What kind of Telescope do you recommend?

I agree with what has been said. However, you have already stated clearly that an astronomy club is not for you; and, it seems that you will be doing most of your viewing from home. If so, then the biggest issue is the amount of light pollution around your location. If you are within a metropolitan area then you will pretty much be limited to viewing the brighter objects. With few exceptions deep space is out of the question, the objects are too dim to be seen unless you have really dark skies.

Astrophotography is another thing you would not want to get into until you have mastered the equipment and have put together enough expeience to know how to pull together the right kit, how to maintain it, and how to process the images.

If you really just want to jump into it; then let me suggest using something like this group to get a taste for it:

http://www.global-rent-a-scope.com/

Ultimately, you may want to buy a basic scope to simply explore the hobby from your back yard. A the six inch dobs would work, and Orion makes plenty of wallet friendly telescopes, in that configuration.

You're probably not going to like my advice, but it's based on much practical experience teaching beginners about astronomy, and is offered in the spirit of honesty and humility.

While I admire your self confidence, I know from decades of helping beginners get started in astronomy that they greatly underestimate the difficulty of learning to use a telescope to simply find and observe objects. This usually requires a two-year learning curve. Astrophotography is a whole other problem. It usually takes many years beyond simple telescope use to begin to produce satisfactory results. It also adds exponentially to the cost of the equipment needed.

Successful astronomical observing requires a 6-inch or larger Dobsonian, which, complete, will cost $300 to $500. An equatorial mount suitable for long-exposure astrophotography will cost over $1000. That's the mount alone, not counting telescope (at least $1000), CCD camera (a couple of thousand more), guiding equipment (another thousand), and software (another thousand). Talk to any of the photographers whose images appear in Astronomy or Sky & Telescope, and you'll find that that's the cost neighbourhood they're working in.

So, my advice is to get a simple Dobsonian telescope and spend a year or two getting to know the sky. Then start building your astrophotography kit, as you will better know what you want to do and what you will need.

By dismissing the help of an astronomy club you are losing the single most valuable source of help in learning astronomy and astrophotography. There are clubs everywhere, there's no reason not to take advantage of them!

The best telescope for astrophotography depends on what sort of pictures you want to take. A number of Cassegranian-type telescopes work very well, and are highly adaptable. Some, like Ritchey-Chretiens and the Meade ACF, are better corrected than others. Apochromatic refractors are good for wide-field views. The main requirement is for a solid, smooth, and precise equatorial mount. If you don't know what you should get, you need to be asking in more knowledgeable forums than this one. Yahoo Groups has a number of forums for astrophotography and general astronomy. The forums at http://www.cloudynights.com/ are another good place to ask questions.

Since a good astrophotography setup can cost thousands of dollars, not to mention many hours learning to use it, You would do well to educate yourself about the various options before taking the plunge.

Geoff is exactly correct and he should get best answer but I would like to add that one of the main reasons that clubs are formed is to teach new people how to love the night skies and especially to teach the children to love astronomy. Most of us volunteer at schools and for scouts and church youth groups, all using our own equipment to share our passion for the beauty in the skies with the children simply because they are the future for the world and we all feel they need to know about astronomy to keep it alive. There is nothing like the face of a small child's astonishment when they see the rings of Saturn for the very first time. I obviously don't know your individual situation but I hope that you reconsider a club membership and include your youngster with you when you go. Children are always welcome.

Yes-- Geoff is correct. To do astrophotography on the planets is not very expensive --- but on "dim fuzzies" you will need an expensive mount and it will need to be polar aligned or your image exposure time will be VERY limited. BIG FUN--- BIG BUCKS.

Before you buy anything go to a star party and ask a lot of questions and look at and through some of the telescopes. Google "Astronomy Clubs" to find one in your area--- or go here and look up one.

http://www.astroleague.org/al/general/society.html

yes it is with 350$ the reflecting Telescope you can see Jupiter and jupiter's moons but there is no telescopes that can see venus

there are a few that hook straight up to your computer, so you can control where it points, and take shots from your desk.