I wonder if it would be possible to have a camera or camcorder with as much sensitivity to light as the human eye. You know how we can see stars and things very clear, but with a camera all you see is black sky? I wonder if there is a camera that can see stars, and if so, is it affordable?
2007-01-03 12:12:03 · 4 answers · asked by Anonymous in Consumer Electronics ➔ Camcorders
Any camera with an adjustable exposure duration can be used to take pictures of the night sky, including stars. The secret is to increase the length of the exposure to give the film (or the CCD in the case of a digital camera) enough time for the dim light from the stars to register.
Using this technique, a camera can be quite a bit MORE sensitive than the human eye.
You must use a tripod (or some other kind of fixed mount) for pictures like this, and a remote shutter release is a good idea also to prevent camera "shake" when opening and closing the shutter.
For decent results, adjust the ISO value up to the maximum (if it is adjustable on your camera), and try exposure times of 15-20 seconds. Set the camera focus to infinity.
Longer exposures will "see" more light, but unfortunately, you'll need specialized equipment to counter the rotation of the Earth for exposures longer than about 20 seconds!
2007-01-03 12:34:02 · answer #1 · answered by Mark H 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Well mark H is right about the setting a long exposure time, but that only applies to still cameras. As for a video camera, its probably possible but it would probably need to have huge ccds (1/2 or up) and a huge lens, and then it still probably wouldnt be perfect. Most cams like that cost at least $15,000. I guess night vision could work, but it wouldnt really be simulating the human eye, just amplifying the light. Ive tried shooting extremely low light (moonlight on the blinds in my window) and Ive only gotten a barely visible picture with f1.6, 1/8s shutter, and 18db of gain, and my camera (a canon GL2) has 1/4 inch chips, and shooting stars are even harder because of the light differences, so you can imagine why there arent that many cameras out there that can shoot stars. Hope this helps!
2007-01-03 13:39:00 · answer #2 · answered by evilgenius4930 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
There are cameras that can see stars, but I don't know how expensive they are.
2007-01-03 12:19:51 · answer #3 · answered by C 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
you would have to focus it, but i'm sure it exists, pretty cool idea though
2007-01-03 12:19:53 · answer #4 · answered by Frank 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋