Canon PowerShot SX50 HS

[upasana naren]

Hi

Can any one suggest me, Canon PowerShot SX50 HS is suitable for astrophotography?  It has equipped with an extremely powerful 50x (24 - 1200mm) optical zoom. So I thought It may be useful.

Here is the link: http://compareindia.in.com/specification/digital-cameras/canon-powershot-sx50-hs/290772

-Upasana

[Vinay Avasthi]

I meant, i have sx40hs.

On Mar 5, 2013 10:28 AM, "Vinay Avasthi" <vinay....@gmail.com> wrote:

I have canon powershot sx50 hs, absolutely useless for astrophotography.

For astrophotography light capturing capability of camera is very important, these cameras have very small sensors, apart from close up of moon  can't do much with these.

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[Vinay Avasthi]

I have canon powershot sx50 hs, absolutely useless for astrophotography.

For astrophotography light capturing capability of camera is very important, these cameras have very small sensors, apart from close up of moon  can't do much with these.

On Mar 5, 2013 10:16 AM, "upasana naren" <upasan...@gmail.com> wrote:

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[upasana naren]

Oh. Ok. Thanks.

-Upasana

[Anish Kumar]

Hello Upadana,

Digital camera is limited use only in terms of astro. you can easily take exposures of upto few seconds but I think the sensors may not last that long if you keep the shutter open for multiple, really long exposures which will be a requirement to image deep sky.

For photographing the moon our cataloguing the constellations etc, you can do it on any camera that has a manual focus.

I have a ultra zoom digital camera and an slr, hence sharing my experience.

regards,
Anish

On Mar 5, 2013 10:16 AM, "upasana naren" <upasan...@gmail.com> wrote:

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[Ajay Talwar]

Hi Upasana,

The attached Astro-image has been taken with a Canon Powershot A80 camera. I think yours is a similar camera?
The photo has also been used in a presentation by Prof. Tushar Prabhu, see this link:

http://www.iiap.res.in/iya09images/presentations/Through%20the%20Galileoscope.pdf

Slide no. 9

Below is the exif data for you to peruse.

Also it is better to shoot wide angle at less zoom than at higher zoom, your results will be better.

Ajay Talwar

Filename - AAAD @ Hanle 4w.jpg
ImageWidth - 2272
ImageLength - 1704
BitsPerSample - 8 8 8
PhotometricInterpretation - 2
Make - Canon
Model - Canon PowerShot A80
Orientation - Top left
SamplesPerPixel - 3
XResolution - 180.00
YResolution - 180.00
ResolutionUnit - Inch
Software - Adobe Photoshop CS4 Windows
DateTime - 2013:03:05 15:28:38
YCbCrPositioning - Centered
ExifOffset - 292
ExposureTime - 15 seconds
FNumber - 2.80
ISOSpeedRatings - 400
ExifVersion - 0220
DateTimeOriginal - 2007:06:18 03:44:39
DateTimeDigitized - 2007:06:18 03:44:39
ComponentsConfiguration - YCbCr
CompressedBitsPerPixel - 3 (bits/pixel)
ShutterSpeedValue - 15 seconds
ApertureValue - F 2.80
ExposureBiasValue - 0.00
MaxApertureValue - F 2.80
SubjectDistance - 1.30 m
MeteringMode - Multi-segment
Flash - Flash not fired, compulsory flash mode
FocalLength - 7.81 mm
UserComment -
FlashPixVersion - 0100
ColorSpace - sRGB
ExifImageWidth - 1000
ExifImageHeight - 750
InteroperabilityOffset - 1084
FocalPlaneXResolution - 8114.29
FocalPlaneYResolution - 8114.29
FocalPlaneResolutionUnit - Inch
SensingMethod - One-chip color area sensor
FileSource - DSC - Digital still camera
CustomRendered - Normal process
ExposureMode - Manual
White Balance - Auto
DigitalZoomRatio - 1.00 x
SceneCaptureType - Standard

Thumbnail: -
Compression - 6 (JPG)
XResolution - 72
YResolution - 72
ResolutionUnit - Inch
JpegIFOffset - 1234
JpegIFByteCount - 1908

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From: upasana naren <upasan...@gmail.com>
To: b-...@googlegroups.com
Sent: Tuesday, March 5, 2013 11:50 AM
Subject: Re: [-BAS-] Canon PowerShot SX50 HS

[Venkat P]

Hi

SX50 or SX40 do not support ISO higher than 80 at exposure times longer than 1 second. If you set the exposure time to longer than 1 second, then the ISO is automatically set to 80 and you cannot increase it.

However, there is a software called CHDK which, if installed in the camera, allows the camera to take photos at higher ISO at exposure times longer than 1 second. But this software is not yet available for SX50. 

I also have an SX50, and want to photograph star trails and asterisms when CHDK is available.

There is a star trail photograph in this thread that is claimed to be taken using SX40 with CHDK. This should give an idea on what to expect.

Regards,

Venkat

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[Ajay Talwar]

The specifications of the Canon Powershot SX50 can be found here:
http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/canon-powershot-sx50-hs/2

Checkout the minimum shutter speed which is 15 seconds (like all similar models of  Canon). You will need to put the camera in manual mode (as well as manual focus mode), high ISO like 400 or 800 and maximum exposure - which is 15 seconds

CHDK is a goot utility for accessing features which are not provided by the manufacturer but the camera IS capable.

Ajay Talwar

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From: Venkat P <venkat...@gmail.com>
To: b-...@googlegroups.com
Sent: Tuesday, March 5, 2013 6:44 PM

Subject: Re: [-BAS-] Canon PowerShot SX50 HS

[Venkat P]

Dear Ajay

I hope you remember me! I was undecided between equatorial mount and dobsonian last year, and your inputs helped me a great deal. I would like to take this opportunity to thank you again.

Regarding SX50, the combination of high ISO and longer exposures is unfortunately not possible in it.

Here is an interesting post on the ISO limit imposed by Canon in SX40 and SX50. And Canon did make it official with a mention about the limit in the user guide.

Regards,

Venkat

[Akarsh Simha]

On Tue, Mar 05, 2013 at 10:29:44AM +0530, Vinay Avasthi wrote:
> I meant, i have sx40hs.

Have you tried CHDK? One of my friends took some reasonable wide-field
photographs using his PowerShot and CHDK.

He also had better partial solar eclipse photographs than I got,
because the shutter speed after enabling CHDK is much higher than what
most SLRs give. It's also possible that CHDK is not very good on the
shutter.

Regards
Akarsh

[Ajay Talwar]

Hello Venkat,

Thanks.

The option of CHDK worth exploring in digital compact cameras. Similar to CHDK there is the Magic Lantern in DSLR cameras. I have installed Magic Lantern in my Canon 450D as well as Canon 5D-II, and it is quite worth it. So many new menu options, especially in movie making.

I gather that CHDK can just be copied to tht SD card that goes in the camera and a new firmware is loaded on startup. Remove that card and replace it with a normal one and the camera behaves as the manufacturer intended it to.

I do not have a digital compact camera, but those who have one please do checkout and check suitability for astro images. I think with CHDK you can have exposures of longer duration, as well as inbuilt intervalometer function and you can access raw files too.

Please do checkout the CHDK option.

Ajay Talwar

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From: Venkat P <venkat...@gmail.com>
To: b-...@googlegroups.com

Sent: Tuesday, March 5, 2013 11:28 PM

[keerthi kiran]

Hello Ajay,
I dint know Magic Lantern supports 450D. How do you use it with 450D? What are its uses? Can you please give some more information?

Regards,
Keerthi

[Ajay Talwar]

Hello Keerthi,

Sorry, my mistake. Magic Lantern works on Canon 60D not Canon 450D (I got confused between my camera models).

For 60D and 5D-II I basically use it for movie, you can reduce the bit rate, there is a limit of 4gb file which is overridden in Magic Lantern.
You also have the intervalometer built in when you install Magic Lantern.

The Magic Lantern webpage is here: http://wiki.magiclantern.fm/faq

Ajay Talwar

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From: keerthi kiran <info...@gmail.com>
To: b-...@googlegroups.com
Sent: Wednesday, March 6, 2013 8:54 AM

[Arun Venkataswamy]

+1 for Magic Lantern.

I use it in my 500D and it works very well.

Features I use:

• Intervalometer - No need for external device. The camera itself can take continuous shots at set rate and delays.
• Clap your hands to take a pic or trigger the start of continuous shooting. This feature is really useful when the camera is mounted on a rickety tripod.
• ISO on steroids - Gives access to undocumented, high ISOs the default camera firmware does not provide
• Motion detection to shoot pics
• While reviewing a pic, pressing the zoom button goes to full zoom first (really useful to check focus of stars)
• HDR bracketing and HDR scripts to generate HDR image in Linux
• Crop marks in live view
• Dim display
• Invert display (can be useful when telescope is pointing at uneasy positions)

It's also pretty safe to use as there is no modding of the camera firmware. The Magic Lantern app resides in the SD card. If you do not want it anymore, just remove a few files and folders in the SD card and the camera reverts back to the original firmware. But you might void the warranty by using the software.

Regards,

Arun

Arun Venkataswamy

http://wondroussky.blogspot.in/ 

"கற்றது கைமண் அளவு, கல்லாதது உலகளவு" - ஔவையார்
Known is a drop, Unknown is an ocean

[Abhilash Pavuluri]

Hello,

like Akarsh, i suggest you try out CHDK for your camera. It extends your camera's functionality and also enables scripting, so you can write your own scripts if you know how to.

www.chdk.wikia.com
I had used CHDK on my Canon A590 IS and it enabled me to do things not possible with the default functions,like intervalometers, motion detection etc.
IMO, the SX50 looks like a pretty good camera to use when combined with CHDK - it has ISO6400, and in-built RAW functionality as well. Maybe you won't even need CHDK for it. But you never know..

http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/canon-powershot-sx50-hs

Regards,

Abhilash.P

On Tue, Mar 5, 2013 at 9:20 AM, upasana naren <upasan...@gmail.com> wrote:

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[upasana naren]

Hi

Thanks all of you for your Valuable suggestions- Ajay sir, Akarsh, Abhilash, Venkat, Keerthi Kiran and Arun Venkataswamy !

-Upasana

[Rocky Raybell]

I believe it can, but haven't used it yet. Getting one soon. I've been using a SX40 with CHDK. You can see some of the stuff I have here, including aurora's. https://www.flickr.com/photos/rockyraybell/

[Tamileniyan M]

Hi Upasana,

since you mentioned " equipped with an extremely powerful 50x (24 - 1200mm) optical zoom"

check this link for capturing some objects. at 50x

http://tool-box.info/blog/archives/1258-Getting-optimal-Jupiter-shots-w-SX50-HS.html#extended

http://tool-box.info/blog/archives/1222-Astrophotography-with-Superzoom.html

-Tamil