Garden to Galaxy
Since May 2025 I've owned a Dwarf 3 smart telescope. Since then I've added a Dwarf Mini, a Seestar S50, and a Seestar S30 Pro, with a Seestar S50 Pro on order.
The idea was simple. On a clear night in the UK, I could set up a smart telescope in my garden, start it running, and let it get on with capturing the night sky while I went back inside. No cold hands, no fiddly manual tracking, no hours spent squinting through an eyepiece.
It turned out to be addictive, which is how I ended up with four smart telescopes for astrophotography instead of one.
Below you'll find the full specifications for each scope, along with the images I've taken with them. I lean towards the Seestar range for most of my imaging, but every scope here has its own strengths depending on the target and the conditions.
For processing, I mainly use PixInsight, Siril, AstroWizard, and Photoshop.
The Specs
← swipe to compare all seven →
Small and familiar
S30
Beginners, travel and large nebulae
The widest telephoto view of the whole lineup, so big, sprawling nebulae fit comfortably in one frame. Smaller galaxies come out tiny, though, and need the heaviest cropping of any scope here.
Portable all-rounder
S30 Pro
Wide fields, Milky Way and everyday use
A genuine step up in image quality, with 4K capture and far more resolution to play with. Excellent for sweeping nebulae and mosaic panels, though it still doesn't have the reach for small, distant galaxies.
Affordable extra reach
S50
Galaxies, clusters, Moon and Sun
The bigger 50 mm aperture and tighter field pull small, distant targets in much closer than either S30. It's just held back by the older 2 MP sensor, which caps how much fine detail actually makes it into the final image.
More detail
S50 Pro
Detailed deep sky and longer nights
The best all-round balance of aperture, sensor size and resolution in the range. It holds up well to heavy cropping, and the wide camera means large mosaics and sprawling targets are still well within reach.
Lightest entry point
Dwarf Mini
Ultra-light travel and city skies
Barely heavier than a water bottle, this is the one you actually take with you. It copes surprisingly well with a light-polluted back garden, but the small sensor and short battery mean it's best kept to quick sessions rather than all-night marathons.
Compact, sharper sensor
Dwarf 3
Small body, higher resolution
Barely any bigger than the S30, yet the larger sensor pulls in noticeably more detail and colour. A good middle ground if you want sharper results without carrying the extra weight of a Pro model.
Biggest aperture yet
Dwarf Draco
Serious aperture without an EQ mount
A proper step up in light gathering, with exposures up to 300 seconds and no polar alignment needed. Heavier and pricier than anything else here, so it's one for when you're committing to a session rather than grabbing a quick look.
