William Optics ZenithStar 61mm II ED APO Refractor

Synthetic Flourite for Superb Color Correction

The impressive optical quality of this apochromatic telescope is due to the FPL-53 glass used. FPL-53 is as close as you can get to pure fluorite, which means that your astrophotography images will display excellent color correction, with colorful, sharp stars. This glass is used in the objective lens and is known as Synthetic Flourite.

Once you get accustomed to astrophotography images of this quality, it is hard to switch from an ED refractor to other telescope designs.

FEATURES – Smooth and Accurate Focus

This telescope excels at wide-field, deep sky astrophotography with a DSLR. The buttery smooth dual speed locking focuser means that your images will be razor-sharp.  If you have ever struggled to find focus using a loose rack and pinions-style focuser, you will certainly appreciate the precision 1:10 speed micro focuser on the Z61.

Whether you use a Bahtinov mask to focus using Astro Photography Tool or Backyard EOS, or simply using the 10X Live View function of your DSLR, the precision focusing of the Z61 will ensure that your image is as sharp as possible.

Balanced and Secure

Because the Z61 is so compact and solid, balancing the scope is extremely easy to accomplish.  You won’t find a hint of wobbliness while imaging the night sky with the Z61.  The DSLR and telescope are a rock solid united as one – very similar to a high-end telephoto camera lens.

Fast Optics with a Wide Field of View

Thanks to its fast optics (F/5.9), this refractor collects a lot of light in a short period of time. Image exposures of 2-3 minutes at ISO 1600 are likely all you will need to capture deep details of your target.

If you have ever struggled with framing up a large target such as the North America Nebula or Andromeda Galaxy, the Z61 is a breath of fresh air. The ultra-wide 360mm focal length means collecting photons on HUGE areas of the night sky in a single frame.

Even with a crop sensor camera like my Canon T3i/600D, the focal length of 576mm is still more than wide enough for the big targets.

Highly portable and Lightweight

A high-quality refractor at this size is the perfect travel scope. When combined with a portable camera mount, you’ve got a very capable deep-sky imaging rig that can pack up into a backpack or travel container.

A collapsible carbon fiber tripod, the iOptron SkyGuider Pro, and the Z61 is probably the most portable deep sky astrophotography setup you can have.

Deep Sky Imaging with the Zenithstar 61 APO

If you are new to deep sky astrophotography but have dabbled in tracked night sky shots including the Milky Way – this is likely the best possible next step for you.