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For each camera, we perform a professional mapping of defective hot pixels - a technical service that is not self-evident and, in the event that the camera has disturbing spots in the image, requires time-consuming post-processing of each image.
About Astrophotography: Capturing celestial objects like stars, planets, moons, nebulae, and galaxies requires long exposures and specialized equipment. Challenges include light pollution, atmospheric disturbances, and Earth’s rotation.
Our modified cameras offer over 4x increased H‑alpha sensitivity and over 6x increased sensitivity in the Sulphur‑II line compared to standard models.
Post-Processing: After capturing the images, a detailed post-processing workflow typically follows. This includes stacking—overlaying multiple exposures to reduce noise and enhance details—as well as fine-tuning colors and contrasts. Astrophotography demands patience and technical expertise but rewards you with breathtaking images that reveal the beauty and vastness of the universe.
With an unmodified camera, you can capture H‑alpha wavelengths (656.28 nm) visible at the edge of the field; however, this requires significantly longer exposure times. By removing the blocking filter, we extend the camera’s spectral range up to 700 nm, allowing H‑alpha wavelengths to reach the sensor with shorter exposures. This enables a faster shooting cadence, which is crucial for effective stacking.
A Canon DSLR sensor comprises several optical filters, including the one that blocks H‑alpha light—the phaser layer infrared-absorption glass filter. In our workshop, we remove this filter using clean-room techniques and adjust the sensor’s mounting specifications to Canon standards, ensuring that the sensor continues to capture sharp images across its entire area—even with precise autofocus to infinity.
Image (1) shows the sensor of a Canon EOS 1000D, which originally includes the aforementioned filter (4). After its removal, the sensor (5) remains protected by the top low-pass filter (2). This filter also features an integrated sensor cleaning mechanism—a piezoelectric element that vibrates the surface at high frequency to dislodge dust particles. This is what the modified sensor, optimized for astrophotography, looks like; sensors in other Canon EOS cameras are built in a similar manner.
Experience report by Uli Klein
The 'good old' Canon 1100D is still well suited for astrophotography, especially when it comes to long exposures. Its pixel size of 5.16 µm is generally sufficient for astrophotography of diffuse, dimly lit objects. More modern DSLR cameras (including those from Canon) are characterized by finer pixels, but are much more expensive. Contrary to a widespread misconception, this does not increase the image resolution, however; this is determined by the optics (focal length of the telescope used) and above all by the so-called 'seeing'. The latter is the limitation of image sharpness due to the turbulence of the Earth's atmosphere, which can be up to 2"–3"! For example, a telescope with a 20 cm aperture delivers an image resolution of around 0.6", which is usually never achieved due to the seeing (except on very high mountains, e.g. in the Atacama Desert in South America). A modern DSLR camera with small pixels is therefore of no use in this respect, but is obviously much more expensive than older DSLR models. For example, the resolution of the EOS 1100Da with a 1 m focal length of the telescope is around 3", which corresponds to a poor seeing value. Smaller camera pixels would therefore not bring any benefit!
Canon's DSLR cameras can also be controlled very well with the ingenious, fully automated Lacerta MGEN tracking and exposure system. It ensures that the telescope always remains precisely aligned in the rotating sky despite unavoidable fluctuations in the automatic tracking of the telescope and at the same time controls one or more DSLR cameras (exposure time, exposure sequence, etc.). In my experience, this works particularly well and reliably with Canon EOS cameras. I usually control two Canon EOS 1100Da cameras simultaneously, which are attached to my telescopes.
With this system, I create image sequences of up to 400 individual exposures of 3 minutes each, which, after stacking the individual images, results in 20 hours of total exposure. Of course, it is faster with more modern, and therefore more sensitive, DSLR cameras, but this is much more expensive and also at the cost of much more storage space on the computer (due to the smaller pixels), which (see above) is of no use!
© Prof. Uli Klein
The attached images display galaxies M51 and M31 (the Andromeda Nebula) as well as the Elephant and Rosette Nebulae, captured with our modified Canon 1000D (© Michael Auster) and Canon 1100D (© Uli Klein).
If you’d like to see more inspiring images of the cosmos by Uli, along with details about the telescope and exposure times, simply enter astro-uk0.webnode in your browser.
