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End of the journey !

I just posted my SkyWatcher SW80ED 600mm for sale. Unfortunately, it has become too heavy and difficult to focus for my capabilities.

I enjoyed every minutes of this journey. The photo outings and the countless hours testing and experimenting have been very enjoyable thanks to all my friends on this forum. I have learned a lot from you and I hope I have been helpful at times.

PLEASE ACCEPT THIS BIG THANK YOU ! ! ! !

Below are the last photos taken with it. It has been quite a performer !

I will try to stay close to the forum. If you are interested, I will be active on Flickr (with smaller lenses): https://www.flickr.com/photos/julesgobeil/

Best regards
Jules

http://www.birdforum.net/showthread.php?t=348910
http://www.birdforum.net/showthread.php?t=348911
http://www.birdforum.net/showthread.php?t=348912
 

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Good luck Jules, and thanks You for all you have contributed.

The 80ED is one hell of a performer, for it's price. :)

Are debating with myself if I'll take my 80ED (celestron) or the 480 triplet to a tropical island with birds on it...and I think the triplet it is this time. would need a converter 1.4x, but have none, only a celestron barlow that gives me 1.7x close mounted. It's actually quite good, but bit too much.
 
Jules,
Best of wishes and good luck with the sale. We will surely miss you so keep in touch on the forum (m43 photography?)

Carlos, what place do you plan to visit? For travel I would bring the TLAPO804 over the ED80 as it fits in the hand luggage and the shorter focal length enables more options.
 
Jules,
Best of wishes and good luck with the sale. We will surely miss you so keep in touch on the forum (m43 photography?)

Carlos, what place do you plan to visit? For travel I would bring the TLAPO804 over the ED80 as it fits in the hand luggage and the shorter focal length enables more options.

Praslin island. I have taken the 80ED twice to Uruguay, with no regrets. I take it apart and bring with me (hand luggage) the optics part, and the empty tubes goes with the rest of the luggage. In case someone feels compelled to take it, they have no use for it.

Tord: of the converters you have - I think you have the m43 1.4x? as well as the older one ec-14? and the telenegatives - which one do you prefer with the scopes?
 
Praslin island. I have taken the 80ED twice to Uruguay, with no regrets. I take it apart and bring with me (hand luggage) the optics part, and the empty tubes goes with the rest of the luggage. In case someone feels compelled to take it, they have no use for it.

Tord: of the converters you have - I think you have the m43 1.4x? as well as the older one ec-14? and the telenegatives - which one do you prefer with the scopes?
Hi Carlos,
Seychelles... lucky you. Looking forward for nice pics.
http://fatbirder.com/links_geo/africa/seychelles.html

I brought the SW80 once with me on travel, and I brought the TLAPO804 several times. The SW80 went into a padded box into the suitcase and it survived, but I had little use of for various reasons. The TLAPO804 made the trips both in one piece in an aluminum case and sometimes also as hand luggage. The three-section tripod had to be dismantled to fit in the suitcase.

I have both the MC14 and the EC14. I think they perform better than the best TN I have, scavanged from a Zuiko OM 75-150.

But to be honest I prefer to use the scope without TC, unless extreme distance. 500mm... 700mm is usually long enough. Not sure how close you can come to the sea birds, though.

The disadvantage with the EC14 is you also need a 4/3 - m4/3 mechanical adapter which adds some weight. The MC14 is much lighter and smaller than the EC14 so that would be my preferred option. However I quite often bring a camera for hand-held shooting in addition to the scope. As I quite often use the MC14 on the 300 F/4 then I will use the EC14 for the scope. And the other way around, if I use 4/3 setup I will use the MC14 for the scope.
 
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thanks Tord.

Thought of the MC-14, but could not find any at a good price.

Did some tests with a TN I have, mounting it as close as possible, and I got it to 1.3x, which is great, for it means I will not regret leaving the 600mm behind.

Birding will be fun, but also bugs, landscapes, flowers. will have the 75-300mm, the 60mm m43-macro (and a diy diffuser for the small flash that comes with e-m1mk2) and a new 7.5mm laowa.
 
I got an old EQ3 equatorial tracking mount for my telescope from my friend, so I was able to get this using a 2x Barlow between my E-M1 II and my 600mm triplet. It was cold and VERY windy, and I know I wouldn't have stood a chance with my normal tripod. Stack of about 60 images.
39220092360_7df50ac70f_o.jpg
The Barlow is not all that sharp around the edges, but very goon in the center. Weather permitting, I will try a mosiac of 5 stacks tonight.
 
I got an old EQ3 equatorial tracking mount for my telescope from my friend, so I was able to get this using a 2x Barlow between my E-M1 II and my 600mm triplet. It was cold and VERY windy, and I know I wouldn't have stood a chance with my normal tripod. Stack of about 60 images.
View attachment 657255
The Barlow is not all that sharp around the edges, but very goon in the center. Weather permitting, I will try a mosiac of 5 stacks tonight.
Pretty good I must say, lots of detail. How big portion of the moon is it?
 
thanks Tord.

Thought of the MC-14, but could not find any at a good price.

Did some tests with a TN I have, mounting it as close as possible, and I got it to 1.3x, which is great, for it means I will not regret leaving the 600mm behind.

Birding will be fun, but also bugs, landscapes, flowers. will have the 75-300mm, the 60mm m43-macro (and a diy diffuser for the small flash that comes with e-m1mk2) and a new 7.5mm laowa.
Carlos,
It struck my mind I totally forgot to ask about how your trip was. Any good photo results with the scope?
/Tord
 
After further testing and shooting I would say the Celestron Ultima 2x is sharper in the center but the Meade Barlow is more even overall. That makes the Meade the better choice for birds, but the Celestron is better for astro. I have, however, been able to squeeze additional magnification out of my 600 triplet by mounting things in this order on the scope:
1. Meade 2x telecentric Barlow.
2. Celestron 2x Barlow adapted and mounted about 120 mm from the sensor.
3. MC-14 (I find it sharper than the EC-14)
My guess is I am at about 5x, but I haven't measured it yet. Here is a crop, roughly 50%, of the Mare Humorum and Gassendi crater.
41890485291_a1bcdf1bfd_b.jpg
full sized:
https://c1.staticflickr.com/1/864/41890485291_a58465b19c_o.jpg
The EQ5 mount is naturally a big help and makes video possible, so this is a stack of only 37 of 588 frames. 16x9 is a PITA format for this sort of thing, but that is all Oly has to offer in video. No idea why...
Same setup on Jupiter under far from ideal air conditions:
40946247974_50d390f24b_z.jpg
 
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Carlos,
It struck my mind I totally forgot to ask about how your trip was. Any good photo results with the scope?
/Tord

Sorry for the late follow up - missed your question!

Trip went well, hot and sunny. Had a feet injury (minor) that impeded me to do lot of hiking, but other that that fine.

Bird wise I had expected to see more, at least quantity wise, not sure why I thought so. But we saw most of what was available. Scope did fine. Took the TS apo 480 and a telenegative, and most of the time that was what I used. For flight shots the 75-300mm was used. as well as in the protected island of Aride, there was not room for the scope and tripod, though I brought it to the island as well.
well enough babble - now the birds:
first pic - our breakfast "window". 2: seychelles sunbird, 3 with the 75-300mm, uncropped. 4 flycatcher. terrible light under the dense forest and bird always high up. best I got. 4 garden friend.
 

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some more

some more
1. magpie robin 75-300mm Aride, the rest the scope
 

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Hi Carlos

Some really good shots with the scope, clarity and details are top notch. Did you bring it as hand luggage?

Was on a month long trip to south India the past winter, had to compromise on what to bring and regrettably left the scope at home as there was loads of other (non-birding/photo) stuff I was bringing with me.

Cheers
Tord
 
Hi Carlos

Some really good shots with the scope, clarity and details are top notch. Did you bring it as hand luggage?

Was on a month long trip to south India the past winter, had to compromise on what to bring and regrettably left the scope at home as there was loads of other (non-birding/photo) stuff I was bringing with me.

Cheers
Tord

Thanks Tord.

The scope is too long to have as hand luggage, so I disassemble it and only have the glass part with me in the hand luggage. Rest of the tube and focuser goes in the suit case, along with the tripod/gimbal/walking stool.

I had the e-m1 as well as the e-m5 (as backup and two lens kit) a 7,5mm Laowa, the 60mm zuiko macro and the 75-300mm. )
 

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Last November I had some builders put together a studio in the garden for me to work in (full time artist). For the last 8 years I've been painting in the spare room which is only about 8ft x 6ft. The studio space is twice the size and located at one end of my garden. I've put floor to ceiling curtains up to block out the sun as I prefer to paint under the light from my full spectrum daylight tubes. With the studio doors open I can have the curtains drawn and just poke the telescope out between them. So the studio makes a great bird hide. :) Haven't used my scope for a few years now but with me being outside I'll keep it set up in the new studio and start using it much more I think.

A few pics from yesterday taken with the SW80ED and a 2X telenegative from an old zoom lens. I've still got a big collection of old telenegative lenses from the past. Garden is about 20m long and these were from around 15 to 18m range.

Paul.
 

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Robin from around 12m range. Nikon D3300 at ISO1600 and SW80ED with a telenegative lens from a 75-150mm EBC X-Fujinon Z lens. Also using the rear group of lenses that sit just behind the shutter blades and this seems to improve sharpness to a visible degree. This group of lenses unscrews from the rear of the lens as a complete unit. There's also small lens behind the telenegative just in front of the shutter blades that isn't needed.

Paul.

Robin6.JPG
 
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