Camera hardware/software evolution : #

In the past, I've had a few different cameras.

Both were very good cameras in their day.
The Pentax K-x had good low-lights performances for an entry-level model (you could go up to ISO 1600 without too much noise).
Later and when I needed to upgrade, I bought an excellent Fuji-film X10, which had a fixed lens, was light and discreet, and offered excellent performances for a budget price.
Some of the photos on the home page were taken with these two cameras.

Then, a few years later, I wanted to upgrade my equipment at a reasonable cost.

Fujifilm (I still resent you for this) no longer offered cameras with adjustable focal lengths built into the body. Except for the X20, which was barely more efficient than the X10.
Pentax wasn't releasing anything extraordinary, and I didn't want to go back to a big DSLR Reflex.

At the same time, the overall smartphones photo quality had seen a real technological leap forward. So for my purposes, and having other financial priorities, a smartphone with good photo capabilities was more than adequate.

I'll let you check the tests between the Google/Samsung/Oppo/Honor/Huawei flagships ... The 50x “AI-powered” zoom capture are just amazing.

And they easily hold their own against a recent mid-range DSLR camera and a random lens.

Of course you won't get the same sharpness as with an $800 + Canon lens, and the same deep black than a Sony Axxx, but is that really necessary for most people ?

Look at the stars : #

Recently, we were on vacation at the westernmost point of France, and during the nights, the sky was particularly clear and cloudless. Such a pleasure to look at the stars and the clearly visible Milky Way.
This immediately rekindled my passion for space.

Also, I have a garden and I'm living in a "not so bad" zone according to https://lightpollutionmap.app/

In addition, as you have probably noticed, I also enjoy photography (or something close to it with my Pixel 7 😹).
For AS, you need very long shots with a DSLR (but in fact, you can also use a smartphone with the right application).

I have made several attempts with my Pentax K-x; this is not so easy. The screen is very bad for checking the focus on the stars. This is an almost 15-year-old DSLR, I have very poor optics, and it's very difficult to shoot properly...

And you can't open more than N seconds with the Fujifilm X10 (Not with high ISO)... this one is useless in Astrophotography (AS).

I don't post any pictures as I was unable to obtain any conclusive results, even when shooting Polaris 🤕

After reading thousands of pages and watching hours of videos ... #

Here my plan, a starter pack that I will try to build in the next months :

A used Canon 80D filtered (useless to have the latest model with astropho) : ~ 350 euros without any lens : approximately 700 euros unfiltered for Astro ...
A decent lens : The Samyang 135mm f/2 ~ 470 euros.
Tripod ~ 100 euros
Equatorial Mount ... basically a Start Adventurer GTI ~ 600 euros
The usual gadgets : Intervalometer, Batinov mask, lens heater , filters ... let say 200 euros
- I don’t take into account the Asiair : useless for a beginner.

Price does not include hours spent complaining and struggling to configure and install all of this during each sessions.

I’ve planned to assemble this setup over several months to spread out the cost, starting with the lens and optics, then quickly moving on to the equatorial mount ...

Of course this is just the beginning of the rabbit hole.

Astrophotography is like HiFi there is almost not limit on the setup price ... It's the kind of hobby where you always want to optimize your setup ... come on just a little filter for 200 euros is nothing.

But finally I’ve purchase a Vespera II 🤑 ⭐ #

And I was close to buy a Vespera Pro but I came to my sens 2 minutes before the order. ( Pro ~ 2700 euros without filters ... 📈 🛑)

You can count on me to give you feedback as soon as I receive it (and as soon as the sky is cloudless enough).

Vespera II

Why not a Seestar ? #

I hesitated for a long time. It's true that the community around Seestar seems vibrant and the value for money seems unbeatable. The only blocking factor for me is the size of the sensor a 2Mpx resolution.
Ideally I would like to print some of the best photos.

I know that ZWO is working on a S50+ or S70 but for now resolution 2MPx is a bit too low for me. I would like to be able to print some images.

Also, Vaonis is a French company, and I like the idea of supporting a small local company rather than another Chinese product.
This is obviously not the main reason; the product has to be good and well-designed. I won't say the same for Unistellar...

But this is a toy not a real astro-setup ! #

There is a recurring phenomenon that appears when a technological cap on a market is reached.

The Gatekeeper

Well, I think some Astro-Photographers, a bit "hard-lifers" (not all of course), do not realize exactly what is happening.

In the next 5/10 years a $10,000 super set-up will be good for the shelf because it will be completely deprecated by the most up-to-date “smart astro telescope” at date and for a fraction of the cost and constraints

There is no doubt about it.

I've seen YouTubers presenting "budget's” astronomy starter-kits with equatorial mounts, deep sky filters and apochromatics telescopes costing over €2,500... to achieve results barely better than a Seestar ... 😵‍💫

(I’ve also seen other, fully aware of the significant advances in smart telescopes, explaining how to shot the sky with just your DSLR and a hand crafted EQ mount, I’ve tried without tangible results)

Yes, but setting up and adjusting the camera and your setup during hours are the essence of photography, and you need to fine tune everything to have better result.

Short answer : lol.

Long answer : on the contrary, if you want a flawless result that can be perfectly reproduced every time, you need to automate it and have it done by a machine (Who said SystemD ? 😁 )
Also why are they all using a mini PC to manage the camera and the scope ... ⁉️

We are not talking about woodworking or stonework, where human hands and “savoir faire" gesture make sense.

It was the same for the “numeric” photography or with smartphone adoption and the improvement in the quality of smartphone cameras or the the electronic music (I remember about fruity loops arrival ... The number of Godwin points triggered on the forums at the time was crazy 🤣)

Sociologically speaking (According to the mighty Perplexity 🤖)

Defence of legitimacy and prestige : Those who master a complex technique see their expertise threatened when ease of access becomes the norm.
Elitism and the search for belonging : This helps maintain a “closed” and valued community by excluding newcomers or practices deemed too accessible.
Slowing down democratisation: This gatekeeping slows down the adoption of new technologies by the general public and can limit the diversity of practices and perspectives.

Well resumed, virtual bro, seems accurate.

Actually, I was also tempted to play around with big telescopes and lots of cables to get great results after hours of post-processing with complicated software.
But I prefer to save my money for now and wait for companies to automate/streamline and make all this accessible.

I will create a new post when the Vespera will be delivered with probably some first shots 💥 and my first feedback

As usual, I'm being facetious. #

Obviously, I won’t say this kind of smart telescope will totally replace top notch Astro-rig with huge focal. (We still have DSLR in 2025 and they make sense).

But the amount of money (and time) that will soon need to be spent to achieve better results than a smart telescope in a near future ... will not be worth the price or the effort.