Sorta OT, Modding a camera for NIR

Trying to see throuygh clothes ?

Joking, but not vompletely. In the 1980s there was a model os Sony camcorde r that would do just that with the proper filter. they were forcibly recall ed. I worked at a place that sold them and they told me they are SERIOUS ab out gettong all of them back. I don't know if they brought the cops if you didn't want to give it up or what, but they alluded to that.

If I could go back in time I would buy one with cash money and give a false name.

but I think you are going to find it quite difficult to see through clothes , if you were thinking of that. I do believe just about all cmaeras ar desi gned to prevent it. Of course the TSA uses it now, but the technology was t here back in the 1980s.

Filters were alot of fun with black and white. Color kinda limits what you can do in some ways.

der that would do just that with the proper filter. they were forcibly reca lled. I worked at a place that sold them and they told me they are SERIOUS about gettong all of them back. I don't know if they brought the cops if yo u didn't want to give it up or what, but they alluded to that.

se name.

es, if you were thinking of that. I do believe just about all cmaeras ar de signed to prevent it. Of course the TSA uses it now, but the technology was there back in the 1980s.

u can do in some ways.

The Panasonic video camera that 'sees through clothes' does not need any ad d-on filter or lens.

User just sets it to 'night shot' mode in the daylight. This removes the IR filter in front of the CCD or whatever it uses.

viola!

Nekkid people videos..

I remember all the hoopla about that. I had a black and white darkroom when I was a kid and always wanted color. Now I'm fascinated by this particular form of B&W. Eric

Yesterday I put the camera back together and it works. I think the autofocus may be off a little. If it is I am not sure what to do about it. The service manual from Canon tells how to do it using special charts and software which I do not have. Buy I think I can, with a little care, mount the camera using the tripod mount and adjust in and out the the screws that hold the CCD assembly in place. This assembly is held down by three screws against three springs. So maybe I can adjust the screws, take a picture, look at the picture on a computer monitor, and so on until it gets the best focus possible. I aslo need to find some filter or filters that just pass near UV so that maybe I can get some good reflected UV pictures of flowers and such. In any event it looks like the camera is taking pretty good pictures I guess I need to learn how touse the dropbox, Eric

Don't you need a filter for non-UV for best operation? Taking out the UV filter lets the sensor respond to UV, but it also takes in all the rest of the light. That can't be so good for the results you seek, and surely if the camera is responding to visible light, that may overwhelm the UV results, I would think.

I just noticed the Canon S2 that I got two weeks ago for $20 at a garage sale (it has 12X zoom, though since it's from 2005, it's "only" a 5MP camera), there's a page about making it respond to UV, and in that case, there is some bit of filter close to the CCD sensor, or something like that I wasn't paying attention. That contrasts with someone's earlier attempt where they found the UV filter was coated onto the lense.

Older digital cameras are now cheap, so this sort of thing can't be costly to try. If you ruin one camera you got for a few dollars, then bring on another.

Michael

An alternative to dropbox is

. You don't have to create an account if you don't want to; without an account you can still upload single pictures or galleries of pictures, with individual descriptions for each picture if you like. You also get relatively short URLs that tend not to trigger line wrap, such as .

Without an account you'll get a "delete" URL for each picture when you upload them; you need to save this URL right when you get it if you might want to delete the photo later. If you have an account, you can always go back and delete things, without having to save the delete URL.

Imgur works entirely through your Web browser; you don't have to install any software on your PC. I know it works from Windows and Linux browsers and it should work from Mac browsers. I don't think it has the "automatic sync with a directory on your PC" functionality that Dropbox has, though.

Standard disclaimers apply: I don't get money or other consideration from any companies mentioned.

Matt Roberds

A very basic webcam I removed the sliver of IR filter from last week, needed the lens moving 0.3mm away from the CCD to focus the image. See nearby thread about reading hidden letters

Usually that means the backfocus needs adjustment. Yes a very nice pattern is simply wonderful to use, but anytihng with alot of detail will work.

This is a MECAHANICAL adjustment. On a CCD or MOS sensor cam it will be on the lens somewhere towards the back. The older image tube cameras had a cla mp you could loosen and move the tube to and fro. The connections all went with it, it was not like dismounting the thing to replace it, which is anot her whole ball of wax.

Generally, you need to get REALLY sharp focus long, and then bring it in to closeup, zoom in that is. Then without touching the lens focus you adjust it mechanically so it is in focus. Then you zoom out and it will be off. th en you refocus it and then zoom back in and set it again.

Lather, rinse and repeat.

But then, you might have a different type of autofocus. there are a few IR types and a couple of ultrasound types. the backfocus thing applies to all of them but newer units may have eliminated the needf ro a backfocus adjust with better menufacturing techniques.

Also, if the unit is ld, some of the older autofocus systems did not really work all that well.

May I suggest watching this youtube video

and the others in his series? This guy has done a lot of experimenting with DIY night vision.

Thanks for the info Matt. I like not having to open an account especially since I rarely upload pictures. Eric

Thanks for the advice. If I need to adjust the CCD position I'll try your method. Eric

Thanks Tim, I will look at his videos. This IR stuff has me intrigued. Eric