camera recomendation

Archived from groups: rec.photo.digital (More info?)

I'm looking for a camera that I can connect to a PC and capture images by
software without needing to use the internal memory. Almost like web cam, but I
have only seen web cams with 640x480 resolution, giving me an effective 0.3MP
resolution. I don't need hi-res camera, but just need more than the 640x480.
1-2MP is sufficient for what I'm working on. Any recommendations?

John

Archived from groups: rec.photo.digital (More info?)

John Trunek wrote:
> I'm looking for a camera that I can connect to a PC and capture
> images by software without needing to use the internal memory. Almost like
> web cam, but I have only seen web cams with 640x480
> resolution, giving me an effective 0.3MP resolution. I don't need
> hi-res camera, but just need more than the 640x480. 1-2MP is
> sufficient for what I'm working on. Any recommendations?
> John

It is much higher resolution that you may be talking about, but the
Canon 20D will handle it. 8+ MP

--
Joseph Meehan

26 + 6 = 1 It's Irish Math

Archived from groups: rec.photo.digital (More info?)

John Trunek <jtrunek@hotmail.com> writes:

> I'm looking for a camera that I can connect to a PC and capture images by
> software without needing to use the internal memory. Almost like web cam,
> but I have only seen web cams with 640x480 resolution, giving me an effective
> 0.3MP resolution. I don't need hi-res camera, but just need more than the
> 640x480. 1-2MP is sufficient for what I'm working on. Any recommendations?

Many of the higher end Olympus, Canon, and Nikon cameras include the capability
to take a picture under computer control, and then the computer can upload and
delete the picture as needed. Sometimes the software needed is included as
part of the system, sometimes you have to buy it.

Under Linux, some cameras are supported by gphoto2. See http://www.gphoto.org
for a list of supported cameras. I've used my C-2100UZ in this mode.

A shareware app for many Olympus cameras is Pine Tree Computing:
http://www.pinetreecomputing.com/camctl.asp

--
Michael Meissner
email: mrmnews@the-meissners.org
http://www.the-meissners.org

Archived from groups: rec.photo.digital (More info?)

John,

I recently bought a Olympus C-5050 (Craig's List; $300 with some
goodies) which is a very nice "pro-sumer" 5-megger. With the free
program Cam2Com (Camera-to-Computer) at
http://home.comcast.net/~smenche/Cam2Com/ you have complete control of
the camera. It works mint with my Oly, and supposedly works with any
USB-connected Olympus.

-Ben H.

Archived from groups: rec.photo.digital (More info?)

John Trunek wrote:

> I'm looking for a camera that I can connect to a PC and capture
> images by software without needing to use the internal memory.
> Almost like web cam, but I have only seen web cams with 640x480
> resolution, giving me an effective 0.3MP resolution. I don't
> need hi-res camera, but just need more than the 640x480. 1-2MP
> is sufficient for what I'm working on. Any recommendations?

John,

My Pentax Optio 750Z may be able to do that. I know it
can attach to the TV, but I've never tried it.

I have been able to download Pentax and Canon manuals
from the websites of those companies. I presume other
companies also put their manuals on the web.

If you find a camera of interest, you may be able to
download the manual and see if it does just what you want.

Alan

Archived from groups: rec.photo.digital (More info?)

"Roger N. Clark (change username to rnclark)" <username@qwest.net> writes:

> Michael Meissner wrote:
>
> > Under Linux, some cameras are supported by gphoto2. See http://www.gphoto.org
> > for a list of supported cameras. I've used my C-2100UZ in this mode.
>
> Michael
> Do you know if you can run gphoto to get an image from a camera
> via a command line, so you could automate picture taking by a
> shell script? I have an application for just this thing, and
> this would be ideal. I also want to do it with linux.
>
> Then the next thing I want to add is a motion detector to
> sense motion and take an image when there is motion.

Sure, I've done it to catch birds at the feeder. To capture an image do onto
your memory card do:

$ gphoto2 --capture-image

To download all of the files from the camera and put them in /foo, do (note
filenames will be in uppercase):

$ gphoto2 --get-all-files --filename=/foo/%f.%C

To delete the files on the camera do:

$ gphoto2 --delete-all-files

Here is a picture of my C-2100UZ all wired up, read to catch some birds (I'm
sitting at the desk, and since I don't appear to be looking at the feeder, the
birds will come swoop down):
http://www.the-meissners.org/album [...] amera.html

and here is one of the pictures I took with this rig:
http://www.the-meissners.org/2004- [...] birds.html

Note, if you are going to have the camera on for a long period of time, you
probably want to buy an AC adaptor for your camera.

--
Michael Meissner
email: mrmnews@the-meissners.org
http://www.the-meissners.org

Archived from groups: rec.photo.digital (More info?)

"Roger N. Clark (change username to rnclark)" <username@qwest.net> wrote:

: No, a lab experiment. I need multipls cameras detecting and
: recording events, all fed to a pc, monitored remotely
: (e.g. ethernet in to watch what is happening).

Some cameras allow a wired remote. Some if not all are simply a momentary
switch closure. So if you have an external motion detector, or a light
beam, or some other sensor that can activate (or deactivate) a relay, you
could easily wire a series of cameras to a single bank of relays to cause
one event to trigger several cameras simultaneously. I would have each
camera use a seperate "pole" or switch on the relay(s) so that there is no
possibility of interference between the different cameras.

Or the same "remote switch" input could be wired to a sensor for each
camera if what you want is a series of cameras that each take a photo when
the subject passes infront of that camera (such as a series of photos as a
person walks across the floor). In this case you may even be able to skip
the relays and use a simple floor mat switch to directly trigger its
associated camera.

Randy

==========
Randy Berbaum
Champaign, IL