On Sat, 18 Sep 2004 10:48:09 -0700, "Tom E."
wrote:

http://www.buytelescopes.com/product...pid=4681&m=102

With this setup and optional motor drive, what kind of luck would
someone have in imaging stars without smear? Is a guiding scope
absolutely essential for any level of astrophotography? If so, what
is the cheapest way of going about that? I am not interested in diving
right into imaging, but want something that has the potential in the future.

You have to guide for long exposures because no telescope mount is
100% accurate, so plan on guiding. With this 80 mm telescope a good
way to get started in astrophotography is to use a camera on a
piggyback mount. You can guide through the main telescope with a
guiding eyepiece and make pictures through the camera. When you
decide that sitting in the dark for hours while trying to keep a star
on the crosshairs of your guiding eyepiece is fun you can get into
other forms of astrophotography.