Can this camera be used for general use,or is it purely a astro camera?.I am buying a 7D next week,thought I'd maybe check a few things about this camera first.
I have just purchased a Canon 60D un modded and gave it a go on an 8"F4 Newt astrograph and was really happy with my first time astro photo's heres what they turned out like with a 3min exposure at ISO1600 single shot no stacking http://photobucket.com/AussieAmature
What are the 'benefits' of the 60Da over the 60D, to be honest I haven't followed it.
I sent Mike a brief review of the 60D under sky conditions this morning. Hopefully he'll get it uploaded soon, but i think he could be flat out selling eclipse glasses
The bottom line is the 60D was great. I'll know more after more use but it seems pretty good on noise at least and colour depth. The 14bit processor really shows the importance of greater bit depth in cameras.
Sorry if this is a bit OT Peter, you are asking about the Da after all.
The eta shot is a 100% crop (seeing may be wasn't the best for 8min subs, 2.5 hrs total) and the Mimosa is 300% crop (15x3min subs) . I'm pretty happy with it.
Have just ordered the 60Da from Photo Continentals today. Will post my review and sample images shortly.
Q. What's the best way to show images in this forum? It says use an URL for the photos. Does this mean I must have a seperate website URL address to show images?
James, JPGs up to 200k can be hosted right here at IIS, but yes larger images must be hosted offsite.
Thanks for that info, Simon.
200K not a problem and I have an external website for photos. Now I just need some clear skies next week to test this new arrival.
I bought the camera for the missus but she said I can use it. Works all the time....
She's a great missus really, even though last week the wife was seen putting cream on her face one night. I asked her why and she said it makes her look beautiful. Next thing, she's taking it all off with tissues. I said, Geez it didn't last too long, eh? Man, you should have seen the look I got.... priceless!
Last edited by Star Hunter; 23-05-2012 at 09:03 PM.
Can this camera be used for general use,or is it purely a astro camera?.I am buying a 7D next week,thought I'd maybe check a few things about this camera first.
Probably too late to be useful but basically the 60Da is not _recommended_ for normal use but can be used.
The issue is that due to the lack of an IR filter, everything that's warm looks a lot redder than it does to your eyes. In particular pictures of people apparently look like everyone's blushing.
You can get IR filters to prevent that, and it may not be an issue if you're a landscape or nature photographer, but it is a specialised camera rather than a general purpose camera.
I haven't tested the Da's response yet, so I could be wrong, but I doubt the IR filter has been removed entirely.
I'm willing to bet that Canon simply enhanced the transmission thru the filter of the red end of the spectrum. Much like the Baader ACF filters do for modded camera's, which still cut above approx. 690nm, including the IR, just like the standard canon filter does.
My Baader modded 300D took great shots with custom white balance, I'm guessing it was because there is no 'extra' spectrum being recorded with the Baader, just more of what was already being recorded.
Exactly who is a nutbag. A 60D is about $880 and a 60Da is about $1550. I'm pretty sure I can get the filter in a canon swapped for a couple of hundred bucks. Get a grip.
I had toyed with that idea Robin, but in the end decided to just go with the Da for simplicity as it is ready to go out of the box, plus I retain the warranty if I need it(yes unlikely, but knowing my luck...)
It also comes bundled with the AK-E6 AC adaptor, tho thats only about $200 value.
There are also claims the Da has a lower noise sensor than the 60D.
I'm guessing, if it is true, that it's the 7D's sensor.
Will be posting 60Da first light later, and for those interested in terrestrial photo's I will post a pic of my daughter taken straight out of the box. - It looks fine to my eyes without any tweaking.
I did a head to head (well, almost) on Tuesday night- 60Da with FS 60 and the QHY 8 OSC on the TSA 120. I took same exposure lengths and will try and process these asap so you can see some comparisons. QHY 8 was controlled with Neb 3 and 60da with APT.
Will try and post tonight when get back from work
Graz
Last edited by graham.hobart; 24-05-2012 at 02:35 PM.
Reason: added stuff
Here is a basic comparison with 60Da on an FS 60, ISO 3200 42 minutes lights with calibration. Basic portrait auto mode, no processing at all. Then QHY 8 OSC camera 50 minutes on TSA 120 no calibration frames (sorry about gradient).
The astro shots have not really been post processed hence the defects but I thought you might like the raw look.
see them here...http://www.flickr.com/photos/6119769...ted=7260890946
did it this way as the 60da file is huge and kept crashing my ancient lappy!
Hope this is useful. The 60da seems quite clean even at exif 21'c at high iso.
Cheers
Graham
Last edited by graham.hobart; 24-05-2012 at 08:01 PM.
Reason: added txt
Thinking about Robin's comment earlier, It's not such a bad deal.
60D $880
Modding ~$200 > $1080
AC adaptor ~$200 > $1280 (if you need it, I do, beats swapping batteries)
Is the factory warranty worth ~$300?