[Alex Paul]

Orion ED80 600mm focal length f7.6 Apo...300D IR screen modified, with Celestron CG5GT mount.... Has electronic tracking and Go To,,,, Interfaces with laptop and GPS for precise location calibration, And I use DSLR focuser which will interface with the mounts tracking electronics and the camera for precise automated tracking correction as well as focusing the image on the screen.... The mount was 650 US and the little ED80 was 500. I shoot Prime method with camera body mounted with adapter direct to the visual back on scopes focuser tube. I looked at Losmandy mounts and love the G11 and even the smaller GM8 but it is overkill with imaging with the smaller scopes and I am happy as a clam with the capabilities of the little 80..... I have several scopes...4 Refractors ranging from 80mm to 6" 2 Schmidt Cassegrains, 8" and 9.25 1 8" Dob and an 8" newt with several different mounts of different styles, and a full set of Televue Nagler Type 2's, a few widefields in 1 1/4" along with a couple of Televue Panoptics for the gazing portion of this madness My best images were with the little 80, and the Celestron mount.... It is high enough tech, high quality imaging, low enough cost, light weight enough to move around and so it has served me well as a proper imaging set up withouit going to the Bentley end of the spectrum.... We would all love nothing but Takahashi gear but I for one work for a living..... As always it is the photographers eye, technique and understanding how to get the best out of his gear that makes a great shot, not the amount of money thrown at it....... My images all end up with numbers thrown in at the save as stage as I usually save several different variations of each and rarely actually designate a name for my images.... My last M42 shot was stacked with (to the best of my recollection) 12x 1.5 minute exposures, stacked with Registax along with one dark frame for noise reduction and dark background contrast, saved and then processed using Photoshop..... I hope with all of this babbling I have answered at least something in the original question .... I have been out of it for a while so I don't recall everything as far as exact settings and or all of the details of each shot..... I should have logged everything but of course I never did and probably never will.... I have a lot of different astro imaging software programs that I have used and loved but it will take time playing again to refresh my use and techniques with them.....I hope this is some help.......Take care Dave....Alex