Dobsonian telescopes are great for general observation. You get a lot of aperture for your money. But they are bad for astrophotography. Schmidt Cassegrain and Newtonian style scopes offer a good middle of the road for functionality. Having said that if you want to get serious about photography then its a money pit.

You need a quality mount and a good CCD. Some of the best photo setups I've seen use use refractors with a quality CCD. Search for Atik 414EX. The example photos on their sight tell you what hardware was used. Might give you some idea.