Canon number

[Anthony1979]

Ive noticed that lol

[Anthony1979]

Which one is best for software 

[tooth_dr]

12 minutes ago, Anthony1979 said:

Which one is best for software 

I use my 40d with APT and it’s great. Bulb exposures via USB, liveview etc. But all Canons from this era onwards will do this. 
I took the following images with a canon 40d on an ED80

 

 

Edited February 8, 2020 by tooth_dr

[Davey-T]

There is something called Canon utilities that comes on a disc with the camera with a couple of other things so if you have a 450d you need the software that came with it, it was hidden somewhere on the Canon site but not sure if it's still there, also Canon keep updating the software and regularly mess with the Canon raw format CR2 which means some older versions aren't supported in stuff like P'Shop, but there are other ways around it using things like APT.

The APSC sensor size is fine for astro' stuff and as mentioned the live view is really needed to focus properly, I've just been taking some pic's of the Moon using Canon 60Da and 300mm lens and focusing with x10 live view was a doddle, trying to do it through the viewfinder is not.

Dave

 

[JamesF]

I think there's very little between the 40D and 450D.  Both are DIGIC III, so they'll probably be supported as long as each other by Canon's drivers and they'll presumably work equally well with APT or BYE and suchlike.  Looking at that comparison table, the 40D uses compact flash for storage whereas the 450D uses an SD card.  That may make a difference if you want to use the local storage.  It might be worth checking to see how easy/expensive it is to get an external power supply for each if you'd find it useful to power it from the mains, though I can't see why there'd be much difference.

Sadly the 40D doesn't appear in the set of cameras compared here, which would have been quite handy:

http://dslrmodifications.com/DSLRcomparison.html

So in the end I'd probably go for whatever you can find that appears to have been well looked after and is available at a price you're prepared to pay.

James

[Anthony1979]

Well im back to decide Which one to get lol

[happy-kat]

Assuming the camera does not come with a cable, do you already own a card reader and if so does it read CF cards.

[tooth_dr]

7 minutes ago, happy-kat said:

Assuming the camera does not come with a cable, do you already own a card reader and if so does it read CF cards.

If Anthony is planning on controlling the camera with a PC, then that cable can be used to download the image, or with APT the images can be recorded directly onto the PC harddrive.

[Anthony1979]

It will be connected to laptop 

[tooth_dr]

12 minutes ago, Anthony1979 said:

It will be connected to laptop 

Then you can download images either off the memory card through the camera (no card reader needed) or save directly onto the laptop during acquisition and bypass the card completely. 

[Anthony1979]

I still cant decide Which one lol

[fozzybear]

And just thought I would add if you want Astro modified Canon DSLR's have a look at this website and reputable

https://www.cheapastrophotography.com

[Anthony1979]

Ive gone for the 450d.... Have i made the right choice

[Davey-T]

1 minute ago, Anthony1979 said:

Ive gone for the 450d.... Have i made the right choice

Yes, I used one for a few years, it's pretty well all you need, hasn't got video but that's not needed.

Did you get the discs with it ?

Dave

[Anthony1979]

No disc

[JamesF]

You should still be able to download the relevant drivers from the Canon site I think.  If not someone here will surely be able to provide them one way or another.

James

[fozzybear]

1 hour ago, JamesF said:

You should still be able to download the relevant drivers from the Canon site I think.  If not someone here will surely be able to provide them one way or another.

James

I have  the installer file ksd291a_install zip but it's 185mb is it ok to submit it here?

[JamesF]

Just had a hunt around.  This is the version I used on Win7.  There may perhaps be a later version for Win10.

https://www.usa.canon.com/nw3s/CanonUSA/DownloadContents/English/0200409902EN.htm

James

[JamesF]

1 minute ago, fozzybear said:

I have  the installer file ksd291a_install zip but it's 185mb is it ok to submit it here?

Our posts crossed.  Hopefully the link I posted should do the job.

James

[Anthony1979]

Just wondering if the 500d would be ok for an extra 30 quid

[Davey-T]

https://www.dpreview.com/reviews/canoneos500d

Dave

[Padraic M]

One thing to watch with the 500d. Not sure which other models it relates to.

The 500d doesn't have a separate backup battery for retaining camera settings; it uses a super-capacitor on the main board. The capacitor can wear out over time, and won't hold a charge, and given the age of that model now, I'm sure quite a few of them are gone. The impact is that every time you take out the main battery, you have to reset the camera's date, time and any other custom settings. It can't be fixed.

It may not be a deal-breaker, but I tried one for a while and it was a pain.

[Anthony1979]

So an no no

[Padraic M]

It's a bit of a 1st world problem so you might be happy to live with the inconvenience. I suspect that the second hand 500ds are priced down because of it so you could pick one up cheaply. 

Depends on your priorities!

[JamesF]

My recollection is that the 500D is noisier than the 450D, too.

James