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Its time to move on to ccd which camera ?


Graham

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Hi all.


Well the dark side has tightened its grip on me so I think its time to start looking towards moving on into the world of CCD imaging.


What I need is your opions and experience on the different cameras out there.


 


So if you can post up things like.


 


Camera choice.


Software needed.


Filters ect.


 


I can then make an informed choice on what I will get.


 


Many thanks.


Graham

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If you have £1200 to spare you could get a brand new Atik 314L+ which is what I'm aiming for. But I've seen them sell in perfect condition and working order under a year old for as little as £650 (that was the OSC). Dunno what the mono goes for but you'd have filter wheels and expensive narrow band filters to buy on top.


 


I've no experience using one but it seems to be the most recommended camera to start CCD imaging - and other folks results do look good. Stephen or Glider may be able to offer an opinion cos they've both used them. :)


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After not a lot if fun messing about with a DSLR which I was just not getting along with, I bought I QHY8L and I'm so pleased with it. It's been a pleasure to use and took a lot less time to get used to than I thought. Last night was my first time trying it out and it was so easy to set up and use. Unfortunately the forecast was again incorrect and the clouds rolled over when they were predicted to clear. All I got was some photos of a distant aerial :)

I've read a lot if crap on certain forums about this camera personally I think QHY have shown a willingness to improve quickly and attend to every criticism. I think the build quality and features on all recent camera make QHY a real contender and worthy of consideration

Edited by Teslar
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Guest mickymoo

By all means move to a cdd,but looking at your camera it as a high noise read out , and thats hlf the prob but a cooled ccd is a great way forward.and they are a lot harder to get on with

Mick

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Guest Kheldar

If you want to go CCD then yes the 314 would be the camera of choice as far as I'm concerned on cost and value for money.


 


Your biggest problem is going to be the loss of FOV, it comes hard to DSLR imagers :(


 


No paid for software required really, the included Artemis capture works very well :)


 


Mono / OSC is a long standing debate ... I've tried both and prefer mono, but you don't want to cheap out on the filters so budget in another £200 for them (LRGB) and a good filter wheel. Maybe look to purchase the NB filters later if you want to go that way


Edited by Kheldar
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I'd say 314L mono, I bought Kheldar's off him first time round.  Then he went OSC and I think he is now back on mono.


 


The 314L+ gives true set point cooling but with the Atik cameras general low noise performance cold is cold is cold and I just don't need to bother with darks with the 314L.


 


Bear in mind you can do a full narrow band run with just 2 filters, Ha (red) and OIII (blue).


 


You can either process them as tri colour Ha/OIII/OIII use the OIII to create a synthetic SII (green).

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I'm enjoying my shift to CCD, Artemis capture is straight forward and actually less hassle than DSLR imaging.


The 314L+ will be my next camera.


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Thank you kindly folks.


Looks like my next purchase will be the 314 L.


So people you had better brace yourself for a lot of questions in the future. :lol:


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Good choice Graham.


I'll be going the exact same route in time for Winter 2013. Mono.


 


Regards.


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stephen if I had the remotest idea what one of them was I might.


Why did you say the fov would decrease with the ccd.

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Guest Kheldar

It's a BIG 314 :D


 


The sensor on the 314 is tiny compared to a DSLR - on a 200P a DSLR gives you what 2.5 degrees square ish? The 314 gives you less than a degree square ... (rough numbers but you see the point I'm making ...)


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It's a BIG 314 :D

 

The sensor on the 314 is tiny compared to a DSLR - on a 200P a DSLR gives you what 2.5 degrees square ish? The 314 gives you less than a degree square ... (rough numbers but you see the point I'm making ...)

 

Yes we have understanding,, thanks

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You want to try the field of view on my Atik16, M101 is almost too big to fit in.....


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You want to try the field of view on my Atik16, M101 is almost too big to fit in.....

 

Don't like the sound of that Andy, bit too small for my liking.

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Field of view was one of the reasons I got a QHY8L. It uses a CCD from a DSLR so has a similar field of view. Also its colour so appeals to the laziness in me.


 


Dave


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OK gonna show my ignorance and newbie here...


if you successfully use a DSLR like graham does and gets brilliant images,  why would you buy a CCD with the same chip?  I know it is cooled and this will help with


noise but it is still a CMOS chip i think.  Surely you will not get much more detail than you would with the DSLR.... please tell me if i am wrong as I cannot follow


why you would change.  I assume you cannot control the cooler temp with this camera?


 


I can understand the Atik 314, and of course you would get a smaller FOV... but surely greater detail and less noise.


 


Any information you be greatly received as i am being a bit blonde here i think :wacko:


 


Sheila


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OK gonna show my ignorance and newbie here...

if you successfully use a DSLR like graham does and gets brilliant images,  why would you buy a CCD with the same chip?  I know it is cooled and this will help with

noise but it is still a CMOS chip i think.  Surely you will not get much more detail than you would with the DSLR.... please tell me if i am wrong as I cannot follow

why you would change.  I assume you cannot control the cooler temp with this camera?

 

I can understand the Atik 314, and of course you would get a smaller FOV... but surely greater detail and less noise.

 

Any information you be greatly received as i am being a bit blonde here i think :wacko:

 

Sheila

 

 

I am not blonde but grey but I would love to know the answer to this as well.

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I've taken pictures with both and both give great results. I changed to CCD because of the improvement in noise that cooling gave. Noise is the killer for faint objects/detail as they are masked by it. You can overcome it to an extent by taking more images, but anything you can do to remove it is a good thing.


 


I think a DSLR is a great all rounder, but a dedicated CCD is better for deep space and a webcam/high frame rate camera is better for planetary.


 


Hope this helps?


 


Dave


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One other thing I forgot to mention is the DSLR chips tend to heat up during long exposures, hence become noisier, cooled CCD's dont.


 


Dave


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So the cooling is the answer to most of the noise.


Makes sense.


Thanks.


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