I downloaded the CHDK “hack” for my camera. It’s a little program that feeds directly into the cameras microprocessor, and allows the camera to do things it normally doesn’t. In my case, I used it to take both long and short duration exposures. So far, the photos kinda suck, but they show promise…
Two long duration photos, attempting to capture the Milky Way. What I did manage to get pretty clearly is that my cameras sensor chip is loaded to the gills with hot pixels (individual pixels that are basically burned out), and one corner of the sensor is going *really* goofy. Both problems are brought into sharp focus at long exposures of dark views. The first problem manifests itself by way of thousands of extraneous blue and red dots; the second in a purple “nebula” in the corner. A new sensor would fix this right up. And I’ll bet a nickel that that’s just what Best Buy *won’t* do under the cameras warranty…
And then there are the high speed photos, showing water. A mix of 1/60,000 and 1/10,000 second shots, all requiring a flash. Focus is vital, it seems. Still, there’s promise here.
3 Responses to “Unusual exposures”
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Wow. Very impressive.
>Wow. Very impressive.
seconded.
Dumb question, but are you sure they’re hot pixels and not stars?
Also you have to remember that your sensor is not cooled, and will pick up thermal noise from inside your camera.
I wouldn’t have thought your camera would have _that many_ hot pixels.
> are you sure they’re hot pixels and not stars
Sadly, yes. Three lines of arguement:
1) They show up in the grass and on the side of the large shed. I did not pay the realtor extra for grasstars.
2) Seen at full rez, the actual stars exhibit streaking… just a little bit, but it’s noticable at these 30-second exposures. The hot pixels, on the other hand, are just dots.
3) They are constant from shot to shot. Same dots in the same spots.
The camera is a year and a half old, and has seen a lot of service… somewhere north of 50K photos. I’m honestly surprised it hasn’t burst into flames.
The fixes are obvious:
1) Replace the sensor… *maybe* Best Buy will do that, but I wouldn’t bet large sums
2) Replace the camera… which I’ll do *just* as soon as I have an extra $300. Which won’t be anytime soon.