Cheers Phil

Thanks for the advice, I would like to take photos as well at some date so
would a dobsan be good for this as well? Can it be motorised as well?
"Phil Wheeler" wrote in message
...
Stephen Jessop wrote:
Pete, you send in some very nice pictures, I am looking to buy my first
telescope and would like to look at the planets and galaxies. You have
shown some great pictures of some galaxies using your 80mm ED telescope.
I would like to use a refractor my self so my question is what size do I
need to look at the planets and get a good view of galaxies? Do I need
to go to a 150mm size or will smaller do an if so what would be the
smallest diameter? Sorry thats 2 questions. I have been looking at
telescopes for over a year now and I am still undecided. I have even
been toying with the idea of a reflector or dobsan.


Pardon me for jumping in, Stephen, but when you say "look at" I take that
to mean visual astronomy.

Pete's results are photographic, which means the camera is integrating
many photons over a relatively long period. Since our eyes cannot do
that, the views you get looking through a scope will alway disappoint
compared to astrophotographs.

For visual use (not photographic) and as a first scope, a dobsonian of no
less than 8" aperture would be a good compromise of cost, ease of use,
transportability and optical grasp. With a larger aperture you would see
more .. so that becomes a personal choice (e.g., if you have a fixed
observatory, or are really dedicated to the hobby, you could consider much
larger scopes). But an 8" dob ala the Orion series would be a good
starting point.

If your goal is to follow in Pete's photographic footsteps, then the
answer would be very different. You would need an equatorial tracking
mount of reasonably high quality .. and could achieve very nice results
with smaller apertures, at least on some targets.

Even with all that .. following in Pete's footsteps would not be easy. His
shots of a variety of objects and with several scopes show he is a master
of the art of astrophotography.

Phil