Sounds awesome! Glad you made it out with your scope ⭐️

As a proud Canadian, might I also suggest one of the best books written for the beginning astronomer: Nightwatch by Terence Dickinson.

You are very welcome! Clear skies.

Yes. You move the scope in two pieces - the base and the tube. The process is more awkward than heavy, but quite doable for a healthy adult.

Congratulations!

I have the 8 inch its same as 10 inch absolutely worth it

I am so happy that you found my review informative! If you need any help with the scope, don’t hesitate to message me 😊

i didn’t have issues with portability. The mount would go in the trunk of my Toyota Corolla and the scope would lay across the back seat. It generally held collimation, only needing realignment once in a while. A consideration is that a 10 inch scope is very forgiving.

Hey there! Yes indeed. Not similar to something you’d see after a few hours of integration time but Orion, for example, looks like a large purple and pink splotch (dependant on the lens you can make out some detail). You would also be able to see objects like the great globular cluster in Hercules and even the andromeda Galaxy! :D

@@HelenasAstrophotography Yeyyy, thanks for making this awesome videos and I'm going to sub you right now.

Hey there! F/4.7 and F/5 are also known as the F/ratios. These are the scopes focal length divided by the scopes aperture. To put it into simple terms, the smaller the ratio, the faster the scope collects light but there isn’t that much of a difference between 4.7 and 5.0 :)

@@HelenasAstrophotography thanks for the reply.

I spent several years with this scope and saw a good number of DSOs with it. In my opinion,10 inches is the sweet spot between portability and utility. You can easily see all the Messier objects with this scope and many in the NGC catalog including quite faint objects as you become a more skilled observer. One caveat: get thee to a dark site. This scope performs at its best well away from light pollution.

I do believe you can watch Uranus and Neptune from a 10”. They are the two farthest away planets in our solar system though, so the bigger the mirror on the dobsonian, the bigger the light gathering power and the more detail you’ll grasp. I’d maybe think about going for a 12” or a 14” but 10” would still be great. It depends what you want to do - whether you want to observe or whether you want to capture images. Hope this helps!

@@HelenasAstrophotography Thank you. You realy help me.

Hi, thank you for the comment! I think you’ve got it in one. She needs to learn the night sky first and roughly where things are (planets and a few stars etc). A dobsonian is perfect for this and I would 100% recommend one. 8” will be grand for planets up to Saturn and you’ll be able to make out faint nebulae such as M42. If you’d like to see the Andromeda galaxy, I’d move to the 10”. It has much more room to grow. If you purchase either, get this lens with it. Absolutely mind blowing for Jupiter - you can even make out the moons! Hope this helps :) amzn.to/2ZLTjrO

@@HelenasAstrophotography that's a great answer - thank you very much :)

I recommend sky watcher or appertura

Im not Helena, but I just wanted to let you know that collimating a telescope can sound intimidating, but once done a few times you will quickly get a feel for it. Just like anything in life it just takes a little bit of repetition. You can even buy a laser collimator to make it easier. If you're looking into getting a dobsonian I recommend a 6, 8 or 10 inch. Nothing larger or smaller, anything smaller and you will be disappointed with the views, and nothing larger because it's unnecessarily expensive and the mirrors take way too long to cool down. Having a telescope that is at the ambient temperature of outdoors helps greatly in your views. If possible stand next to each of the sizes and compare the weight of them by lifting each. If you're going to be transporting your telescope I recommend you buy the Orion(Brand) telescopes that are much lighter in weight compared to the offerings from other brands. 6 has a weight of 34 lb 8 has a weight of 42 lb 10 has a weight of 52 lb 52 lb may not sound like much, but these are awkward shaped things to lift. 52lb in a sack of rice sounds easy. 52 lb in a long tube with a base can be very annoying and might discourage an amateur astronomer. Yes you can break it down into two pieces but the weight starts to add up quickly, and any little injury in life can damper our hobby. A simple wrist or back injury might make you take a few months off of astronomy in a 10-in, but maybe in a 6-inch you feel like it's something you can still do through the injury. Keep that in mind also. If you choose an Orion dobsonian, I recommend you purchase their plus model versions. You know they are the plus model because the tubes are painted a blue instead of black. The reason being is that the blue "Plus" models have screws that can be tightened and loosened by hand making collimation even easier and with no tools necessary. They also come with a better focuser, better eyepieces and a few extras. Telescopes look a lot bigger in person than they do on your screen. Keep in mind if it's too big you might not always want to use it because it's going to be a bother to get out and haul around. Then it just becomes an expensive dust collector. You should know that a 6-10in dobsonian all have the same length of optical tube. Which means the focal length drops the bigger you go. When your tube grows in diameter but doesn't get longer the focal length starts to drop and you get something called Coma. Basically it means your view in the eyepiece won't be as sharp and start to blur towards the outside of your view. Collimation is also easier and more forgiving on a longer focal length. The 6 will give you a slightly sharper and crisper image and will be more forgiving of poor collimation. The 8 and then the 10 follow suit, each one getting ever so slightly more difficult to collimate and Coma will increase. For most this isn't a big deal, but it might be for a newcomer. Remember that the telescope itself is only half of the work. You could have a huge expensive telescope but if your eyepiece is of poor quality then it's going to give you the same views as a cheaper telescope with a better eyepiece. This hobby gets very expensive very quickly and you will realize once you have a telescope that you'll want better eyepieces, next thing you know you're going to want some filters and maybe a better finder scope and then you're going to want to buy books and a comfortable chair. One last thing to keep in mind, most 6in dobsonians will come with a plastic focuser and starting at 8 will come with a metal focuser which is of much better quality. Whatever you decide I'm sure you'll be happy with, if you have poor eyesight I recommend you go with an 8-in or larger as more light will help you see better. There's a reason the 8 is recommended as the best beginners telescope, it really hits a sweet spot with lots of different needs and want. Just like no two people are alike and not everyone likes the same toppings on their Pizza. A telescope is really more of a personal preference. One telescope might be loved by most but that doesn't make it for everyone. Only you know what you want to spend, how serious you are, how strong you are, how healthy you are as well as committed to this. I'm only saying this because a lot of people quit astronomy after a few months, especially if it's not something that comes easy to them or it becomes bothersome and they feel unimpressed with the sights. Many people spend lots of money on a telescope just to finally look at something and think, I spent all that money for this?! You're not going to be seeing anything truly amazing unless you're in very dark skies and have really good eyepieces. Be careful because it starts to add up, and we'll get very expensive before you know it. Unless you have several thousand to spend, in which case, buy a huge telescope with great filters then you can just sit back and relax from your own backyard with a cigar, while others have to go on to mountains in the pitch black of night just to get a good view out of their smaller scopes. Good luck and God bless.

@@warsquirt Thanks for all the input...it is deeply appreciated. I had been thinking of a 12" dobsonian but will take your advice into consideration. I would expect (at this time at least) to be storing it in the garage when not in use so temp changes wouldn't be a real factor as I understand it. I have a 7 passenger van it will fit in with the rear seats down. But still, I'll keep what you said in mind. When I was convinced I'd be getting a Celstron 8se, that set my expectations at $1200 or so for starters. It would be good to see a video comparing and contrasting the 10 and 12" dobsonians. I've yet to find one. Today I received my smartphone mount for the binoculars (20x80 celestrons) that are expected soon. I have a 35mm tripod that should work. I'll see what I can see and photograph from there, get used to the various skyfinder apps out there. Again, thanks. I will be (re)reading your advice to make sure it all sinks in!

@@timbrown6599 kzfaq.info/get/bejne/Y9eGi9xouKqon2g.html

@@timbrown6599 kzfaq.info/get/bejne/rtyZd6Rhy7_eqIU.html

@@timbrown6599 Happy to help, Sounds to me like you are pretty serious about this, so I recommend you get a 10in or above just so you won't be disappointed with the views. 10in weighs 30lb for the tube and 23lb for the base, for a total of 53lb. 12in weighs 50lb for the tube and 33lb for the base, for a total of 83lb. Keep in mind the weight I'm giving you is for the lighter weight Orion telescopes. Other brands usually add somewhere between 10 and 20 lb to those totals. The 10in is considered large by most, but its really more the last step in the category of what I would call medium sized dobs, because it fits laying down in the backseat of most any car. The 12-in will not fit in any vehicle's back seat and requires a Van, SUV or Truck. The two compared have a very different height of the eyepiece. The 10in requires a chair for extended viewing because the eyepiece is lower than eye level, and the 12 almost always requires you to stand up because the eyepiece will be at eye level, unless you buy a tall chair. Both are great scopes. Either will suit your needs. Both are pretty much what you call a "lifetime" scope. It's usually only under 10in of aperture that people ever upgrade their scope to something larger. Ease of use and practicality are not factors to be taken lightly though. Tracking distant sky objects and moving the telescope all night in cold temperatures is much easier on a 10. You can get the hang of it all on the 10, and then if you truly want something bigger you might even consider something like a 14 or a 16 if you're still that serious later on. There is a reason the 12 is so often nicknamed the "water heater". Many a people's backs it has injured. But if you have a partner to always help you then the 12 isn't too big a deal. 12 and up is where a partner really becomes helpful only when transporting, so long as that partner is happy to help. But in defense of the 12, some people really like the height of the eyepiece being at eye level. If you're a bigger person height and weight-wise the 12-in might just be for you. If the scope is going to be staying at home, then the 12 won't be much of a bother, you can just put it on some rolling wheels and wheel it around. The 12 will give you slightly better views but nothing dramatic. If you're going to be traveling, and if most of it is going to be by yourself, I recommend the 10. And if you permit me to take your age into consideration which my dad's just a little bit older than you, but still a strong man for his age. I would feel comfortable with him handling a 10in and under, but not the 12, especially if you have to park your vehicle somewhere and carry that tube a good distance up hills or a rocky path. The best telescope is the one you see yourself using more often. Whichever one you pick, enjoy. Hope it helps, if I find any more good comparison videos I'll send them to you.

It all started from a school project I did when I was 7! Check out my Q&A video. Yes of course. I need to do an update on photographs very soon. Clouds aren’t leaving just yet though!

@@HelenasAstrophotography Nice... I remember my first telescope a reasonable'sh 3" refractor Tasco it was... Seemed like we had 3 months of cloud after I got it lol. I really sympathise with you on that issue lol

Check out my link in the description! You should get all of the specs there. Very, very good amateur telescope that produces some stunning results for visual and photographic.

Helena's Astrophotography wow I did not expect a reply that fast! Wow!

It’s a pleasure to help out! Did it help?

Helena's Astrophotography yes found out that it weighs 70 lbs and comes in 2 parts I might get it. Thank you!

With the Dobsonian, yes, I have photographed M42 (The Orion Nebula) however because the Dob isn’t a tracking telescope you can’t take long exposure images - this is where my new equipment comes in. I’m grasping the software and the alignment processes for my new equipment now which means I should be able to make it out on the next clear night.

Helena's Astrophotography Ok cool! Thanks! I want to start with just observational astronomy first before I move into astrophotography, which is my goal. I want to start with just finding the objects and focusing the image before I empty my wallet and buy the photography equipment. Maybe one day I’ll be as good at this as you or Astrobackyard haha.

I think it's the same telescope, it's just how it's named depending on the country

Hello! If it’s just for observing rather than photography, I would highly recommend a dob. 10 inch would be great but 12 inch would capture more detail. The reason I recommend these scopes is due to their deep focal length! Viewing the planets with this monster is ace. I’m going to send a link to an eyepiece you should consider purchasing with it, gives awesome views of planets but not only that, eases out detail on their moons as well! Enjoy it and let me know how you get on. You can obviously get computerised ones as well if you were looking to track them for imaging but that’s a whole other ball game. Here is the link to the eyepiece: amzn.to/3hKcXLm

Thanks for a quick reply Helena..Actually my prime target will be dso’s this time and i heard many people say 12 inch is minimum size to be in serious astronomy like dso’s..I already have a small telescope and couple of binoculars for planets and viewing other stuff like constellations..So this time i want something to last me for a lifetime as my previous scope shows me nothing more than some planets, moon ,m42 and few good stars and now i want to see more but it has it’s limitation.. So would you suggest me a 12 inch over 10 inch for that purpose .. Before i was confused between 12 and 16 inch but sheer size of 16 put me off from buying it..12 inch is not big for me and i can lift it and handle it pretty easily plus it fits my budget easily compared to 16 inch..So what is your view if you want to suggest me one?

Right got you! So with a dob and visual, you aren’t going to get the same results looking at deep sky objects as you would if you wanted to photograph them. However, through my 10 inch dob, I am able to see the faint fuzz of Andromeda and M42. Not as clear as photos you see though so bear that in mind! In order to get big, bright results, you must shoot long exposures. But yes, a 12 inch will be a little bigger than mine but not too hard to carry about. If you’d like it to last you a while, I would recommend getting a tracking dob. This way, if you want to see objects in their full light, you can by taking photos. Don’t worry about that though if you are certain you only want to do visual 🙂

Thanks for writing to me again. I would like to get a 12 inch tracking one but then it becomes even more expensive than a 16 inch and a lot heavier in weight too. What about 12 inch manual tube dob is the one i was looking for as it sounds best bet at a decent price?

Sounds like a good decision! Only reason I suggested tracking is the results you’ll get. Dobs perform better for planetary visual than deep sky visual but you’ll still get some awesome results. Hope that helps!

Ofcourse Uranus or Neptune you need atleast a 60mm scope but for pluto you need a big scope like then 8 or 10 or 12 inch

Hi Christian. Thank you for this! I was just starting as I made that review so was the only scope I had and wanted to shed my opinion on it. In the future, I will have the chance the review other scopes, so stay tuned :)

@@HelenasAstrophotography oh hi there Helena, I guess I didn't mean for you to show me specifically I'm just an amateur 2. But if you did any comparisons I would check it out. For reference I have a Orion xt10i with explore scientific 82° eyepieces in the 4.7 8.8 14 and 24 mm range and adjustable chair and a laser that I mounted onto the OTA additionally. It's just my guess but comparing the 8in dobsonian to a 10 in dobsonian would mostly come down to portability. My next scope will probably be an apo triplet refractor in the 80 to 127 mm range with a go to mount and a camera. If I could do it all over again I would probably start with the eight and then an upgrade to a 12in might be more doable but much less portable. After some years of use I'm starting to realize where eye relief and magnification start to matter for instance my 4.7 mm isn't always usable due to seeing conditions but the 82° field of view is helpful and some might appreciate the long eye relief version at these magnifications(255x) as well. for the record I'm fine with the regular version. a dual speed focuser would also be a fine addition at higher magnifications. Things that I totally didn't get at first were true fields View and the arc minutes or the size of objects in the sky so how big the circle in the eyepiece is in relation to the object I'm viewing additionally exit pupil as related to a person's age and once again magnifications when they get higher for planetary having that high true field-of-view view is helpful to not push the dobsonian around so much .....maybeI would have got more bang for buck getting the 6.7 mm instead of the 4.7 mm as my 8.8 almost always shows a crisp View and the 4.7 is a little bit bigger and pretty sweet when the seeing is perfect but I wanted a bigger bang that gets used less I guess. I also messed up collimation a few times by doing the secondary before the primary mirror. okay that's a lot of texts but I guess if someone like you was showing the beginner dobsonian owner the things that takes a few years to figure out in a simple way a lot of newbies would like it. oh okay I see you got a 120 Ed added to your kit now we're cooking with gas. pretty much what I was thinking. P..S. girls and science are cool!

Yep absolutely, under bortle5-6 where I live, saw cassini division with a bresser 8inch dob

Hi! So because of its large focal length (1200mm) the field of view is quite narrow and therefore it is best at planetary and lunar observing. Stars are perfect though and with a wide field eyepiece you should be able to see parts of constellations - maybe even full ones if they are small. Hope this helps!

@@HelenasAstrophotography Thank you for getting back to me! Would the 8" one be better? I'd like to look at dim constellations such as Cancer, as well as clusters such as the Praesepe (Beehive) Cluster and Messier Objects such as the Whirlpool Galaxy and the Eagle Nebula in Serpens. I know that Messier Objects won't have colour via observation, but what would you recommend for observing those things?

Well if you’d like to observe galaxies as well as constellations, the galaxies are going to come up super small in the fov because it’ll be filled with the constellation. For galaxies the 10 inch dob would be great but for constellations I think you’ll be looking along the lines of the 8” yes. Does this make sense?

Hold on! I’ve just checked my fov simulator. Yes, the 10” would be grand for constellations. Check the link in my description for the best deal on the product.

@@HelenasAstrophotography Brilliant! Thank you so much!

erics vids I need a dual focuser for those fine micro adjustments

Hi, thank you for getting in touch. This is one of my earlier videos and I like to think that I have improved regarding my presentation. Thank you for the feedback though. The 10” Dob comes in two parts: the scope itself, and the stand. The stand comes with a handle to carry so it’s relatively easy to lift and the Dob is awkward but surprising light. If you were to get the Dob I’d recommend looking at carrier cases for it (not the stand) as that might help with transporting it. It’s a great starter scope and I love it. I had to move it about quite a lot when we were making the observatory water tight and I did that without any issue. Hope this helps and clear skies.

Nothing wrong with her presentation, the Scots do a fair bit of emming in everyday speech, totally normal and doesn't bother me. I bet as an Australian you have an annoying uplift at the end of your sentences, which we in the U.K don't like. I thought it was a great video, everything well explained, thanks.

Even the 8 inch Is for advanced...

AWESOME