Sky-Watcher's Star Adventurer Motorized Mount Photo Package is an easy-to-use equatorial mount that offers accurate tracking capabilities for time-lapse and long-exposure wide-field astrophotography. With a simple turn of a dial, select from Lunar, Solar, or Star tracking modes, or four speeds from 0.5x to 12x if the modes are not exactly right. An integrated polar alignment scope with an included illuminator help the alignment process in either the Northern or Southern Hemispheres, and a date dial compensates for star drift over time to extend the usability of the scope. Included with the Star Adventurer is a ball head adapter with a 3/8"-16 screw to mount a photo ball head to adapt it for use with a DSLR camera. A 2.5mm three-segment stereo jack is integrated into the mount and gives the mount the ability to control a compatible DSLR's shutter release for long-exposure or time-lapse photography. Pre-programmed intervals, based on the tracking mode selected, optimize the exposure times for the subjects selected. The Star Adventurer mount features a Vixen-style dovetail saddle for compatible accessories and optical tube assemblies (OTAs). It has both 3.8"-16 and 1/4"-20 tripod mounts to fit on most astronomical, photo, or video tripods and is offered here without a tripod, OTA, or counterweights.
Sky-Watcher's Star Adventurer Motorized Mount Photo Package is an easy-to-use equatorial mount that offers accurate tracking capabilities for time-lapse and long-exposure wide-field astrophotography. With a simple turn of a dial, select from Lunar, Solar, or Star tracking modes, or four speeds from 0.5x to 12x if the modes are not exactly right. An integrated polar alignment scope with an included illuminator help the alignment process in either the Northern or Southern Hemispheres, and a date dial compensates for star drift over time to extend the usability of the scope. Included with the Star Adventurer is a ball head adapter with a 3/8"-16 screw to mount a photo ball head to adapt it for use with a DSLR camera. A 2.5mm three-segment stereo jack is integrated into the mount and gives the mount the ability to control a compatible DSLR's shutter release for long-exposure or time-lapse photography. Pre-programmed intervals, based on the tracking mode selected, optimize the exposure times for the subjects selected. The Star Adventurer mount features a Vixen-style dovetail saddle for compatible accessories and optical tube assemblies (OTAs). It has both 3.8"-16 and 1/4"-20 tripod mounts to fit on most astronomical, photo, or video tripods and is offered here without a tripod, OTA, or counterweights.
in 2 offers
The lowest price for Sky-Watcher S20520 Star Adventurer Photo Package right now is $449.10 at digiDirect Australia, compared across 2 retailers.
The all-time low was $424.15 on 19 Nov 2025 — today's price is 6% above the lowest ever. That's a little above the best price we've seen.
Sky-Watcher S20520 Star Adventurer Photo Package
Sky-Watcher's Star Adventurer Motorized Mount Photo Package is an easy-to-use equatorial mount that offers accurate tracking capabilities for time-lapse and long-exposure wide-field astrophotography. With a simple turn of a dial, select from Lunar, Solar, or Star tracking modes, or four speeds from 0.5x to 12x if the modes are not exactly right. An integrated polar alignment scope with an included illuminator help the alignment process in either the Northern or Southern Hemispheres, and a date dial compensates for star drift over time to extend the usability of the scope. Included with the Star Adventurer is a ball head adapter with a 3/8"-16 screw to mount a photo ball head to adapt it for use with a DSLR camera. A 2.5mm three-segment stereo jack is integrated into the mount and gives the mount the ability to control a compatible DSLR's shutter release for long-exposure or time-lapse photography. Pre-programmed intervals, based on the tracking mode selected, optimize the exposure times for the subjects selected. The Star Adventurer mount features a Vixen-style dovetail saddle for compatible accessories and optical tube assemblies (OTAs). It has both 3.8"-16 and 1/4"-20 tripod mounts to fit on most astronomical, photo, or video tripods and is offered here without a tripod, OTA, or counterweights.
Sky-Watcher's Star Adventurer Motorized Mount Photo Package is an easy-to-use equatorial mount that offers accurate tracking capabilities for time-lapse and long-exposure wide-field astrophotography. With a simple turn of a dial, select from Lunar, Solar, or Star tracking modes, or four speeds from 0.5x to 12x if the modes are not exactly right. An integrated polar alignment scope with an included illuminator help the alignment process in either the Northern or Southern Hemispheres, and a date dial compensates for star drift over time to extend the usability of the scope. Included with the Star Adventurer is a ball head adapter with a 3/8"-16 screw to mount a photo ball head to adapt it for use with a DSLR camera. A 2.5mm three-segment stereo jack is integrated into the mount and gives the mount the ability to control a compatible DSLR's shutter release for long-exposure or time-lapse photography. Pre-programmed intervals, based on the tracking mode selected, optimize the exposure times for the subjects selected. The Star Adventurer mount features a Vixen-style dovetail saddle for compatible accessories and optical tube assemblies (OTAs). It has both 3.8"-16 and 1/4"-20 tripod mounts to fit on most astronomical, photo, or video tripods and is offered here without a tripod, OTA, or counterweights.
Prices last updated 2 July 2026.
Last updated at 02/07/2026 07:20:26
STAR ADVENTURER BLACK MOUNT Photo Package
Delivery between 9–14 July $8.95
Sky-Watcher Sky-Watcher Star Adventurer Photo Package
originally posted on adorama.com
I like the star tracker despite it's minor flaws that I will mention in a moment. The build is rugged, and the setup to find/track polaris can be complex and must be tried numerous times to become proficient at it. Particularly for beginners. Fortunately, there are numerous apps that will help you with the alignment and you can download them to your cellphone for use in the field. AP Polar Align, and Skymap are the two free programs I found most useful.Beyond that, the unit is ruggedly built with the exception of the cheap plastic battery cover and the scope cover, both of which come off too easily and are subject to getting broken or lost.I should also point out that this is my second purchase, after my first unit was stolen in Wyoming hotel.The unit should give ... MoreI like the star tracker despite it's minor flaws that I will mention in a moment. The build is rugged, and the setup to find/track polaris can be complex and must be tried numerous times to become proficient at it. Particularly for beginners. Fortunately, there are numerous apps that will help you with the alignment and you can download them to your cellphone for use in the field. AP Polar Align, and Skymap are the two free programs I found most useful.Beyond that, the unit is ruggedly built with the exception of the cheap plastic battery cover and the scope cover, both of which come off too easily and are subject to getting broken or lost.I should also point out that this is my second purchase, after my first unit was stolen in Wyoming hotel.The unit should give years of usage and the features it has are great for time lapse photography, lunar, solar, star, etc.Just remember to prep beforehand and practice the alignment techniques with the apps. Even better if you join a club with others who own the unit and can share experience firsthand on location.
originally posted on bhphotovideo.com
I use the Star Adventurer to track stars and other celestial objects in the night sky. I also use it at a higher speed for time lapse panning. For tracking stars: as long as you properly align it to Polaris, the Star Adventurer will deliver fantastic results over and over. It's small but heavy-duty construction will last a long time, plus you can load it with up to 11 lbs (5kg) of camera/lens or telescope. To make alignment extremely easy, you can download the Polaris alignment app as mentioned in the instructions. Tracking stars allows you to stop down your aperture and ISO, resulting in sharper, less-noisy photos of the night sky. Stopping down will increase your exposure time, but the Star Adventurer stays on track, following the stars you're aiming at across the ... MoreI use the Star Adventurer to track stars and other celestial objects in the night sky. I also use it at a higher speed for time lapse panning. For tracking stars: as long as you properly align it to Polaris, the Star Adventurer will deliver fantastic results over and over. It's small but heavy-duty construction will last a long time, plus you can load it with up to 11 lbs (5kg) of camera/lens or telescope. To make alignment extremely easy, you can download the Polaris alignment app as mentioned in the instructions. Tracking stars allows you to stop down your aperture and ISO, resulting in sharper, less-noisy photos of the night sky. Stopping down will increase your exposure time, but the Star Adventurer stays on track, following the stars you're aiming at across the sky without showing any star trails. Using this with landscape photography that includes a starry sky, align the Star Adventurer and setup your camera, creating the composition you want. Take a base exposure of the landscape (foreground), then turn the Star Adventurer on to begin tracking the stars. Take a second exposure while tracking the stars and composite it on top of your 1st foreground exposure. You'll have the exposures you need for both the land and sky while retaining sharpness and low noise! If you want to capture tack-sharp stationary stars (without the stars trailing), the Star Adventurer is the only motorized tracking mount to use.
originally posted on bhphotovideo.com
Bought this to upgrade my Vixen Polarie mount, which is a piece of fine art Japanese manufacturing, but of flawed design. The Star Adventurer has a 5kg payload capacity, vs 3kg for the Polarie. This alone sets it head and shoulders above the Polarie. But the true genius of the design is the friction clutch wheel and built in polar scope. Main problem with the Polarie is the very small knurled knobs used to attach the camera support (typically a ball head or small geared 3 axis tripod head) to the body of the Polarie. These two small knobs are so close to the body of the Polarie mount it is a true nuisance to tighten or loosen them. The Star Adventurer design by contrast uses a very elegant friction wheel. This clutch release mechanism is easily operated with one ... MoreBought this to upgrade my Vixen Polarie mount, which is a piece of fine art Japanese manufacturing, but of flawed design. The Star Adventurer has a 5kg payload capacity, vs 3kg for the Polarie. This alone sets it head and shoulders above the Polarie. But the true genius of the design is the friction clutch wheel and built in polar scope. Main problem with the Polarie is the very small knurled knobs used to attach the camera support (typically a ball head or small geared 3 axis tripod head) to the body of the Polarie. These two small knobs are so close to the body of the Polarie mount it is a true nuisance to tighten or loosen them. The Star Adventurer design by contrast uses a very elegant friction wheel. This clutch release mechanism is easily operated with one hand, even in the dark. I grip the cube like body of the Star Adventurer and give the friction wheel a twist to re-adjust position of the camera. It can be operated using two fingers of one hand. Bravo for the design! Also the built in polar scope is well designed. It comes with an accessory reticule illuminator which is handy to free your hands for aligning the mount. After reading and re-reading the manual several times I am still unclear how to set the current date to position the polar scope. I went with midnight at October 31st and then rotated the entire scope barrel using the clutch wheel. It seemed to work as I had quite good alignment for an all night tracking of the Moon. I have not tried this for long exposure deep sky object photography, though I feel once calibrated it should be a suitable platform, especially considering the price and portability. NB: in the event you need to calibrate the eyepiece reticle you will need to provide your own tiny hex keys. Don't malign the manufacturer because you don't have the proper tools to do astrophotography; though it would be nice if they included one it is not a deal breaker. Bought this as a travel mount for solar and lunar eclipse photography. Simply using my iPad mini and some polar alignment apps I was able to dial in the polar alignment during the day with enough accuracy that Polaris was within the reticle after sunset. Not bad for just using a compass, bubble level and inclinometer. Flaws? Cheap plastic cover over battery compartment and polar scope. Not tragic, but a bit awkward as it seems the polar scope cap must come off to remove battery cover. Be prepared to use a small tool to pry out the batteries. Takes 4 AA batteries for 72 hours of operation compared to 2 AA cells for the Polarie, and it's correspondingly reduced run time. Both units however take USB power through a user supplied cable and power source. Of particular interest are the various speeds available and the fast forward slew buttons. These allow fine adjustment of tracking speed to re-position an object in the camera or telescope viewfinder. There is a port for an optional auto guider, though this is of no relevance to Solar or Lunar photography so I have not explored how well it functions. The timelapse intervalometer settings are cryptic to me, if you figure out what they mean please leave a review here. Overall, a very elegant, sturdy, portable and affordable mount with lots of features. This will definitely replace the Polarie in my travel kit.
| Mount Type | Equatorial |
| Load Capacity | 11 lb / 5 kg |
| Motor | DC servo |
| GoTo Capability | No |
| Polar Axis Scope | Yes. Built-in and illuminated |
STAR ADVENTURER BLACK MOUNT Photo Package
Delivery between 9–14 July $8.95
Sky-Watcher Sky-Watcher Star Adventurer Photo Package
I like the star tracker despite it's minor flaws that I will mention in a moment. The build is rugged, and the setup to find/track polaris can be complex and must be tried numerous times to become proficient at it. Particularly for beginners. Fortunately, there are numerous apps that will help you with the alignment and you can download them to your cellphone for use in the field. AP Polar Align, and Skymap are the two free programs I found most useful.Beyond that, the unit is ruggedly built with the exception of the cheap plastic battery cover and the scope cover, both of which come off too easily and are subject to getting broken or lost.I should also point out that this is my second purchase, after my first unit was stolen in Wyoming hotel.The unit should give ... MoreI like the star tracker despite it's minor flaws that I will mention in a moment. The build is rugged, and the setup to find/track polaris can be complex and must be tried numerous times to become proficient at it. Particularly for beginners. Fortunately, there are numerous apps that will help you with the alignment and you can download them to your cellphone for use in the field. AP Polar Align, and Skymap are the two free programs I found most useful.Beyond that, the unit is ruggedly built with the exception of the cheap plastic battery cover and the scope cover, both of which come off too easily and are subject to getting broken or lost.I should also point out that this is my second purchase, after my first unit was stolen in Wyoming hotel.The unit should give years of usage and the features it has are great for time lapse photography, lunar, solar, star, etc.Just remember to prep beforehand and practice the alignment techniques with the apps. Even better if you join a club with others who own the unit and can share experience firsthand on location.
I use the Star Adventurer to track stars and other celestial objects in the night sky. I also use it at a higher speed for time lapse panning. For tracking stars: as long as you properly align it to Polaris, the Star Adventurer will deliver fantastic results over and over. It's small but heavy-duty construction will last a long time, plus you can load it with up to 11 lbs (5kg) of camera/lens or telescope. To make alignment extremely easy, you can download the Polaris alignment app as mentioned in the instructions. Tracking stars allows you to stop down your aperture and ISO, resulting in sharper, less-noisy photos of the night sky. Stopping down will increase your exposure time, but the Star Adventurer stays on track, following the stars you're aiming at across the ... MoreI use the Star Adventurer to track stars and other celestial objects in the night sky. I also use it at a higher speed for time lapse panning. For tracking stars: as long as you properly align it to Polaris, the Star Adventurer will deliver fantastic results over and over. It's small but heavy-duty construction will last a long time, plus you can load it with up to 11 lbs (5kg) of camera/lens or telescope. To make alignment extremely easy, you can download the Polaris alignment app as mentioned in the instructions. Tracking stars allows you to stop down your aperture and ISO, resulting in sharper, less-noisy photos of the night sky. Stopping down will increase your exposure time, but the Star Adventurer stays on track, following the stars you're aiming at across the sky without showing any star trails. Using this with landscape photography that includes a starry sky, align the Star Adventurer and setup your camera, creating the composition you want. Take a base exposure of the landscape (foreground), then turn the Star Adventurer on to begin tracking the stars. Take a second exposure while tracking the stars and composite it on top of your 1st foreground exposure. You'll have the exposures you need for both the land and sky while retaining sharpness and low noise! If you want to capture tack-sharp stationary stars (without the stars trailing), the Star Adventurer is the only motorized tracking mount to use.
Bought this to upgrade my Vixen Polarie mount, which is a piece of fine art Japanese manufacturing, but of flawed design. The Star Adventurer has a 5kg payload capacity, vs 3kg for the Polarie. This alone sets it head and shoulders above the Polarie. But the true genius of the design is the friction clutch wheel and built in polar scope. Main problem with the Polarie is the very small knurled knobs used to attach the camera support (typically a ball head or small geared 3 axis tripod head) to the body of the Polarie. These two small knobs are so close to the body of the Polarie mount it is a true nuisance to tighten or loosen them. The Star Adventurer design by contrast uses a very elegant friction wheel. This clutch release mechanism is easily operated with one ... MoreBought this to upgrade my Vixen Polarie mount, which is a piece of fine art Japanese manufacturing, but of flawed design. The Star Adventurer has a 5kg payload capacity, vs 3kg for the Polarie. This alone sets it head and shoulders above the Polarie. But the true genius of the design is the friction clutch wheel and built in polar scope. Main problem with the Polarie is the very small knurled knobs used to attach the camera support (typically a ball head or small geared 3 axis tripod head) to the body of the Polarie. These two small knobs are so close to the body of the Polarie mount it is a true nuisance to tighten or loosen them. The Star Adventurer design by contrast uses a very elegant friction wheel. This clutch release mechanism is easily operated with one hand, even in the dark. I grip the cube like body of the Star Adventurer and give the friction wheel a twist to re-adjust position of the camera. It can be operated using two fingers of one hand. Bravo for the design! Also the built in polar scope is well designed. It comes with an accessory reticule illuminator which is handy to free your hands for aligning the mount. After reading and re-reading the manual several times I am still unclear how to set the current date to position the polar scope. I went with midnight at October 31st and then rotated the entire scope barrel using the clutch wheel. It seemed to work as I had quite good alignment for an all night tracking of the Moon. I have not tried this for long exposure deep sky object photography, though I feel once calibrated it should be a suitable platform, especially considering the price and portability. NB: in the event you need to calibrate the eyepiece reticle you will need to provide your own tiny hex keys. Don't malign the manufacturer because you don't have the proper tools to do astrophotography; though it would be nice if they included one it is not a deal breaker. Bought this as a travel mount for solar and lunar eclipse photography. Simply using my iPad mini and some polar alignment apps I was able to dial in the polar alignment during the day with enough accuracy that Polaris was within the reticle after sunset. Not bad for just using a compass, bubble level and inclinometer. Flaws? Cheap plastic cover over battery compartment and polar scope. Not tragic, but a bit awkward as it seems the polar scope cap must come off to remove battery cover. Be prepared to use a small tool to pry out the batteries. Takes 4 AA batteries for 72 hours of operation compared to 2 AA cells for the Polarie, and it's correspondingly reduced run time. Both units however take USB power through a user supplied cable and power source. Of particular interest are the various speeds available and the fast forward slew buttons. These allow fine adjustment of tracking speed to re-position an object in the camera or telescope viewfinder. There is a port for an optional auto guider, though this is of no relevance to Solar or Lunar photography so I have not explored how well it functions. The timelapse intervalometer settings are cryptic to me, if you figure out what they mean please leave a review here. Overall, a very elegant, sturdy, portable and affordable mount with lots of features. This will definitely replace the Polarie in my travel kit.
I bought Star Adventurer for wide field astrophotography to get more details on Milky way core. There were not many reviews out there when I bought it. My other options were iOptron Skytracker, Vixen Polarie. I went with Star Adventurer due to Skywatcher reputation, heavier payload, features for the money and the price. I'm happy with the choice I made. Tracker has decent build quality, buttons are plastic. It is relatively small comparable to 24-70 lens, fits well in my Thinktank bag with 2 bodies and 4 lenses. I'm not sure if some of the buttons like Left and Right buttons work at all, they don't do anything from what I observed. Manual is not well written in terms of polar alignment, features like lunar/solar tracking. I put SA on Markins ballhead, I wanted to ... MoreI bought Star Adventurer for wide field astrophotography to get more details on Milky way core. There were not many reviews out there when I bought it. My other options were iOptron Skytracker, Vixen Polarie. I went with Star Adventurer due to Skywatcher reputation, heavier payload, features for the money and the price. I'm happy with the choice I made. Tracker has decent build quality, buttons are plastic. It is relatively small comparable to 24-70 lens, fits well in my Thinktank bag with 2 bodies and 4 lenses. I'm not sure if some of the buttons like Left and Right buttons work at all, they don't do anything from what I observed. Manual is not well written in terms of polar alignment, features like lunar/solar tracking. I put SA on Markins ballhead, I wanted to buy wedge if ballhead is hard to manage. I used SA during 4 nights, I was able to manage well with ballhead. I place my camera on Induro 5-way panhead which is mounted on SA. I'm getting confused more I read about polar alignment and looking at Polar scope iOS apps. So I keep it simple to roughly align polaris for widefield photography. I align to polaris in couple of mins, I'm sure my alignment is not precise. I'm satisfied with tracking. I was able to track for 4+ minutes at 50mm (I could have pushed more), 3+ mins at 100mm and 1+ min at 200mm on full-frame camera. If I align precisely, I'm confident that it can track longer. I'll recommend this to anyone for widefield photography.
The only thing I have to compare this to is an Opteron with this one costing a little more. This one has more features, and it's got a more precise alignment scope than the other brand. Overall I like the design better. It's also great to be able to go up to 12 times normal speed for time lapse effects. I wish there were a tracker that allowed checking the alignment of Polaris WHILE THE CAMERA IS MOUNTED. The Opteron allowed that but the scope was loose. This one requires removal of the camera. You'll want to use a strong tripod and balance the camera and tracker as best you can so they don't strain the tripod. The assembly can get pretty heavy. I am able to consistently get good results with up to 10 minute exposure times with a 14mm lens. Even with long lenses you ... MoreThe only thing I have to compare this to is an Opteron with this one costing a little more. This one has more features, and it's got a more precise alignment scope than the other brand. Overall I like the design better. It's also great to be able to go up to 12 times normal speed for time lapse effects. I wish there were a tracker that allowed checking the alignment of Polaris WHILE THE CAMERA IS MOUNTED. The Opteron allowed that but the scope was loose. This one requires removal of the camera. You'll want to use a strong tripod and balance the camera and tracker as best you can so they don't strain the tripod. The assembly can get pretty heavy. I am able to consistently get good results with up to 10 minute exposure times with a 14mm lens. Even with long lenses you can sometimes track very accurately for several minutes. All in all this is a well built and very useful sky tracker and also a time lapse panner/tilter.
I just received my product last week and it sure is a nice piece of equipment. Well-made and nicely constructed. Thus far I have zero negative points about the product and only give it the highest praise.I did find the instructions for use of the product a bit confusing. Although they seem straightforward, I did have a number of questions. I did get quick responses to my questions from Sky Watcher which was a plus. It would be extremely helpful if they had a few more videos regarding the use of the product with both a telescope and a camera. The videos that I found were not in-depth videos but more at the highlight level.Set up was a breeze, and I'm looking forward to a lot of use from this item. It makes my small telescope much more usable. Easy portability ... MoreI just received my product last week and it sure is a nice piece of equipment. Well-made and nicely constructed. Thus far I have zero negative points about the product and only give it the highest praise.I did find the instructions for use of the product a bit confusing. Although they seem straightforward, I did have a number of questions. I did get quick responses to my questions from Sky Watcher which was a plus. It would be extremely helpful if they had a few more videos regarding the use of the product with both a telescope and a camera. The videos that I found were not in-depth videos but more at the highlight level.Set up was a breeze, and I'm looking forward to a lot of use from this item. It makes my small telescope much more usable. Easy portability too.I really love the product.
I bought this item because a previous version of the Star Adventurer which I owned had stopped working and could not be repaired (the manufacturer claimed they didn't have the parts) and because I needed a small tracking mount which would hold just my camera. It turns out that this version is an improvement on the original, but only barely. You have to buy a ball mount to mount a camera; this is not included. The SA is complicated to use and the instruction manual is not always clear.
The Star Adventurer is performing better than expected. I am up to 45 minutes exposure time (18-55mm lens) and still no star trailing. The Polar alignment is pretty straight forward and easy to setup - assuming you have the equatorial mount. Alignment could be a little more challenging if you are trying to just use the pan and tilt feature of a tripod. The equatorial mount is worth the money. All in all this tracker is definitely worth the money and I would highly recommend. Also I found the High Point Scientific salesman helpful- he actually had someone open the box and find out exactly what it came with since there was a little confusion from the picture. The only negative is the manual - it is lacking in substance. I recommend checking out the various video's ... MoreThe Star Adventurer is performing better than expected. I am up to 45 minutes exposure time (18-55mm lens) and still no star trailing. The Polar alignment is pretty straight forward and easy to setup - assuming you have the equatorial mount. Alignment could be a little more challenging if you are trying to just use the pan and tilt feature of a tripod. The equatorial mount is worth the money. All in all this tracker is definitely worth the money and I would highly recommend. Also I found the High Point Scientific salesman helpful- he actually had someone open the box and find out exactly what it came with since there was a little confusion from the picture. The only negative is the manual - it is lacking in substance. I recommend checking out the various video's that are out there. In conclusion, having a lot of fun with this tracker, money well spent.
Several light-duty EQ mounts have hit the market in recent years to fill niche for photographers interested in taking wide-field (e.g. 14-35mm) & standard focal length starry night landscapes and short- to medium- telephoto deep sky star photos (e.g. 70-200mm), but that don’t want to invest thousands of dollars in more robust, and substantially heavier EQ and Altazimuth-EQ mounts.Unfortunately, most of the options in this niche-market, while very capable and quite portable for getting off the beaten path, often have limited payload capacities. This could be a problem if using a heavy lens, top-notch tripod head, and dSLRs with a battery grip, or pro-size body like I frequently do. What’s more, many don’t have autoguiding capability, so exposures beyond 2 or 3 ... MoreSeveral light-duty EQ mounts have hit the market in recent years to fill niche for photographers interested in taking wide-field (e.g. 14-35mm) & standard focal length starry night landscapes and short- to medium- telephoto deep sky star photos (e.g. 70-200mm), but that don’t want to invest thousands of dollars in more robust, and substantially heavier EQ and Altazimuth-EQ mounts.Unfortunately, most of the options in this niche-market, while very capable and quite portable for getting off the beaten path, often have limited payload capacities. This could be a problem if using a heavy lens, top-notch tripod head, and dSLRs with a battery grip, or pro-size body like I frequently do. What’s more, many don’t have autoguiding capability, so exposures beyond 2 or 3 minutes with longer focal lengths just isn’t possible. Or, in the case of the AstroTrac may still be both too heavy and costly, especially if needing to invest in additional accessories, although the AstroTrac can handle payloads of about 40 pounds.Enter the Star Adventurer by Sky-Watcher as a very robust compromise. With its 11 lb. (5 kg) payload, especially if using the optional Dec Mount and counterweight, this little EQ mount provides rather tremendous star photo opportunities compared to its main lighter-duty competitors.I’ve only had my copy for about 2 weeks, and even though I had no previous experience using EQ mounts, I’ve already been able to attain extremely good results with both wide-field and medium-telephoto focal lengths out to 200mm with exposure times up to 3 minutes without star trailing (check out an example at the following link: http://www.imagesbybeaulin.com/Photo/Star-Photography/i-PL9kr4R). Anything beyond that seems to require an autoguider with guidescope to keep the stars tack-sharp, even for many more substantial EQ mounts available on the market. But, the Star Adventurer has this added capability provided your lens and tripod head aren’t too beefy.I gave this product a 4-star rating since the instruction manual leaves a lot to be desired, and for those unfamiliar using EQ mounts, celestial coordinates and polar alignment scopes could find the steep learning curve a bit frustrating. But, I was able to get up to speed with some additional online research in just one afternoon, and was out shooting successfully with it later that night.Also, if using a dSLR and other heavy gear, the load capacity and counter-weight could be on the low end of what’s needed when using the Dec mount with additional guidescope, auto-guider and other accessories.I found that the mount and accompanying EQ wedge could also have been a bit more sturdier, and it was difficult to balance some gear configurations since the supplied weight didn’t seem to be heavy enough. To get sufficient results with 1.5 to 2 min. exposures and 70-200mm focal lengths does require some attention to detail during set-up compared to higher-grade EQ mounts, and use of a very substantial tripod (don’t scrimp on this) to mitigate vibration and movement via the various mount connections. But, in the end, excellent results are attainable.In general, this device is a pretty good portable EQ mount that also makes for a very fine time-lapse capable device (although getting used to the user interface takes some doing that I’m still working on). And, the Star Adventurer can be used for astronomical observations provided your telescope isn’t too heavy. I’ve barely explored what this device can do, but the portability and performance to this point has made the investment worthwhile. For under $500 USD you can get the device with astronomy and photo accessories for far less than you would have to pay for an AstroTrac with similar accessories or more conventional EQ mount.
This really seemed like it should have been great. Nice, heavy duty machining and parts. Nice fit and finish. But unfortunately for me, after having it a month, and trying it on 4 different outings, I still have zero images. Ultimately, this might be fine with lightweight cameras and lenses. But I've had a very difficult time getting it to hold solidly without drift or play with a DSLR (Canon 5d mk iv) with a zoom (100-400 and 70-200). Polar alignment would be easy, except there is play in the accessory wedge. Using the elevation dial is inconsistent as it jumps in az because of the loose slop inherent in the mount, so it is a pain to get precise dialing in of the scope. The scope optics are very good. The scope light is a good idea, but super cheaply made and ... MoreThis really seemed like it should have been great. Nice, heavy duty machining and parts. Nice fit and finish. But unfortunately for me, after having it a month, and trying it on 4 different outings, I still have zero images. Ultimately, this might be fine with lightweight cameras and lenses. But I've had a very difficult time getting it to hold solidly without drift or play with a DSLR (Canon 5d mk iv) with a zoom (100-400 and 70-200). Polar alignment would be easy, except there is play in the accessory wedge. Using the elevation dial is inconsistent as it jumps in az because of the loose slop inherent in the mount, so it is a pain to get precise dialing in of the scope. The scope optics are very good. The scope light is a good idea, but super cheaply made and clunky to use. There's a cheapo adapter if you have the DEC accessory, but it won't stay in place so you won't two hands to dial in the polar alignment, since one is needed to hold the scope light. As a result, it seems you can only have a shot at polar alignment w/o the dec mount accessory mounted. Installing it after a polar alignment seems likely to knock the thing out of alignment. The few shots I've tried with a zoom at 400 did yield slight tar trails. I suspect my alignment technique was likely the culprit. I bought this largely to do moon tracking and shooting, but set up is so difficult to get a solid mount and track going that I'll probably only use this as a cheap servo for time lapse motion control and forget about it for actual astro photography.
| Mount Type | Equatorial |
| Load Capacity | 11 lb / 5 kg |
| Motor | DC servo |
| GoTo Capability | No |
| Polar Axis Scope | Yes. Built-in and illuminated |
