4
$\begingroup$

I own an Orion 10015 StarBlast 4.5 Astro Reflector Telescope and I recently bought a Lumix G7 camera then I bought the adapter needed to attach the camera to the telescope.

I tested it today at morning while it was still dark and for some reason I cannot focus the things I am seeing through the camera attached to the telescope.

I was trying to focus Venus and other objectives but I got this, do the camera need to have some specific settings for it? The telescope by itself works as usual, I use it almost every day.

Thanks in advance.

These are the adapters.

enter image description here

Improve this question
$\endgroup$
8
  • 1
    $\begingroup$ There are a few other questions and answers about focus and at least one about the problem with Newtonians that the focal point falls fairly close to the tube and focus mechanism such that it's hard to get the sensor of your camera close enough to be in focus. A workaround is to use some kind of extender, either a negative Barlow (also adds magnification) or some kind of focus "repeater" that re-images the focal plane some distance away (less likely to be useful in this case). Sit tight and I am sure some very helpful answers will be posted. $\endgroup$
    – uhoh
    Apr 4, 2022 at 22:27
  • $\begingroup$ See for example Astrophotography - Unable to achieve focus with current setup and Camera adaptor won't focus and Retrofitting a DSLR camera to a super-cheap Tasco reflector telescope and Trying to use Canon 60D DSLR with Skywatcher 130P. Can't focus image $\endgroup$
    – uhoh
    Apr 4, 2022 at 22:30
  • $\begingroup$ I recommend you wander over to photography.SE $\endgroup$
    – Carl Witthoft
    Apr 5, 2022 at 13:17
  • 1
    $\begingroup$ @uhoh Thank you very much for the explanation! $\endgroup$
    – SoldierCorp
    Apr 5, 2022 at 16:16
  • $\begingroup$ Did you really pay more than \$1000 for these adapters for a \$200 telescope? To say you have been ripped off here would be an understatement. These adapters should not cost more than \$50 together. $\endgroup$
    – Thomas
    Apr 5, 2022 at 18:50

1 Answer 1

Reset to default
3
$\begingroup$

The Celestron adapter you are using is designed for telescopes having focal length greater than 650mm or "slow" telescopes, or to be more specific, you will have greater travel of the knob to achieve focus which suits this kind of barlow but your telescope is of 450mm or "fast", which is the opposite of the latter. So this will actually impact the focus and it has nothing to do with camera settings, what you can do is try to lengthen the adapter and if the problem is still not solved, buy an adapter that is designed to do the job for your telescope. Get a Universal T-adapter, which is an adapter and also a barlow lens that will suit almost every telescope. See if the telescope is collimated, although it has nothing to do with the focus adjustment it might improve viewing experience a lot, If you are not familiar with the term collimation, see a bright star you can see in your night sky and zoom it with eyepiece on until you see the secondary mirror obstruction and the spider vanes, if the dark circle is at the center it is collimated and you don't need to worry, if not adjust the screws in the secondary mirror until you see the circle at the center. And for some astrophotography tips see my answer here

Improve this answer
$\endgroup$
7
  • $\begingroup$ Thank you for your reply Kavin. How can I check the focal length of the T Adapter? I am going to probably return this one to try with a 450mm. I am going to also check if my telescope if collimated or not. $\endgroup$
    – SoldierCorp
    Apr 5, 2022 at 16:16
  • $\begingroup$ @SoldierCorp Mostly manufacturers won't specify those things, but the compatibility will clearly indicate that it is not designed for "fast" telescopes i.e not enough travel for the focusing knob to get the correct focus. you can check for universal t-adapter, it is an adapter cum barlow so will be bit expensive but will surely help you. One such thing is the celestron #93640 $\endgroup$
    – Kavin Ishwaran
    Apr 5, 2022 at 17:05
  • $\begingroup$ I would advise you to return this thing if possible and get a universal t adapter, get the celestron if you can since good quality barlow will do a good job, you will be quite free from aberrations. Universal t adapter almost suits every telescope $\endgroup$
    – Kavin Ishwaran
    Apr 5, 2022 at 17:19
  • $\begingroup$ I actually have a 2x barlow already and I tried attaching the barlow then the t adapter then the camera but it is almost the same result ibb.co/31D6NvG $\endgroup$
    – SoldierCorp
    Apr 5, 2022 at 22:15
  • $\begingroup$ @SoldierCorp Can you post a picture of rhe barlow ? $\endgroup$
    – Kavin Ishwaran
    Apr 6, 2022 at 3:50

You must log in to answer this question.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged .