Astronomical equipment

Telescopes

I currently own a Celestron C8 Schmidt-Cassegrain. This has an aperture of 203mm (8") and a focal length of just over 2m, and hence it operates at f/10.
For imaging faint objects, I can operate it at f/5.6 or f/3.3 by using focal reducer lenses. For imaging the bright planets, I can operate it at f/20 or greater, using a Barlow lens.
The tripod and mount is a simple EQ-5 with dual motors. It has no fancy computer-aided go-to drive, so I have to "star hop" to find objects.
The telescope is however now fitted with a JMI electric focus motor, so that I can operate the telescope remotely from indoors (in the warm) while imaging.

My SCT endures a frosty night, whilst I shelter in the shed with the controls. The cardboard tube on the front blocks stray light, and helps delay the formation of dew on the front corrector-plate lens.

Even better: I can operate the 'scope from the warmth of the house! The computer screen is displaying an image of Mars, live from the Toucam on the telescope.

I previously owned a Helios 8" Newtonian and a Skywatcher 5" refractor.

The Helios Explorer 200 assembled on its mount. I adapted an old wooden surveyor's tripod, which was much steadier than the lightweight aluminium one suppplied.

Cameras

I have a Starlight-Express MX5C cooled CCD for imaging faint objects. This is a one-shot colour camera, so no filters are required. For imaging the bright planets, I use a Philips Toucam USB webcam. My trusty old Pentax MX SLR is sometimes used too, since 35mm film has a much wider field of view than the CCD imagers.

Binoculars

I use a pair of Swift 7x50s for wide-field viewing. For higher magnification deep-sky observing, I have a pair of Helios 15x70s and Celestron 25x100s, which I use on home-made mounts.