video's have given me a MUCH better chance of making the "right" choice. Thanks! as someone who has tried planning out a photo course for friend, i'm VERY appreciative of all the hard work these video's required

[@ForrestTanaka]

I’ve filmed a few scenes of Part 3. Those scenes are of an actual observing session and are the toughest to do. One more night of those, and the rest of the scenes are relatively easy.

[@chrisberardi5999]

Thoroughly enjoyed this. Nicely done Forrest.

[@petespindley5949]

fantastic video - really clear to follow, thanks for putting in all the effort to make your series. Clear Skies.

[@ForrestTanaka]

No, this Beehive Cluster shoot is unguided. In Part 3 I’ll cover autoguiding, where a solid 1-minute exposure is not a challenge.

[@YTMegiddo]

These are seriously well put together videos!!! Lots of time and effort were put into these. Well done Forrest.

[@benhawkes9050]

Forrest, thank you so much for taking the time to make these videos. Learnt so much thanks to you, and no doubt so much more to learn, but you've set me on the correct path.

[@JerHetrick]

Best Astronomy / astrophotography videos out there, hands down! Thanks a million

[@Carl_Aznable]

Thank you so much for this lesson. The graphics are very helpful to explain all the terminology and demonstrating how it all works

[@dahur]

Thanks for all the time you put into making your video's. Very informative.

[@chriswhitehead]

Great series. I am just looking at buying my first scope for astro photography so these have been a great help.

[@section99]

Awesome job Mr. Tanaka, very helpful and informative videos, helped me alot, Can't wait for the 3rd part of the series to be posted :)

[@dfranco42]

Excellent videos on astrophotography! You have a natural talent for explaining complicated subjects in a way that is easy to understand. Thank you so much and keep the videos coming :)

[@edd.9543]

Hello Forrest, I happened upon this video. I have never tried my hand at astrophotography before, but I'm retired now and I've been thinking about it. You have a wonderful gift for explaining things that are somewhat complex and I'm looking forward to watching more of your videos.

[@oneilphotostudios]

Forrest your video's are always amazing. I know it takes you time to put them together and that is why they are so awesome. The work you do and put into each video is really an amazing thing.. Thank you for what you do. You do great work!

[@mrquint15]

Thanks so much for your great, detailed videos. You really helped me understand GEM's, something I've had a hard time visualizing for a while. Hope you had a great holiday, looking forward to part 3!

[@EthosAtheos]

Loved the video. Thank you! Top battery tech tip for portable telescope power. The batteries for a kids drivable electric car (Power wheels) are deep cycle batteries. They are 6v or 12v depending on what you get. If you find cheep 6v ones just buy 2 like I did and run them in series. They make a very cheep and long lasting portable power source. I got mine used for 10$ at a yard sale. But I've seen them on clearance racks for around 20$. Hope this helps anyone who needs portable power.

[@nickweddup3140]

Hi Forrest, great videos, thank you! Iv learned loads already. Once slight bit of advice I can give you regarding your power pack though..... Your friend is correct the batteries inside jump starter packs are designed to be capable of "high discharge" to deal with the currents demanded by starter motors in general. When your pack does give up simply take it apart and replace the 12v battery with a standard or even low discharge and it will be even better still (+ looooads cheaper than the custom packs)

[@nobeldane1]

Great series of videos Mr. Tanaka! I hope you'll be doing more in the future. You should have been a teacher I think. Bye!

[@giordanomedia]

Forrest, thank you so much for sharing your expertise and helping us interpret this equipment! Much easier to make a decision now!

[@chrisdesselles4441]

Super video! I especially liked the use of BackYardEOS for polar alignment. I really must try that out on my own setup.

[@dineshkalupahana9482]

I think the problem is not the accuracy of your alignment. These are the 3 reasons I am thinking about. 1) The weight of your OTA + Camera is very close to the maximum payload (30 lbs) of your AVX. It is OK for visual but for long exposure astrophotography general recommendation is half the maximum payload. At least it should be less than 2/3 the maximum payload. So it is very likely that the mount is struggling with the weight so the tracking is not that great. Although AVX is a good decent mount it is NOT a great mount. Specially, the declination axis doesn't have a proper bearing system so sticking is common. This interferes with proper DEC balancing (specially for slightly front or back heavy balancing) and also with proper autoguiding in DEC axis. 2) The jump starter you are using may not be powering the mount good enough. AVX can draw up to 3.5A. So make sure whether your jump starter can provide that. 3) As you mentioned in the video, the wind may be interfering with tracking. It is specially possible with long Newtonian OTAs such as the one you are using.

[@thorvw]

Another great video Forrest already looking forward to part 3 keep up the good work

[@stephenleander3097]

Great video, and great use of graphics to explain the different coordinate systems!

[@LanFeusT23]

Thank you so much for doing this, that helped me a ton, as I was struggling to find which mount to buy!

[@texasdaveodell]

Extremely well done, thank you so much for your care and patience in explaining all the details and making this valuable lesson

[@JAKOB1977]

wow your even including the prices. Im impressed, what a great overview your delivering. superb good video, well done Forrest.

[@JAKOB1977]

yep, you landed my subscription here... the best video I have seen on these topics and I appreciate the length and the work you put in it..

[@nathandtanner]

Thank you for all of the information Forrest. Very informative and helpful!

[@Robert08010]

Its all your fault!! Your video about shooting Andromeda without a tracker is what got me hooked on this path. I immediately went out and shot the Orion nebula. I made several limiting mistakes but I was still stunned by the incredible difference that was visible with a simple 1 second exposure. Like Night and Day! Thank you.

[@paddykumar]

Amazing explanation Mr. Tanaka... This is really valuable information.. I highly appreciate it.. -PK

[@ForrestTanaka]

Interesting question, and the answer is no. To get the same S/N ratio with 3" subframes, you need far more total exposure time than one 30" subframe. Just to make up numbers, if you get a certain S/N with one 30" subframe, you may need 50 3" images to get the same S/N, and 2000 0.3" subframes (again, I’m just making those numbers up). It’s very non-linear.