Im looking into getting a much bigger telescope soon but Im not sure which one will suit my needs best as far as astrophotography. I have been looking at either a 10" or 12" Dob. Would this be a bad choice because of their inability to track stars?

DOBs are less expensive, but most do not track, and are not polar mounted.

For long exposure astrophotography, you need a polar mounted scope that can track accuraely.

__________________
Heaven's Gate Observatory H47
32° 15' 59"N, 90° 51' 22"W
http://www.quantumhyperspace.com/

What would be the ideal mirror size for photography?

As far as Dobsonian Newtonians are concerned, digital imaging has changed the picture dramatically, if you'll pardon the pun. Webcams can do a great job of planetary imaging without any tracking whatsoever.

http://www.universetoday.com/forum/index.p...?showtopic=7565

Long exposures can be accomplished with a Dob equipped with an equatorial platform.

http://www.equatorialplatforms.com/images.html

Dave Mitsky

__________________
Chance favors the prepared mind.
De gustibus non est disputandum.
Never attribute to malice that which can be adequately explained by stupidity.

It depends what type of photography you want to do - DSO's or planetary/lunar.

While most scopes can do both fairly well, there are also some more specialised scopes that do some better than others, and as far as cameras are concerned, it's the same deal. You won't find a single camera that can do both well - you need to decide whether you want to shoot DSO's or solar system objects, and buy that camera. Or buy both

As Dave said, webcams are still the #1 choice for planetary/lunar imaging, and depending on your budget, a DSLR or astro CCD camera are the best choice for DSO imaging.

For scopes, aperture always rules, but not if you want widefield images.. There are georgeous widefield images around using an 80mm scope with a DSLR. For planetary/lunar, 8" would probably be the minimum i'd recommend, whether it's a dob or EQ mounted newt or an SCT. Again, depends on your budget and how much patience you have

Hope that helps.

__________________
Mike
. 10" GSO Dob
. 11x70 Binos
. IceInSpace - Aussie/NZ astro website and community forums
http://www.iceinspace.com.au/logo.jpg

If the OP is really serious about astrophotography, an 8 or 10" Schmidt-Cassegrain would be a better choice than a 10 or 12" Dob, IMO.

Dave Mitsky

__________________
Chance favors the prepared mind.
De gustibus non est disputandum.
Never attribute to malice that which can be adequately explained by stupidity.

I agree, it does depend on budget though as they're much more expensive.. but they are ready for astrophotography straight away.. plus or minus buying a wedge and the camera

__________________
Mike
. 10" GSO Dob
. 11x70 Binos
. IceInSpace - Aussie/NZ astro website and community forums
http://www.iceinspace.com.au/logo.jpg

Yeah I plan on doing mainly DSO observations and pictures. What are some webcam models that you guys use? Im particularly interested in the type of equipment Paul F. Campbell uses, his results are absolutely stunning! Heres some of my apparatus. There are a few pictures too that I just snapped with my digital camera.





Heres a couple shots I tried to take of Jupiter just using my digital on a tripod. They turned out like crap but at least you can still make out the moons.





Again, with the digital camera (which happens to have terrible shutter speeds)

What do you think of these scopes?

http://www.telescopes.com/products/Meade_E...ngs_31937.html#

http://www.telescopes.com/products/Meade_E...ings_31940.html

http://www.telescopes.com/products/Meade_L...ings_28016.html