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Re: digital cameras



Finally, an area where I may be an 'expert' on this listserv :) 

I have used many different digital cameras for my real job and the best
I have seen to date is the Sony DSC D700.  It is a professional-level
digital cam with 1300x1024 resolution.  It has shutter speeds from 4 sec
to 1/2000 sec.  It also has many SLR type features such as aperature
priorit, shutter priority, and continuous shooting.  I think it runs a
little under $2000(!).

Like most other folks here have said, I'm not sure why you want to go
digital.  Although that Sony can match most SLRs in terms of performance
features, it costs 10 times as much, has a lower resolution, and is more
prone to getting zapped.

Tesla List wrote:
> 
> Original Poster: "Jim Lux" <jimlux-at-jpl.nasa.gov>
> 
> I'm looking for a digital camera that is suitable for "open flash" kinds of
> exposures, or at least one that has reasonable synchronization between the
> push of the button (preferably electronic) and when the exposure gets made.
> I want to take pictures of sparks (like Jacob's ladder and tesla coils) and
> high speed phenomena using a spark gap light source: Work in the dark, open
> the shutter, fire the flash, close the shutter.
> 
> Even if the exposure time is only 1/60th second, it is ok, providing I can
> externally trigger it, so that I can make sure that the time the "shutter"
> is open is when I am doing my thing.
> 
> Most of the cheap cameras seem to have a highly variable delay on the order
> of 100's of mSec between push of the button and making the exposure.
> 
> Likewise, taking good spark photos requires holding the shutter open for
> some time.
> 
> EMI immunity is not an issue, because I can put the camera in a shielded
> box.