cheapest set-up for moon/planet photography

[hal5000]

Hello, I would like to learn how to take photographs of the moon & the planets via telescope.. can anyone tell me whats the cheapest set up to get something like this at home? I have a old telescope that i can see saturn with the rings (very small) and would like to take a photo of it - obviously i will need a new setup to be able to take pictures.. Thanks in advance.

[aurora]

The absolute cheapest would be to handhold a camera at the eyepiece of the telescope (assuming that you already own a camera).

The moon and the bright planets are easier to photograph than dimmer objects, because the exposure time can be fairly short.

There are commercial mounts you can buy that will hold the camera on the telescope, and there are also mounts that let you use a camera at prime focus. There are also inexpensive planetary cameras, for example Orion sells one for $100 called the starshoot.

[hal5000]

ahh.. so i can still use my old telescope and somehow put a camera mount to it? I have a digital camera that can be set to have long exposure etc..

whereabouts could i find this mount? at a local camera shop?

[aurora]

Assuming that your digital camera is not a SLR (you cannot remove the lense), then something like the

Steadypix sold by Orion

might be what you need.

[hal5000]

hey thanks for that, i appreciate your help. =o)

[Fr. Wayne]

You should get a commission, Aurora, since it's on sale for 20% under MSRP.
(kidding)

[aurora]

Seriously, ...

I try not to recommend any single company (I have no financial connection with any astro vendor or manufacturer), but I was too lazy to search for the same or a similar product from another source, since I knew that Orion sold it.

I would recommend that people shop around, and compare not only prices but also service. Pick a company that has a liberal return policy (with no or a small "restocking fee"). Search online yahoogroups for comments about specific companies.

And, I would be willing to pay a small amount extra to buy a product from a local store that had a service or repair department.