Nexstar SE Camera Platform
I recently picked up a used Nexstar 6/8 SE mount and tripod. The idea is using it not only as a grab-and-go for my 72mm f/6 Orion EON, (and hopefully a 5 or 6″ SCT OTA down the line), but also in the hopes of using it for some lightweight wide-field long-exposure and time-lapse astrophotography.
I wanted to side-by-side mount a DSLR camera and wide-angle lens combo alongside my unused Celestron 9×50 finder scope from my CPC800 and use an Orion StarShoot autoguider attached to the finder to guide the whole contraption for long exposure photos. That this setup can run on batteries, and is lightweight enough to chuck in the back of the car for camping trips, made this an interesting camera platform despite the Nexstar’s well known astrophotography limitations.