Spent $350 on a star tracker mount and it just sits in my closet now

I got really into astrophotography last spring after seeing some Milky Way shots online. Bought this iOptron SkyGuider Pro for like $350 off CloudyNights. Thought I'd be taking epic wide field shots every weekend. First night out I spent 45 minutes trying to polar align and gave up. Second time I got it set up but my camera battery died after 20 minutes. Third time the wind knocked the whole thing over while I was inside grabbing a coffee. Now it's been 6 months and that mount hasn't left my closet. My backyard in Phoenix has too much light pollution anyway. Anyone else buy gear that sounded amazing but you just couldn't make work? What did you do with yours?

3 comments

Log in to join the discussion

Log In

3 Comments

evan5434mo ago

45 minutes is a lifetime to find out your camera has 20 minutes of juice left.

7

jake7474mo ago

45 minutes on polar alignment? That's actually impressive patience for a first try.

6

harperr824mo ago

45 minutes is nothing when you think about it. Rushing alignment causes way more problems later. Spend the time once, then your subs are actually usable.

2