From: "Tim" <tjp314@pacbell.net>

Date: June 28, 2008 8:35:47 AM MDT

To: Astro_IIDC@yahoogroups.com

Subject: Re: Flea 2 colour cameras..


Hi Mark:


I have both the flea 640x480 color and the flea2 1032x776 color

camera.  Depending on what I'm most interested in, I might guide with

one and image with the other.


I think where the smaller-pixel camera shines is on planetary imaging,

because the ROI feature allows you to crop around the planet an get to

high frame rates while still giving you the chip real estate to aid in

centering the planet.  It also allows use of lower power barlows to

get the same pixel scales as cameras with larger chips.  And of

course, for planetary imaging, the pixel size is less important than

the image scale.  


So, neither of my Fleas can quite replace the other.  Currently, I'm

fiddling with using the flea as a wide angle finder with an 11mm

c-mount lens on it, and the flea2 is on my C 9.25" with a meade f 6.3

FR for guiding, while my SBIG ST2000XM is on my Megrez 80 for imaging.  


I'm still fine tuning the polar alignment and have just eliminated one

more source of flexure in the system, but following Milton's

suggestion for the Fleas, I have a 2" nebula filter in front of the

SBIG, and I'm imaging 13th magnitude galaxies from my home just 7

miles from downtown Los Angeles.  ;oD


I haven't been to the Pt Grey website in a while.  But I thought they

added 1/2" ccd models to the Flea2 line?  Mine both have 1/3" chips.


-Tim.

--- In Astro_IIDC@yahoogroups.com, Milton Aupperle <milton@...> wrote:


Hi Mark;


On 22-Jun-08, at 1:03 PM, Mark Gaffney wrote:



Hi Milton, I was wondering if you`ve had a chance to use the 1032x  

776 version of the

colour Flea 2 camera.


Yes. I have a picture I took of M67 with it


http://www.outcastsoft.com/AstroImages/M67_20080307_MJA.jpg


I still prefer a CCD with larger pixels though.


I was thinking of the possibility of buying one of these early next  

year. I

notice the pixel value on the higher resolution model drops to  

4.65x 4.65 micron pixels

compared to 7.4x 7.4 on the 640x 480 model.


You lose a 250% of the light gathering sensitivity with the pixel  

size decrease too. So with 4.65 micron pixels you need 2.5 minute  

exposure times to capture what a 1 minute exposure with a 7.4 micron  

pixels can capture.


It`s an extra $100 USD for this model & Point

Grey also tack on $100 for a Development kit which has a IEEE 1394  

b-a cable amongst

other things. I understand they`re transitioning away from the Flea  

camera now?


Yes the Flea2 use somewhat different electronics and are support  

FireWire 800. Physically they are the same size.


I`m told PG

don`t sell nosepieces so I`m hoping one from Imaging Source will do  

the job.


It will. The noise piece uses a standard C or CS mount thread and you  

can get them all over the place. It's just a "C mount to M1.25" adapter.


With the

Unibrain Fire-i camera in the meantime, I was thinking of buying  

one of these nosepieces &

widening the opening to accomodate the C-mount thread (as Jim Chung  

did with a penknife I

understand).


The problem there is making sure it's perpendicular to the CCD and  

that the lens mount here is an M10x0.5 or M12x0.5.


I`m thinking at the moment I`ll go with a $215 Orion Short Tube 80  

Guide

scope to begin with & leave the Lumicon Easy Guider OAG til later  

perhaps.


Just make sure your not putting too much weight on your mount. As I  

said in another thread, you should try to keep the weight of Optical  

Tubes, cameras, weights, finders, cables to around 50 to 80% of the  

mounts rated capacity. Go over that and it won't track well at all.


HTH..


Milton J. Aupperle