Fireball

Hello all, I have been trying to test my cameras/system without much luck. I previously asked a couple of questions on this forum, but due to moving house, everything had to be put on hold till now. My main problem at this stage is simply getting a picture that is not garbled. I've tried testing two cameras so far, with the same results. The components I have tried using are: ADVC-55 Analogue to DV Converter by Canopus Samsung SDN-550 and Bosch LTC 0610 cameras COSMICAR/PENTAX TV ZOOM LENS, 8-48MM, model H6ZBME-5P I was previously able to get a picture (albeit garbled) with the above lens using my old PC and software which I downloaded, but I have a problem with that PC at the moment, so I'm using a new PC with software called "DV Capture". This time I wanted to test a new lens I just picked up (Computar Varifocal TG3Z2910AFCS), but I don't have the cable needed to open the iris (I mistakenly thought I could plug the wires in, but it turns out that is where the alarm control cables go!), so the sample footage I've uploaded has no picture - instead I activated the camera's on screen menu. The result is the same using either camera, and when I used my old PC. Since I bought the above mentioned cameras and the COSMICAR/PENTAX lens second hand, I went into a CCTV shop where a member of staff tested them for me, so I know they work fine. The cables I'm using are all new, so I doubt there is an issue there. The only thing that I can think of is that there is something wrong with the DV capture card. I've tried changing the settings on the capture card, but to no avail. It's currently set to NTSC/0IRE (default). Here is the sample footage that I've uploaded: hR5hKzZusLA It's strange, but uploading it to youtube has made it less garbled that it appeared during capture/playback on my PC. When I play back the .avi file that was captured, lines of text are overlaid on top of each other, but watching it back on youtube, it looks surprisingly clear, although the picture is still "split in half". Here is the original .avi file (sorry it's 105 mb!): http://www.sendspace.com/file/luymek Perhaps someone recognizes what the problem is, or can suggest something else I can try? Thanks for looking either way.

Wow - thank you hardwired! I can't believe I picked it up for under £60. As far as I can tell the camera it came with was worth that alone! Would a lens like this hold it's value well? Sorry, I did actually see my mistake (confusing "G" with "6"), but forgot to correct it. Thanks for pointing that out.

I recently got a camera from ebay that came with a COSMICAR/PENTAX TV ZOOM LENS, 8-48MM, model HGZBME-5P. What would I need to control this lens? Ideally I'm looking for something basic, cheap, and available in the UK. One other thing that is confusing me, is that the controller would connect to the lens, but then surely there is another connection to the motors (I assume in a camera housing - which I do not have) so that the camera can pan/tilt. So would that mean two cables going from the camera to the controller? Thanks.

Thanks Horizon, Very helpful info once again! I've been very busy, so have not had a chance to have a play with it yet, but hopefully in the next few days. I'll be back with an update then.

My problem is that I need to capture video from 4 cameras simultaneously using a single PC. The catch is that it's 20MByte/sec from each camera - I need a relatively high frame rate for catching meteors/fireballs otherwise the software I would use will have a hard time properly detecting these events. As far as I know, a PC based capture card will be limited to 33MB/s (PCI-EXx1 bus speed), so multiple input capture cards will be useless for me. I have been speaking with the developer of the software I'll be using, and he thinks I can run 3 cameras using 3 seperate capture cards on IEEE 1394 interfaces. One on the MB, and two IEEE 1394 PCI-EXx1 cards. Since there are usually only 2x PCI-EXx1 on most mother boards (as far as I know), it seems I will be limited to running 3 cameras, or using 2 PCs, but I'd like to avoid that if at all possible. I'd probably have to use the same model capture cards (Canopus ADVC-55) to avoid driver problems, and also stick with IEEE 1394, since the capture card I'm thinking of using/have been advised to get uses the IEEE 1394 interface. Canopus ADVC-55: http://www.smartdv.co.uk/product.php/123/1/canopus_advc_55 So the only solution I can think of is to find a mother board that has two separate on-board IEEE 1394 buses/interface chips, if such a thing exists? Anyone have any other ideas? Thanks for looking.

Thanks kdoske, I'll speak with the software developer again as you suggest and see what he says.

Thanks once again Horizon for your help! Hehe, yeah, I was lucky to get the lens. It's ironic, I bought the camera/lens (no PTZ mount unfortunately) to just have a play around... mainly for the camera, as I had no idea the lens was a 1.0 and suitable for 1/2" format cameras - the camera it came with was 1/3"! In the mean time I've been trying to find F1.0/F0.8 ultra-wide lenses and got nowhere (emailed about 5-6 retailers who seemed to have stock). Although 8mm is a bit long for my primary purpose (meteor/fireball detection) it should be ideal for guiding. I also got a Watec (the 902H2), but I'm leaving that alone until I know a bit better what I'm doing - I don't want to make a mistake and damage expensive kit! Regarding the 8 pin connector - another stroke of luck is that it came with the female connector with a few inches of cable before it was cut off, so I can mess around with it and not damage the male connector that's attached to the camera. So from what you are saying, I might be able to hack together some sort of serial port control mechanism, if I understand you correctly? Regarding the Iris, is there no way to set it to 1.0 and leave it there? If I use it for guiding I would have no need to have any control over it as long as it was set to F1.0 and focused to infinity. I think I'd also want it to be set to a longer focal length. Do you happen to know if the max aperture stays constant when zooming on this lens? You've given me lots of info which I'll have to go through over the next few days. I'm sure I'll be back with more questions soon. Thank you again Horizon.

Hi Horizon, and thanks for the reply. I'm still no nearer to a solution, although I did find a data sheet for the lens. I can't remember where I found it, but I've uploaded a copy here: http://www.sendspace.com/file/mixa00 By the way, it has an 8 pin din plug like this:

The software is UFOCaptureV2: http://sonotaco.com/soft/e_index.html

Yes, quality is not a bad thing. That looks very interesting, thanks for posting. I think the software might have a problem connecting to it unfortunately (if I understand the way it works - it's not very clear in the links I've looked at), but I'll run it by the software developer.

Thanks for the replies guys. Sorry I did not reply sooner - I thought I had enabled notifications, but had not. The camera is the Watec WAT-902H2 Ultimate (Resolution: 570TVL) http://www.modernastronomy.com/camerasAstroVideo.html 20MByte/sec is what I was told was needed by the developer. 30fps (NTSC) is enough, and yes, as you say analog. I'm new to this so I'm a little confused about this too, but I would assume that the 20MByte/sec figure is what is required by each camera/channel after analog>digital conversion. I think that the developer believes that IEEE 1394 is the "bottle neck", but I'm not sure if he may be missing the point that an internal multi-input PCI capture card gets around the need for IEEE 1394. I think he is more familiar with external capture "devices" (like the Canopus ADVC-55) using firewire/USB2 interfaces. From the little bit of reading I've done on this forum, a "D1" spec. 4 input card sounds about right, unless I'm missing something obvious?

I've seen a lens I want from aliexpress. It's been a couple of days since I emailed them, and still no reply. I've bought from DX before too (mainly lasers/laser related products), and been happy with what I've got, but I'm not sure I'd want to risk buying a lens from them. I'm assuming all their lenses are made in China - I haven't looked at what they have. It shouldn't be a problem mounting DSLR/camera lenses. There are adapters available at least for Canon EOS mount lenses, and I'd be surprised if there were not adapters for other lens mounts. Worst case scenario, buy a C mount > EOS adapter, and an EOS > "what ever lens mount you have" adapter.

Thank you Horizon. Joel, Did you have a look on the Watec web site? It should tell you which models were superseded by what. Regarding lenses, I think you are right about what would happen if you mounted a 1/3 format lens on a 1/2 format sensor. The F-stop should stay the same, but the image circle would not cover the entire sensor. There should be plenty of options for buying F1.2 lenses, and plenty of lens feature options. I've come across lenses as fast as F0.8. Try B&H for some ideas: http://www.bhphotovideo.com/ This google search should also throw up some more options: https://www.google.co.uk/search?hl=en&site=&source=hp&q=ccd+mm+lens&oq=ccd+mm+lens&gs_l=hp.12...11586.20507.0.22770.11.11.0.0.0.0.495.1715.8j1j4-2.11.0.les%3B..0.0...1c.1.0bf4cXksvBE

Horizon, It appears that the 902H series cameras come with an iris connection adapter - see the screenshot of the 902H manual (from your link) I've attached. What I'm wondering is if the pinout of the 902H matches the pinout of the lens (Computar Ganz HG2610FCS from the ccd meteor link) which is shown in the top half of the image I've attached, or is that where the adapter comes in?

It looks like the LCL has the same sensor as the Watec WAT-902H2 Ultimate, so I'd say it should be fine. I'm just going on that webpage/link I posted in my last post, but it seems that the 902H2 series is about as good as it gets, unless you can afford another $300 for a small improvement in sensitivity. Don't forget that the lens can make quite a big difference too, but the best low light lenses will be more expensive. I've decided to go with the WAT-902H2 Ultimate which looks ideal for my intended purpose. Hope yours works well for you Joel.

I'm a bit new to this myself, but have also been looking for the most sensitive CCDs available. Monochrome or B/W only cameras will usually be more sensitive, as will cameras with 1/2" CCDs. Perhaps they are a bit out of your price range, but the Watec cameras seem to have the best sensitivity: Watec WAT-902H2 Ultimate Min. Illumination: 0.0001 lux - f1.4 lens WATEC WAT-902H2 Supreme Minimum illumination: 0.0003 lx. F1.4(2), 0.0005 lx. F1.4(3) The Sony HAD 1/2" CCDs are also very good so I hear. Astronomers crave the most sensitive CCDs for imaging meteors, lunar impacts, etc, so I would search using related terms (eg "all sky camera"), and you should find useful info. I found this page quite useful: http://www.kolumbus.fi/oh5iy/astro/Ccd.html Note that some cameras will have a higher sensitivity using the "sense up" feature, but depending what you are trying to do with the camera, using this feature might not be an option for you.

Hello all, I've just picked up a couple of cameras from ebay - Bosch LTC 0610 (specs here: http://www.sourcesecurity.com/docs/fullspec/LTC%200610.pdf ) and Samsung SDN-550 (specs here: http://www.buythis.co.uk/pdf/1687.pdf ) I don't think either come with cables or a power supply, and I'm not sure which cables/power supply would be appropriate. I can't even find what amp rating the cameras require, although I have emailed the sellers to try and find out (but still no reply from either). Update: I've had a reply from the seller and bought a PSU for the Bosch. I just hope it takes a "normal" power jack plug. The Samsung appears to have "bare wire" connection ports for the power, but I can't see what connector the Bosch uses. So I'm not sure which cables/connectors to buy from ebay. I've been looking at combined power/BNC cables on ebay, but are these usually of good quality? Does it even matter much? Does this one look ok? http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/WHITE-10m-20m-30m-50m-BNC-PLUG-PLAY-VIDEO-POWER-CABLE-FOR-CCTV-CAMERAS-/320943644629?pt=UK_CCTV&var=&hash=item4ab9bb5fd5 Or could someone recommend another one (it doesn't have to be from ebay)? Likewise for the power supply/supplies (if I need two - I probably will eventually, although for the moment I just need to test them rather than have both running at the same time). Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks for looking.