Astrophotography P1: Telescope OTAs

[@YTMegiddo]

Forest was one of the first people I started watching before I got into this adventure. It's nice to come back and watch him again. What a great job he did with these videos!

[@acshaw80]

8 years later and still extremely helpful!! Thanks so much

[@digitalbroadcaster]

Amazing that even though I've never met you, you come across as a very gentle, honest and trustworthy person. I don't meet many of those. Thanks for a very informative video. I'm looking around but was lost in the maze of what to buy. This helps a great deal. A big thank you from me and others in the same situation, as in looking to buy a scope.

[@keatonmccullough2032]

I am probably going for a truss design dob 16" reflector, but I haven't heard to much good about how well they function as astrophotography scopes.

[@keatonmccullough2032]

Dylan Larking What did you end up doing?

[@mainlymusicman]

man, what a creepy comment. really no need of comments like that to someone you don't know and never will.

[@digitalbroadcaster]

mainlymusicman, I assume this comment wasn’t meant for me. I read what I wrote and umm...saw nothing wrong. If it ‘was’ meant for me, then I can only assume you have a complete misunderstanding of the art of being complimentary. In fact, reading what you wrote, I think you’ve commented on the wrong video. After all, 95 likes for what I wrote, so I think you’ve misread what I wrote or as said, replied to the wrong KZbin video.

[@kierandelaney4882]

Utterly fantastic video, truly in depth whilst simultaneously being entirely understandable and down-to-earth, devoid of an excessive use of technical language for the most part which is fantastic for beginners. Thank you very much for taking the time to make this video!!

[@pmstudios1]

As a sixty plus year old who's just bought his first telescope, a Celestron Nexstar 8CS this video has been really interesting and the only one that has made common sense and explained in an ABC fashion that is easily understood. I'm now looking forward to viewing the others in this series. Well done Forrest, a great informative crystal clear explanation.

[@DonkeyMusic777]

Forrest Tanaka, I really enjoy your teaching style. You stay on point with a natural flow of information. Your video's seem to be from several years ago now. I hope you never give up on teaching. You have a gift. Thank You!

[@prangster9632]

Hey Forrest. What a awesome set of tutorials. Being an absolute starter you have given so much more confidence to get out there and use my mount.

[@eurolagnia]

Really great work, Forrest, one of the web's best photo channels is consistently eye-opening

[@daveschaefer4997]

This video is great! I recently got two relatively cheap refractor and reflector telescopes and have noticed the aberrations that you summarize in this video. It was driving me a bit crazy but now that I understand the limitations that are built into the designs I feel much better about them and can not only accept these issues but can actually appreciate them. Thanks!

[@factChecker01]

This is really an excellent, professionally done tutorial series. I don't think I have seen one this good on youtube before.

[@thedatablogger_in]

WOW!! I wasted last few days to satiate my newcomer taste for astro-photography and I must say, in last half an hour, I learnt much more. That's efficiency for a huge learning curve facing me. Thanks, from Land Down Under, Mr. Forrest Tanaka!! Huge respect!!

[@GuessIamwho]

Simple and clear explanation of the different things you need to look for in getting a telescope for deep-sky watching or planetary observation.

[@JWAstronomy1]

Very informative video. Clear skies everyone!

[@thehmisu8980]

Through the 60 different videos I saw as a beginner you are the most efficient and explained in the best way. Thanks and please create more content!

[@buzzyhyendee]

I have been doing AP for over 40 years. Your video is excellent. I am now at a point of doing more outreach, and your vid is an excellent presentation. With AP technologies rapidly changing, and new methods of exposing and post work, your basic introductions hold true. Great work. Thanks!

[@HelstonFilms]

This is one of the best and easiest to understand beginners Astrophotgraphy video Ive seen, great work ! I ordered a 152mm f4.8 Mak-Newt and I cant wait for first light.

[@moglijp]

One of the greatest videos of AP on the web, the 1/2 hour length passes in a blink of an eye. Thanks Mr Tanaka. Regards from Chile.

[@Angler13]

Forrest, you are such an amazing, humble, knowledgeable person. I learned more about telescopes and astrophotography than in all of my other research over the past few months. Thank you so much for sharing with us. You are an absolute pleasure to watch.

[@realityDUBSTEP]

Extremely helpful and well-made video. Subscribed, looking forward to your next videos.

[@DidntKnowWhatToPut1]

I'm using a 150PL mounted on a HEQ5. I've been able to get fantastic images of planets, nebulae and galaxies. Such a rewarding hobby. I'll never give it up.

[@gammal1]

Forrest Tanaka Thanks a lot for this series. It was a great help while deciding which items to buy for my first serious AP telescope setup. Here's a little tip that I found useful while mounting my DSLR which I hope will help others: if you're having trouble focusing the image on your camera sensor and your OTA comes with a 2" focuser, there's something you can try before resorting to shifting the primary mirror along the OTA axis. On my setup, the sensor was always too far from the secondary mirror to get a focused image, but I managed to obtain a perfectly focused image by getting rid of the T-adapter and the short 1.25" tube that threads into the 2-to-1.25" adapter on the focuser, and using only the T-ring threaded directly into the 2-to-1.25" adapter. That way you can use your setup for both visual astronomy and AP.

[@ShawnPitman]

Just so you know, you're good at this. I appreciate your small correction text inserts. You speak clearly on a topic that you're obviously knowledgable about.

[@pigskin2ube]

Just perfect intro for me! I just moved to Tucson on 8 desert acres next to Saguao Nat. Park. I have been trying to understand how to differentiate all the telescopes out there and have increasingly been more confused the more I researched. This video educated me more than any other KZbin video moving me toward the understanding I need to make a confident purchase. Thank you.

[@jadesystem]

Exceptional speaker and techical presentation. A natural speaker; professional, warm, and technical in layman terms. Amazing graphics with smooth explanations. This is the right stuff of the highest caliber you see on NOVA, National Geographic, and NASA. One of the best private presentation series I've seen on telescope theory. Tanaka-san, thank you. Please keep-up the great work !!

[@wesleydonnelly2141]

Best video i've ever watched to explain OTA's to me! You have described everything in a easy to understand manner and you made everything make sense! You should be proud of this video sir! Thank You!

[@seanwest1751]

Over 6 years later and I found this to be an awesome, informative and easy to follow video. I will definitely watch the others.

[@hobbeeswe7472]

Thank you !!! This was like finding the mothership :) EXACTLY the simple, structured and pedagogic info I was looking for. As a wannab/newbie hobby astronomer I now know what to look for. Of course I pressed "subscription".

[@psl25]

Amazing, excellent videos. I'm a novice and have spent many hours watching videos about telescopes and astrophotography. Your videos, explanations and animations are the best.

[@tomharrell1954]

You got a thing for teaching dude. I don't know you or what you do but teaching was definitely one of your strong points. Thanks for posting the video.

[@keepthemomentum]

I've been watching videos on astrophotography for hours and this is the first one I've found that answers so many questions and in such a informative and interesting manner. This is the channel I've been looking for. I'd write more about how excited I am about Forrest Tanaka videos but I've got a lot more to watch and learn. Keep the momentum! Great stuff.

[@ionnetworks]

What a great video even if you never do astro photography. By far the best and most comprehensive video for telescope explanation and comparison. Keep up the great work!

[@kornelfarkas8268]

Logically structured, well demonstrated, well narrated, and accurate: very well done! Might be the best all encompassing intro video to OTAs out there. Congratulations!

[@AngelosPapadopoulos314159]

Astrophotography P1,P2,P3 Is The Best Beginners Introduction To Astrophotography On KZbin I Have Ever Seen!!! Thanx!

[@artemorbid]

your videos are some the most informative and easy to follow on the internet- you rule

[@ccr542]

Absolutely the best video of this nature I have seen yet. Very interesting, very knowledgeable just a joy to listen to you. Thank you so much, I learned a ton already.

[@dmoug1]

Thank you for making / posting this video Forrest. I have a acrho refractor and was frustrated with chromactic abberation, so i ordered a 6" AT imaging newt. Your video on stacking and noise redution was also very helpful. take care

[@pappy5]

forrest tanaka should have his own tv show

[@primoroy]

I don't know why I clicked to watch, but I am glad I did. So much scattered information condensed into a very understandable format! ❤

[@sweatydogz]

Great introduction, and well paced. Not overly complicated. Well done. Keep them coming!!

[@petematos6201]

Fantastic video series, explanation of terminology and technologies behind them is very understandable even for a novice. Thank you for this well done series.

[@DENMONKEY]

nice level of detail there Forrest and well presented. I shall move through the series with eager anticipation

[@TeroZone]

Wonderful work of explaining the differences between the scopes. Thank you very much! BR

[@ForrestTanaka]

Seems like a pretty good deal. Some things I would look for in researching it is making sure you can focus with a camera attached to it. Their ad talks a lot about astrophotography, but that doesn’t necessarily mean you can focus without a barlow lens. Crayford focusers can be great (that’s what I have), but they can also be really bad, not able to hold a camera without slipping. So make sure you see no complaints about that.

[@stronglifter]

Thank you for putting up this series. I am planning to explore the field of astrophotography and I am finding your videos extremely helpful and informative. I cannot think of many videos with this quality and length on YT or elsewhere.

[@Zn0rkus]

Thanks so much for this video. I'm getting my first telescope atm, in the process of choosing one, and viewing vids like this is a great, great way to start out the new hobby/addiction ;-) Many thanks from the Netherlands.

[@BKBees]

You sir, are gifted at conveying complex topics in concise and understandable ways. Thumbs up and a sub. Thank you.

[@RandyFortier]

Great series! I like how thorough you are explaining each OTA.

[@LIFE-bt9el]

Randy Fortier j

[@JerryLogsdon]

That was great to watch. I've been interested in astrophotography for awhile now and this video might be enough to put me over edge. The Orion Newtonian Astrograph is top of my list now. Thanks.

[@kulifrunsen]

Mr. Forrest this was an awesome video thanks a lot for the taking the time on making the video. This is the first video i found about this in such detail. I just have one more fat to add to the video. Refractors Apo's come in two types. Semi-apo and true-apo --- huge difference in price. Semi's have two objective lens made of ED glass. True apo's have 3 objective lens also made of ED glass.

[@aerofart]

Nice video, Forrest. In fact, all of your videos are well-produced, informative and enjoyable. Clear skies!

[@MGR1900]

This guy is the Chuck Norris of astronomical photography! Extremely informative video!

[@Wolfie6020]

I just wanted to say thank you for your excellent videos. I am working through them and learning a lot. Much appreciated Forrest.

[@ForrestTanaka]

Dobs are great for visual astronomy because you can get so much scope for not much money, but not many of them come with motorized star trackers so they'd be rough to use for astrophotography. Even the ones that do, by definition, don’t have equatorial mounts, so you’d get some amount of rotation of the object you’re shooting.

[@iridium24bit]

What a masterpiece of a video. Simple and informative. You made me save some headaches and lots of frustration! Thank you very much for posting this.

[@breedj1]

Excellent! I am planning get to started with astrophotography. I've watched p1 to p3 and many of my questions are answered. You explained it all very clearly. I am really looking forward to P4.

[@DavidRice111]

Excellent presentation by an humble yet knowledgeable man.

[@Randiolman]

August 2021, I can see below that this video was first placed here on KZbin over 8 years ago and today Its still relevant and very useful thank You Forrest Tanaka for your incite into the world of Astrophotography. .

[@richardmorgan1588]

Wow you had me focused on every word! Without a doubt this is the most informative and easy to understand video on the subject of telescopes! I have a much better understanding about what type of telescope suits me the most! I had thought maybe a Newtonian but I'm convinced a Schmidt Cassegrain would be more more likely to me my final telescope purchase!

[@SanathKumarSastry]

great effort , many people know all these basics but don’t have or invest time in making quality videos

[@jack002tuber]

Excellent video. I am looking for my first telescope and was wanting to mount a DSLR to it. This really helps.

[@nikolagovorko7196]

Mr. Tanaka you have a new fan, thank you for these videos.

[@bub2x2]

You Sir, offer great details and very useful/helpful information for all star gazers. Your presentations are detailed and insightful for all of us. Thank You and keep up the excellent work!

[@kanopus06]

Very interesting and well explained intro to different kinds of telescopes and how good they are for astrofotography

[@DarkWanderer2007]

Thanks for all your videos, great style and substance without out dumbing it down. Learned a lot and watched them several times. Keep them coming, maybe a series on astrophotography for those nights when the weather is not good enough for the whole setup but a camera and a tripod for star trails, time lapse, etc. I have tried this and for some of the DSO I just start to get the faint fuzzies before tracking becomes an issue, I use my 300mm lens for the tightest shot possible of the area, but the settings I think are way off. I really wanted to commend you again on your subjects and the easy to understand and follow way of giving it to us, Thank you Sir.

[@thorvw]

really enjoyed the video and cant wait to see what you show in part two as well as some images now with your new motorized mount

[@RandomHero91]

What an incredible video, Forrest. It's really down to Earth (so to speak!) and has helped me immensely in getting my head around what I need to get some astrophotos under my belt. Keep it up!

[@johnlisle431]

Awesome video series for beginners. Answered so many questions that I had and a few I didn’t even know I should be asking! Thank you so much!

[@AbhinavSinghOfficial]

What a beautiful introduction to astrophotography. I have just started the video but the way you started explaining differences in telescopes, is very impressive. Very well done sir specially for a more techie brains like mine :)

[@ThioJoe]

Really awesome, I might just save up some extra money for a nice telescope. Just what I need, another expensive hobby! Thanks for the extremely informative video.

[@johnevans5458]

Thank you for a great explanation! Many intro vids or docs assume you have knowledge of terminology and still leave you somewhat baffled. Your vids leave me with knowledge and understanding. Period!

[@SasidharReddyKM]

this video very informative, helpful, useful, educating, teaching.... whatever good words available can be used for this. Thanks Mr. Tanaka. I am going to follow your videos going forward. Many thanks for sharing knowledge.

[@connorwilkerson9966]

ive been subscribed to your channel for a few months now and i really enjoy your videos! this video helped me out with picking out the "perfect" astrophotography telescope! ive been wanting a cassegrain for a while so im deciding to pick one up!

[@EddieCain1984]

great video! really helpful and you showed a lot of insight and experience on the subject. looking forward to the rest of the series! Keep up the good work Mr T

[@KafshakTashtak]

Wow, that was an amazing amount of details about telescopes. Thanks Mr. Tanaka.

[@boardgamespixels]

true.the description was like that: 2" Crayford focuser with 1:10 dual speed transmission and enough back focus for nearly every camera on the market.Even cameras with 2kgs of weight are held solidly.well,i have to see if it's ok for my dslr.probably try one before buy.i know rack-n-pinion,i had one for my refractor and it was not good.thanks for reply and advice.you do a great job!

[@ForrestTanaka]

Whaffel gives a great answer. Thanks! After I made this video, I got a new adapter that puts my camera’s bayonet nearly flush with my focuser. I had to move my mirror back a bit because of that.

[@jeff5048]

I appreciate you putting this video together! It's been great to hear your knowledge on the topic of astrophotography.

[@Ashhhhtube]

I really want to thank you for these videos, for someone starting out (such as myself), they are just excellent. Great work.

[@YTMegiddo]

Wow, I could listen to him talk all day! Well explained and you can tell he love this stuff! And yes, I'm just looking to get into the hobby.

[@ObsidianJunkie]

Fantastic videos! I am interested in astrophotography and your videos are providing me with lots of really useful, detailed information! Thank you very much!

[@nickb7977]

Very helpful and well thought out video. Down to shopping for an OTA. Thank you for this!

[@ProxCyde]

Bought my first telescope in january ( F/5 newt. ) with a coma corrector, ready for astrophotography. Without knowing much about it at the time, I thought something was wrong cause I wasn't able to get my dSLR in focus. Turned out, it was enough to just use the collimating screws to push it in as far as it could go. *Phew* Quite the feeling of relief as this was my first ever telescope, and I bought it specifically for ds photography. Now, if only we could get some clear skies again!

[@CyberBasicDotCom]

Excellent presentation. You answered lots of questions and filled in a lot of pixels, I mean blanks :) , in my understanding.

[@traviscallahan7178]

You are extremely knowledgeable and easy to listen to. Thank you

[@Adiadiere]

Thank you very much for this video. Incredibly insightful, and it allows viewers to make up their own minds what the best telescope for them is. Again, Thank you.

[@atanuchatterjee2162]

Respect and gratitude. Learnt so much almost effortlessly through your hard-work.

[@dancharp]

Great video, well-made and informative. Can't wait for the next one Mr Tanaka !

[@WickdPerfekT]

Best intro video for this subject on KZbin.

[@ForrestTanaka]

The amount you move the mirror depends on how far out of focus your camera is. Put your camera on its adapter and focus to the middle of your focus range. Measure the distance between your scope’s tube and your camera’s bayonet (or something easy to measure). Now remove your camera adapter and your scope’s focuser. Turn on Live View, point your scope at something and move your camera with your hand until it focuses. Measure the new distance. The difference is how much to move your mirror.

[@lostindimcarcosa]

as the others said, you are so sympathic in explaining all these things, great stuff, great channel!

[@MrLostsync]

I would like to congratulate you for this great explanation, great video.

[@Learnastro]

This is very educational. Thank You for the incredible graphics and explanation!

[@sajidumma]

Hi Mr Tanaka, Great video.....hope you would continue with the next part. really looking forward for it.

[@davex142]

Thank you, Mr. Tanaka for very useful and enlightening video. Really good work!

[@christinerobles3654]

Thank you for this helpful info! I had no idea where to begin!

[@marcbergeon]

Very nice video! Outstanding composition and tons of useful information. Thank you again Forrest!

[@ProxCyde]

This really depends on your scope. Where it's focal point is. For my scope, I hook my camera up without a barlow, directly on to the focuser with a 2" coma corrector which screws onto my T-ring. I had to push my mirror in as far as it could go with the collimation screws for my dslr to achieve focus, with the focuser set all the way in. Using a 2x barlow pushes the focal point out more. I just put my barlow directly onto the T-ring on the camera. Just made a simple adapter with tape as padding.

[@Sebastiantroegerphoto]

Hi Forrest! I really like your videos! Your voice is very pleasant and it's really fun to listen to you!

[@krzysztofnowak-moszczynski4629]

Wow! So clearly explained! Best Astrophotography youtuber! You have great talent for presentation and education. Are you professional teacher / professor? Those movies require lots of knowledge and preparation!

[@AlanYT]

Very informative video, specially for who came from camera photography to astrophotography. Thank you.