As someone interested in photography and who bought a 10-inch Dobsonian telescope that barely gets used, I'll have to echo your sentiment with some modifications.
I say this as someone who has only dabbled, but astrophotography, even at the bottom end of things, takes quite a bit of work to get a mediocre image. You can get decent images from a cheap webcam attached to a big scope if you capture lots of images (or video in this case) and use focus stacking and noise reduction techniques using programs such as Registax.
It's one of those hobbies that promises improvements along the way the more money you spend, but it also rewards knowledge.
Definitely. I photographed the lunar eclipse a couple years ago with my 10-inch dob, an afocal eyepiece adapter and a DSLR. None of my images were any good.
Astronomy is as expensive as you want to make it, and the knowledge and enjoyment is worth more than the equipment, but the equipment gives you the knowledge and enjoyment, so it's a catch-22. The key is figuring out what you can afford and what you want to see and choosing your equipment accordingly.
I say this as someone who has only dabbled, but astrophotography, even at the bottom end of things, takes quite a bit of work to get a mediocre image. You can get decent images from a cheap webcam attached to a big scope if you capture lots of images (or video in this case) and use focus stacking and noise reduction techniques using programs such as Registax.
It's one of those hobbies that promises improvements along the way the more money you spend, but it also rewards knowledge.