Canon 5D mark2 - where to get modded

[sejanus]

Hey guys

Is there anywhere else that modifies Canon 5D mark2's other than Hutech or are they the guys for it?

Also do many people cool their 5D mark2's or just run them at ambient?

I have dslr's already, but can't modify them as I use them nearly every day for land stuff.

cheers

Gav

[Octane]

Gav,

Message Eric (EzyStyles) on this forum. He does them for a reasonable cost.

I bought my modified 40D off him.

As for cooling, it will likely need a trip overseas to CentralDS or Hutech.

H

[leon]

Gavin, if you like i can sell you a replacement filter, I have two as we speak, it is a little bit fiddly and stressful but you can do it yourself. :eyepop: I have done three, check this out

Leon :thumbsup:

http://www.lifepixel.com/ir-tutorials/canon-5d-digital-infrared-conversion-instructions.htm

[h0ughy]

centralDS

[sejanus]

god almighty - no chance :lol: I'm not that brave!

[sejanus]

I notice on centralds that they have a peltier strapped onto a 50D but not the 5dmk2 - does the 5d mk2 not need additional cooling does anyone know?

[Octane]

Gav,

For optimum performance, all DSLRs will need cooling.

It's a bit of a half-way fix, though; you may as well spend the dosh on a nice CCD and make life easier for yourself.

The 5D Mark II is just incredible, even 10-minute exposures at ISO-1600 leave very little (visible) noise (I'm sure it's there, but, on bright objects, it just canes).

Summer time will be a completely different story. It is almost unbearable the amount of noise you'll pick up without a cooling mod.

H

[sejanus]

The reason I'm not so keen on a dedicated ccd is because I wanted to do a lot of super wide stuff using my lenses - as well as through the 106n.

Though maybe I'll need to do both slr & ccd eventually.

[Octane]

You can always attach your lenses to a CCD. : )

See how you go, though. If you can get up and running in the next few weeks, you will be very impressed with what you can do.

Summertime is a time for pain and sorrow. Not just for the heat that wreaks havok on our images, but, also the short, short nights. : (

H

[sejanus]

i don't understand why they offer cooling kits for darn nearly every camera but the 5d mk2. are they 5d racist or something?

I'd get a cooled 50d but hate the 1.6x crop

[Octane]

Send them an email. I'm sure they do it.

The 5D series, remember, has a much bigger body than its XX-/XXX-/XXXX-D siblings. There may be a parts issue, or a lack of demand, or what have you.

You could always build your own cooling box -- speak to Leon or Bert about that.

H

[sejanus]

Yeah was just reading up on cooling boxes then when you posted :)

I think I'll buy the 5dmk2 with the basic mods done, then I'll worry about the cooling when I see how good/bad it is.

Another plus for getting a 5dmk2 is that I can buy it with the business, as I can use it for really crazy high iso stuff at wedding receptions where the 1 series fall a little short.

[Octane]

It won't fail you at receptions.

I've used it up to ISO-3200 for wider shots. It's divine. : )

I've seen others push it to ISO-6400, with heavy noise reduction and converted to monochrome. Still looks like magic as the grain works in your favour.

H

[Phil Hart]

CentralDS are still developing the cooling mod for the 5DmkII.. expected to be available in a couple of months..

Phil

[leon]

Be a devil Gavin, you can do it.
Leon

[gregbradley]

I am about to do some super wide shots with my dedicated CCD.
Its just a matter of adapters. The advantage would be -

cooling and lower noise

much much higher QE

higher resolution - one shot colour cameras have quite low resolution as it takes 4 pixels to make one colour dot in the image. That is the same as binning an Astro CCD 2x2. So astroCCD in mono then has superior resolution. The gain is not 16X due to clever firmware estimations of the neighbouring pixel values but it is there.

you can shoot narrowband which is much harder and noisier with a DSLR for the above reason.

SBIGs can self guide making it even more convenient

16bit A/D instead of 12 or 14bit in DSLRs (not sure how important this is)

Having said that there are many many super DSLR widefield images around and dedicated CCD imagers don't do lens imaging that often.

However if they do - check out Stephane Guisard's ridiculously good Milky Way image which is a 200 panel mosaic.

Phil Harts Rho Ophiuchi is a spectacular DSLR widefield. I'll see if I can post some links to it and a comparison image from a massive Proline 39 megapixel camera and a Pentax 67 300 F4 ED lens.

Here are some 45mm and 300mm F4 ED images from Richard Crisp and a Proline 39 megapixel CCD cam:

http://www.narrowbandimaging.com/images/milky_way_cygnus_p45_f56_pl39km_fli _haGB_34x15min_hd.jpg


http://www.narrowbandimaging.com/antares_p300ed_pl39km_baader_rgb_pa ge.htm


http://www.narrowbandimaging.com/m8_widefield_300mm_6303_rgb_page.ht m

And here are 3 images I took with my FSQ106ED and reducer and either Proline 16803 or SBIG STL11:

http://www.pbase.com/gregbradley/image/99385463

http://www.pbase.com/gregbradley/image/124811617

http://www.pbase.com/gregbradley/image/124761790

The FSQ being a telescope gives a finer resolution and to me means camera lenses ultimately cannot compete
with specialised high end telescopes due to higher quality, way less lenses (a 300mm lens may have 9 pieces of glass
each one adds aberrations and scatter and dispersion). But of course telescopes don't go down to 45mm focal length!

Also the conclusion is a DSLR would be hard pressed to match a dedicated astro camera of comparable chip size
(not many match or better a 5D in size) with a decent lens. But skies, processing skills, framing of object, length
of exposure, light pollution may all be senior factors to gear in the final result.


Greg.

[sejanus]

Great photos Greg. Are the dedicated CCD cameras in the same chip size as the 5Dmk2+modded a lot more $$$ or about the same? I'm not sure which models have what sized sensors etc.

[Octane]

Gav,

35mm CCD cameras start from around $6K. You typically don't want to get a one shot colour camera as they have low quantum efficiency compared to their monochrome counterparts.

Factor into this, also, that you will need to get 2" unmounted filter sets as well.

H

[sejanus]

So with the monochrome ones, you take separate exposures with a different coloured filter over the top each time to end up with your colour version?

[Octane]

Correct.

Luminance for detail, and then red, green, blue, for colour, and you can add hydrogen alpha in there, too for some extra detail (typically mixed with the luminance or red channels at varying opacities).

So, it takes you 4 or 5 times longer to make an image. : )

Then, there's narrowband imaging with sulphur II, hydrogen alpha/beta and oxygen III to create images in the Hubble palette.

H

[sejanus]

from the guys at centralds ;

Hello Gavin Cato,

Thanks for your inquiry.
5D mark2 need to cool the CMOS but the inner structure of 5D mark2 is troublesome to cooling modify.
And currently we are cooling modify only 40D,50D.

Yes we ship to Australia via EMS.

Best regards,

Yun Lee

http://www.centralds.net
3F, 20-3 YongDu-Dong Jung-Gu,
DaeJeon City, South Korea
tel: +82-42-321-5862 fax:+82-42-253-5065

[gregbradley]

Yes that's about right - dedicated astro ccds the size of the 5D use the Kodak KAI11002 chip (should be approx same size as the 5D but 11 megapixels due larger pixels therefore should be lower noise and more sensitive).

There are now several companies that make a 11002 chipped camera.
Second SBIG STL11 (these use the 11002 chip) are about US$5500-6500 now and typically have filters installed already for that price.

The SBIG is probably the best bang for your buck 2nd hand because it is a proven brand, comes with filter wheel built in and filters (worth about $1800), will self autoguide (saves on a guide camera and guide scope and rings - another AUD$1000), software to control the camera (worth about AUD$600 if you buy it), a nice Pelican case (worth about AUD$400) and does fabulous images with super high resolution.

The 5D Mk11 with a decent lens is about AUD$5000 so its close but the 5D is a bit cheaper. The 5D though needs to be modded to work well in astrowork and thats another US$450 + shipping (Hutech or Hap Griffin)
plus the filter choice you replace the Canon one with (another US$150 I suppose).

So in the end the SBIG is cheaper. You add the 5D, the mod, the adapters needed to fit it to the scope, probably needs a focus attachment, needs the filter, then it needs a guide scope and camera and you are over or at the SBIG 2nd hand price. The 5D once modded is not 100% for terrestial shots in colour and if you do you need an Xnite CC1 filter which is another US$100 or so.

The next size up is the KAI16803 chip and that is bigger money - the Apogee U16M is one of the cheaper versions at only US$9900 or so. Plus GST and shipping and it also needs a filter wheel, 50mm square filters so add another AUD$3000 there plus it needs a guide scope and autoguider and it needs software to run it, adapters to mount it, a case (not included) so you aren't going to get a lot of change from AUD$20,000!.

But what superb images it takes!

If you want to enter the CCD game the best bag for your buck is the SBIG ST8300M (8.3mp and M stands for mono) at "only" US$1995 or thereabouts. That's a lot of camera for that price. It will need filter wheel and does not self guide so you need guide scope and guide camera so add another say $2000 for that lot if not a bit more.

So perhaps that is the best $ for $ competitor for the Canon 5D in astrowork.

Greg.

[solissydney]

I find the 5D's a breeze to take apart unlike the MKll
where I found half the screws impossible to undo