S2 and astrophotography

[schmeah]

Anyone tried to use the S2 for photos of the planets or deep sky objects? I'm soon to receive a Meade 8" scope, have ordered an adapter to afocally connect the S2 and would love to hear from anyone who has done this or has links to sites/photo examples. Thanks.

[Rob vdKam]

Is it possible to see the adapter on the web somewhere? I've used a point-and-shoot at the back end of a spotting scope but didn't imagine a P&S would work with stars. I've used my film SLR for stars but that uses TTL focussing.

Rob in Ottawa

[schmeah]

Rob,

Got an S2 adapter, with Maxview40 lens from scopetronix (http://www.scopetronix.com/). Works great, but I've only taken some lunar shots so far. Next comes the challenging stuff.

[G3WGE]

How do you overcome the 15s shutter limitation, i.e. no bulb mode?

[schmeah]

Don't know how to overcome the shorter maximum exposure time. I'm wondering if shooting (at least planets) in movie mode, then using a program like RegiStax will work. It's not likely to work with deep sky objects. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. I'm pretty new to this...

[Rob vdKam]

It's been a while since I"ve read up on this - before the Internet, actually, when I was using SLRs! - but one thing I do remember is that you need long exposures to image a planet like Jupiter, for example. So I have a feeling movies will not work because don't they use a steady fps? 15 fps means 1/15th s per frame. I wonder if that will be enough. I'd be pretty happy if I can get one of these p&s cameras to get a shot of the moon. If you can do that, you're making some progress from my perspective.

Come to think of it (and I won't bother editting what I've written above), the long exposures may only be needed for deep sky objects. That sound more like it - the moon is VERY bright and is easy, so maybe the planets are somewhere in between. :-)

Enjoy yourself - Rob

[schmeah]

I don't think long exposures are an issue with planetary photos. I've seen some spectacular examples of Jupiter and Saturn by webcam users. And those images are stacked images at 15 fps, 640x480 res. for the most part. So I'm hoping I can do a similar thing with my S2 in movie mode using a program like registax. I have no idea though.

[Spirit]

I tried using my tripod to take a picture of the sky the other night (BEAUTIFUL starry night) and all I got was a black image. I tried all different settings, but I was surprised that not even a single star (or planet) showed up on the picture.

Of course I used the camera as is (no additional lenses), but still... Is the S2 just not capable of such photography without "help"?

[schnutz]

As a new digital camera user and S2 owner, can someone describe what the attachment kit is for, other items I may need, and how it attaches to the telescope? I have a small refracting Bushnell telescope and have taken a few successful photos through the lens with a cheap digital camera, with some patience and frustration. It seems to me the adjustments on the tripod are not tight enough to support the S2, or that the whole assembly might fall over in certain arrangements!

[Megaman]

can someone describe what the attachment kit is for, other items I may need, and how it attaches to the telescope?

I second that, recently i realized that (finally) i could attach my canon S2 to a small 60mm refractor, i've read about t rings, step rings, telextenders and i'm getting lost there,
I already own the 52mm lensmate adapter, so i need someone's advice about what to buy next in order to shot through the telescope

cheers