Modified Canon 300D - Anyone got one?

I am actually looking for a 300D if anyone comes across one for sale. If anyone spots one somewhere, will they PM me or post back on this thread?

Seanie.

I am actually looking for a 300D if anyone comes across one for sale. If anyone spots one somewhere, will they PM me or post back on this thread?

I promise that I'll let you know about the second one I see on sale second hand

Cheers,
~Al

If you aren't set on large CCD SLRs like the Canon Digital rebel, there may be a couple of alternatives:

The Sony DSC-V3 (7.2 Megapixel) Camera has ISO/ASA up to 800 and a "Nightshot" mode which removes the IR filter. Unfortunately it also turns on an IR illuminator. I'm going to try black tape over the beam for another shot of comet Machholz tonight , weather permitting. Some limitations of this camera are:
Lens is only F 2.8
Shutter speed only goes to 30 seconds.
Automatic "noise reduction" seems to do in camera frame stacking whether you like it or not. This isn't great for those of us without a barndoor or wedge drive!
If anyone knows any firmware hacks to turn off the IR illuminator, turn off the noise reduction and increase the maximum exposure time, please let me know!

Casio QV-4000 (4.1 Megapixel): Some things that sold me on this camera where the very long battery life on rechargable AA batteries, a nifty panorama mode, the F2.0 Canon lens and exposures to 60 seconds + Bulb mode (which also appears to be limited to 60 seconds unless you use external computer and 3rd party hackware to control it via USB port)

Unfortunately after about 4000 photos, the front "zoom" element came off my Casio, leaving me with only an "beyond wide angle" mode. It now looks like the 35mm equivalent of a 23mm lens, providing more than enough to record a rainbow's arc (42 degrees) and lots of barrel distortion. Since I have the Sony replacement I'd be willing to part with this for a price, or an ETX ... Someone afraid to hack an expensive SLR might have fun removing the rest of the lens for prime focus astrophotography.

Just a thought. Cheers and clear skies!

UPDATE: #&*@! The Sony DSC-V3 "Nightshot" mode only works when in Program or Dummy mode and then exposures are limited to 1 second! Only two stars showed up in the IR shot, I think one was Aldeberon. I hope someone hacks the firmware to allow manual selection of the IR filter and longer exposures. My experience the other night indicated that the lower sensitivity of the old Casio camera was more than made up for by the fact that I could expose for 60 seconds:


(The light pollution on the right side of this wide angle shot of the pleides and comet Machholz is me, trying to block the headlights of passing cars during the 60 second unguided exposure.)
Thanks everyone for the Info on CMOS vs CCD, I _almost_ bought a 300D without knowing this

Just pointing out that the Canon EOS300D uses a CMOS sensor (just like webcams) and not a CCD. It's the serious (expensive) magnesium alloy body, 8M Pixel, professional cameras that use the CCDs. Still, it's not half bad.

Just pointing out that the Canon EOS300D uses a CMOS sensor (just like webcams) and not a CCD.

Just to add to any confusion
The ToUCam pro webcam uses a ccd. Its the exception to the rule though almost all other wecams are CMOS.

Cheers,
~Al

I read somewhere that CMOS technology has now improved to such an extent that it is likely to surpass CCD in a few years.
I don't know the ins and outs of either so I don't know...anyone here know a bit more behind them both??