SHould I mod my camera ?

[jbdave]

If so, who does it ?
I have a Canon 600D, which no longer gets used as I upgraded it so I was thinking of modding it.


Or would it be better to buy a specific astro camera ?

[Startrek]

Hi David ,

I asked myself the same question a few months ago and I have a stock Canon 600D too.

I read Roger Clark’s article ( clarkvision.com section 4e ) on whether to modify an astrophotography camera. At this point I’m leaving my 600D the way is it as I’m happy with the images ( see attached image of my Eta Carina nebula unprocessed straight off the camera - single image 60 sec exposure @ ISO 1600 unguided ) I have a 6” f6 newt on a HEQ5 mount.

I guess it’s personal choice but it all depends on many factors - telescope parameters, mount, PA, exposure / guiding, seeing conditions , camera settings etc..

At some point down the track I may mod my camera but for now I’m happy with it

Roger Clark’s article is a good read ( a lot of DSLR astrophotographers may disagree with him )

Martin

[glend]

I have nodded several Canons, from simple LP1 & 2 filter removals, to full cold finger cooling and debayering sensors to mono. My advice is don't bother. Yes you can increase Ha sensitivity with a filter mod but every time you open up a camera you run the risk of killing it completely. The little ribbon cable locking bars used in Canon's are notorious for breaking off and they can't be replaced, the board has to be changed.
Just buy a dedicated cooled astro CMOS camera, they are very cost effective now, costing the same or less than a good DSLR. These new generation CMOS cameras did not exist until ZWO released the ASI1600 back in 2016, since then people modding old DSLRs has dropped right off.

[xelasnave]

Hi David
I have been what you are going thru now.

So many areas we can improve upon.

I gave up on the modded camera idea and I was going to do it..maybe if one came up cheap which must happen because with the ZWO range folk are going for that and probably selling their modded camera and they will be cheap as chips..I would not mind something for wide field but if I think about it go the whole hog with a cooled camera
..even a cooled colour but if you have come that far bite the bullet and go the full deal..narrow band..as am I if I can do it.
But my advice is to get the best outta what you got...trying to wring out from what you got prepares you well for the next step.
I finally decided modding was always going to be half way so I figure do nothing or get the cooled camera with an eight filter wheel.
I can see you are excited about the future and that is so refreshing and I know you will grt there..I think you need a couple of piers with a range pf scopes before you will be happy..and good on you...
Good luck.
Alex

[xelasnave]

And David
Glen knows his stuff, he wont steer you wrong.
You should try and get to Australia and see what it really looks like.
We got the best half of the Milly Wsy and two gallaxies you can see almost like the Moon..dimmer but if you are out there and its dark ...well you just wont believe...

Alex

[Stonius]

For me the decision came down to the fact that I still wanted to use it as a 'normal' camera too. Then once i was looking at adding a clip in filter to fix the mod for normal use, I just decided to spend the money on a dedicated astro camera that was designed for the job.

Best,

Markus

[chuckywiz]

The answer is YES YES YES. Do it

2ndly canon 600ds are easy to do. Should take you about an hour.

Ben

[ZeroID]

Having done it twice ( an old KM7D and a Canon 450D ) I wouldn't be scared to do it again taking appropriate care but if you want to go down the Ha route after doing OSC then I would not bother. Buy a decent mono camera which has proper astro support software and cooling otherwise it's frustrating exercise trying to coax good images from an unstable piece of gear. Use it for OSC imaging and save for a 1600mm-c and filter wheel, I'm glad I did.

[skysurfer]

You have read Roger Clark's article ?
Do not mod your camera. Modern SLRs have enough sensitivity that you can recover the faint Halpha red nebulas in post processing.

Use a dark sky, most Halpha gets lost in light pollution. A filter can be helpful, but is a workaround.

Here my results from an UNmodded Canon 6D (original, not Mk2):

https://www.skysurfer.eu/skypics1.php

You can of course use dedicated astro cameras, but they require lots of hassle, as you have to provide power supply, storage, etc. all yourself. A lot of hassle.

[ZeroID]

Re your first & second points 'recover faint Halpha' & 'Lost in LP', only to a degree. A proper astrocamera still sees a lot more of the Ha component and separates it out considerably even in a bad LP situation. I've been incredibly impressed with how well my 1600 does in that regard.
On the last point, hassle, yep, you are again right but the amount of detail and control available is much higher with a good mono camera. Re storage, if you are using BYEOS then you still need storage (excellent software btw).
I took on mono imaging to learn and do more so I don't see it as a hassle anyway. It's taught me a lot more both about imaging and processing and the technical aspects of the craft plus it has spilled over into a few of my other interests of photography generally and engineering.
That's what it's all about really and it's your choice as to how you want to do it. Brilliant hobby/obsession/love in my books, fills so many aspects of my DIY enjoyment. :thumbsup:

[sharkbite]

My AUD$0.02

As a raw beginner in astro, but having had many slrs over the years...

My dedicated camera blows away my 7d in every respect when attached to a scope. hands down. I could never before get images so well and so quickly.

The zwo224 is much more sensitive and requires much shorter exposure
to get a stackable image. (try 2s vs 30s on orion ).

much less noise on the 224.

the 7d hates long exposures and i am glad i no longer risk destroying it
by burning out the chip.

Add to that the extreme hassle of having to balance an extra 700g on the end of a scope, vs having a pc connected to a camera the same weight as an eyepiece is a no brainer for me.