BYEOS DSLR Support

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astronomiser
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BYEOS DSLR Support

#1

Post by astronomiser »

Hi Robin: I know many have asked, including me before about DSLR support. Just wondering how can BYEOS support all DSLR cameras, and Sharpcap not be able to do the same?

I have BYEOS, and understand no live stacking features, but it is excellent at everything else possible.

Thanks Gary in Oklahoma
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Re: BYEOS DSLR Support

#2

Post by admin »

Hi Gary,

the simple fact is that BYEOS has a main focus of DSLR cameras, so they have put hundreds (or perhaps thousands) of hours of work into getting the various models working and testing them. One of the reasons it takes so much effort is that every model seems to have its own quirks that need to be dealt with.

From a SharpCap point of view, the focus is on dedicated Astro cameras and webcams. At one point the ASCOM.DSLR driver looked like it was going to be a good way of getting DSLR cameras to work in SharpCap, but work on that seems to have ground to a halt. It still works OK for some people, but has issues with other cameras. The other option is to use a tool that can save images from your DSLR to a folder and then use the SharpCap folder monitor camera to process those images as they are saved.

I think it is fair to say that I will not be adding direct support for any DSLR cameras to SharpCap in the future unless the market/usage pattern of cameras for astro changes significantly - it would just not be a good use of time I'm afraid compared to other work that could be done on SharpCap

cheers,

Robin
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Re: BYEOS DSLR Support

#3

Post by astronomiser »

Thank you again. I have a ZWO294Cool, and it works nice. However if I run say 4 - 5 minute subs on about any object and do same with my Canon T2i DSLR, the Canon image is far superior. CMOS just cannot compete with a DSLR or a good CCD camera. Yes sensitivity is a plus for CMOS, and so it has its place.

I will try your suggestion soon using BYEOS or Canon software to capture image, and direct Sharpcap to that folder. So I think you are saying if that connection works, I can use Sharpcap in real time and all its features for stacking and manipulating DSLR image. I will have to use file format that Sharpcap can read of course. Need to look into that compatibility. If this works it will be great news for DSLR users. As I have said before, many thousands of DSLR Imagers exist, and I do not see that changing any time soon.

Gary "Semper Fi" 66-69
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Re: BYEOS DSLR Support

#4

Post by admin »

Hi Gary,

right now the file format may be the issue - SharpCap can read FITS, TIFF, etc, but you may find that BYEOS is like APT and will write DSLR RAW files of some sort. There is a thread on here somewhere where someone rigged up a batch file to convert RAW image files being written by APT in one folder to FITS or TIFF in another, then SharpCap read from the second folder and stacked.

I'm not sure that I agree with you about the relative merits of DSLR and CMOS - modern CMOS sensors being used in astro are widely used in high spec digital cameras (mirrorless and DLSR). The lack of a shutter and the ability to cool the sensor raises modern CMOS into a league totally above any DSLR imaging in my book.

cheers,

Robin
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Re: BYEOS DSLR Support

#5

Post by iamhondo »

"... will not be adding direct support for any DSLR cameras to SharpCap in the future..." Hmmm, "direct", huh? So you're saying there's a chance?

I had the similar interest in using SC with DSLRS. The disappointing progression of ASCOM.DSLR is discouraging.

Is the API for BYEOS powerful enough to control a DSLR via SC? If so, you wouldn't need to start from scratch with the Canon API. You'd "just" need to accommodate camera set up and image capture controls "behind the curtain". SC and BYE would cooperatively control the setup and image system to behave like other cameras in SC. Presumably that's less complicated than writing (and supporting) a from-scratch (separate) ASCOM DSLR driver for Canon EOS cameras or writing a from-scratch DSLR control system for SC using the Canon API.

(TBH, one significant concern would be the dearth of updates or expansion of BYEOS as a product.)

Joe
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Re: BYEOS DSLR Support

#6

Post by admin »

Hi Joe,

I'm not sure what happened to BYEOS - I thought that once upon a time it had its own web site, but now it seems to be on 'OTelescope'. Maybe I am misremembering that though...

The most likely thing for me to do in this area would be to add support for SharpCap to read CR2/CR3/etc RAW files by using libRaw - that would then allow pretty much any capture application to be used to grab images to file and SharpCap could process/stack. More detailed camera control is only likely if someone picks up the ball of the ASCOM.DSLR and improves that.

cheers,

Robin
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Re: BYEOS DSLR Support

#7

Post by iamhondo »

Robin,

I think the O'Telescope format for BYEOS, et. al. has existed for a while. The sponsorship dominated the software.

I'm totally stumped on what happened to the software line. Boredom? Family? Illness? Death? Money? Love?

It seems totally derelict. The support page has a few user posts but no support response. There's no announcement I can find that describes the stark void of activity. I made a couple of dives into google searching in hopes of an answer without success. I'm sure there is an explanation somewhere. But I'm done investing time in the search. There's no sign of hope for a resurgence.

We all know the actual reality of an ASCOM DSLR driver for a vendor like Canon. The astronomy side of Canon's (and Nikon's, etc.) camera sales is a small fraction of all cameras sold. So investing on-going development costs (internal or external) to build and support an ASCOM camera driver wouldn't substantially increase sales. The software costs could be more effectively invested elsewhere. That stinks for astronomers. But it's the right business decision for the company.

The only hope for astronomers is an ambitious and resourced team like OpenPHD. That isn't happening. I concur with your resistance to dive into the pool of developing (and supporting) a multi-vendor, multi-camera ASCOM camera driver. [cue the "It's a TRAP!" meme]

Clear skies,
Joe
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