KAP & UAV Exposure Control Intervalometer Script - page 47 - Completed and Working Scripts - CHDK Forum

KAP & UAV Exposure Control Intervalometer Script

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Re: KAP & UAV Exposure Control Intervalometer Script
« Reply #460 on: 12 / June / 2015, 18:12:40 »
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The very 1st time I tried it last night I was getting a waiting for USB input signal I think I re-started the camera and then it worked.
Today I can't get it to respond at all and nothing has changed. I've tried unplugging the USB, re-plugging it in, staring the camera with the USB in and without it in and it just sits and says waiting for USB input signal.
I tried switching it to PWM in case that makes a difference and again nothing ...... any ideas???
Well, my guess would be that the script is waiting for a USB signal  ::)

When any of the USB remote modes are enabled, the script will wait until it sees a USB pulse (or 5V level) before it extends the lens and starts shooting.   This is to keep the lens retracted when you launch your kite or UAV.

So to get things started,  you need to supply a valid USB signal.  In the current code, it might miss pulses less than 100 mSec in length while waiting for to start shooting.  I'll have to fix that.  If you are sure your RX is signalling the script then that might be the problem?

To test,  try plugging your camera into a USB cable that is connected to your PC. This will provide the necessary voltage level to start the script.
« Last Edit: 12 / June / 2015, 18:17:51 by waterwingz »
Ported :   A1200    SD940   G10    Powershot N    G16

Re: KAP & UAV Exposure Control Intervalometer Script
« Reply #461 on: 13 / June / 2015, 06:29:26 »
Just discovered it was me having a complete brain [admin: avoid swearing please] so all up and running now ... too embarrassed to say what I did wrong :-[

My pictures though are awful and very unclear, I really wanted to get a decent depth of field so set my target AV at 7.1 and shutter at 1/800 which is throwing the ISO up to around 800, maybe that's the issue, I'll wind the AV back to 4.0 and the shutter speed up and see what effect.

Thanks again for all the help though getting it up and working!!!

Re: KAP & UAV Exposure Control Intervalometer Script
« Reply #462 on: 13 / June / 2015, 09:54:33 »
My pictures though are awful and very unclear, I really wanted to get a decent depth of field so set my target AV at 7.1 and shutter at 1/800 which is throwing the ISO up to around 800, maybe that's the issue, I'll wind the AV back to 4.0 and the shutter speed up and see what effect.
Please be more descriptive than just saying "awful".  Are they badly exposed?  (i.e. too dark or too bright).  Or are they out of focus?  Or are they blurry?  Or too noisy at the pixel level? Were you testing while holding the camera still on the ground or was the camera shooting on a moving UAV?

Did you configure your S110 using these settings : Camera Settings ?

How is your camera mounted to your UAV?  Vibrations can be a big problem - especially for the Canon S series, that have a "floating lens" focus mechanism.

FWIW, your S110 will get "decent" depth of field at any aperture setting (f-stop) if the focus distance is set at infinity so don't worry too much about that setting.     And a 1/800 shutter speed is probably the slowest speed you want to be using - 1/1000 or faster is usually better.  On the S110,  an ISO800 setting should still look pretty good but any higher than that will start to appear noisy at the pixel level.

I'm not sure why you are trying to force specific settings on the script.  Getting the best image without your "help" is what it was designed to do as long as you give it a range of values to use (via the script parameters).

In future,  it will help a lot if you attach the log file that the script makes to your post.   You will find it in the root (top) folder on your SD card - it's called KAP.log.
« Last Edit: 13 / June / 2015, 19:54:03 by waterwingz »
Ported :   A1200    SD940   G10    Powershot N    G16

Re: KAP & UAV Exposure Control Intervalometer Script
« Reply #463 on: 14 / June / 2015, 17:46:40 »
Sorry I've been a bit quiet, just after I posted the last post I thought I'd take the other UAV up with the GoPro camera with a non fish eye lens in the same lighting conditions as I just done the shots with the S110 to get a direct comparison ..... I was hoping the Canon would improve on the GoPro shots and I had a complete fly away over the roof of my house and beyond some trees so I had no idea where it went heading towards fields opposite.

2 days searching with another UAV taking still pics and blowing them up and found it with camera and UAV totally undamaged in one of the crops which obviously helped give it a soft landing  :D .... doesn't answer SWHY it flew away though!!!

The pictures are blurry, very blurry and add insult to injury before the UAV decided it had a will of it's own and ran away I got a couple of pics for comparison and they're much clearer than the Canon.

I've attached the log and a pic from each.

The gimbal for the S110 is a servo driven one

Re: KAP & UAV Exposure Control Intervalometer Script
« Reply #464 on: 14 / June / 2015, 17:47:47 »
Could only attach 2 things so here's the log

Re: KAP & UAV Exposure Control Intervalometer Script
« Reply #465 on: 14 / June / 2015, 18:50:10 »
Sorry I've been a bit quiet, just after I posted the last post I thought I'd take the other UAV up with the GoPro camera with a non fish eye lens in the same lighting conditions as I just done the shots with the S110 to get a direct comparison ..... I was hoping the Canon would improve on the GoPro shots and I had a complete fly away over the roof of my house and beyond some trees so I had no idea where it went heading towards fields opposite.
What happens if you try a side-by-side comparison of the GoPro and S110 sitting stable on the ground, pointed at an outdoor scene with object several humdred feet away?  (Make sure to adjust the zoom so the images are framed the same way - in your posted pix the GoPro is using quite a bit longer focal length than the S110)?

Quote
The pictures are blurry, very blurry and add insult to injury before the UAV decided it had a will of it's own and ran away I got a couple of pics for comparison and they're much clearer than the Canon.
Having looked at many KAP and UAV pix online,  I would not describe either of these as "very blurry".  The GoPro image only appear clearer partly because it is using a longer focal length.   Again, a comparison to what those two cameras can do when stationary on the ground is probably the next step.

Also,  the S110 is only shooting at 1/800.   Speeds of 1/2000  might be better - you will need to change the target Tv to that and lower the target Av to f3.5.

Quote
The gimbal for the S110 is a servo driven one
Your biggest challenge here is how good your vibration absorbing mounting is.  Apparently the S110 image stabilization mechanism "floats" the lens - even when it's off.  So any vibration from the UAV motors can be very problematic.  More info here : Let's talk Canon cameras
« Last Edit: 14 / June / 2015, 19:15:06 by waterwingz »
Ported :   A1200    SD940   G10    Powershot N    G16

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Re: KAP & UAV Exposure Control Intervalometer Script
« Reply #466 on: 16 / June / 2015, 15:42:32 »
The pictures are blurry, very blurry and add insult to injury before the UAV decided it had a will of it's own and ran away I got a couple of pics for comparison and they're much clearer than the Canon.

I've attached the log and a pic from each.
In addition to what waterwingz said: The images you posted 1280x720, which is far less than the resolution of the s110 sensor. Original resolution would be much more useful to understand where any blurring is coming from. If the files are too large to post here, use a file hosting site like dropbox, google drive etc, or crop out a section at 1:1 zoom.
Don't forget what the H stands for.

s110 shot interval under 1.5s
« Reply #467 on: 19 / June / 2015, 06:44:22 »
Hi all,
I have a built a UAV specially for a mission but in order to actually do the mission I need to get the shot interval of my Canon S110 under 1.5s.

Can anybody tell me how can that be done?
Thanks in advance!
Tom
S110, SX200is,

Re: s110 shot interval under 1.5s
« Reply #468 on: 19 / June / 2015, 07:51:28 »
I have a built a UAV specially for a mission but in order to actually do the mission I need to get the shot interval of my Canon S110 under 1.5s.  Can anybody tell me how can that be done?
How much under 1.5 seconds?   With most Canon Powershots, the fastest you can cycle a complete focus, set exposure, shoot, save image sequence is about 2 seconds.   

If that is adequate, then this script is probably all you need: url=http://chdk.wikia.com/wiki/KAP_UAV_Exposure_Control_Script]kap_uav.lua[/url]

To go much faster,  you basically have to either use whatever Canon built-in continuous shooting mode you camera supports or a script like this : 
Fast Shooter Intervalometer

Note that the script will set the exposure on the first shot and use the same exposure for all subsequent shots.    This might be a problem if your lighting changes but might also be good if you want to merge all your images in post processing and have them shot at the same exposure.   

Finally, you can shoot continuously with exposure adjustment using the experimental version of CHDK (1.4.0) and the experimental script discussed here : 
Re: proposal - script shooting hooks

I have started looking into adding continuous shooting modes to the kap_uav.lua script.  Can you tell me more about what would work for your application?
Ported :   A1200    SD940   G10    Powershot N    G16

Re: s110 shot interval under 1.5s
« Reply #469 on: 19 / June / 2015, 08:43:39 »
Thanks waterwingz!
I will get back to you shortly, once I have merged this with a little PWM control and have the results.

I need 1.4s interval. Pictures will be merged.
If I keep the shot button pushed the interval is 1.2s. that is about 5meter difference in the air. I just have to get the script right now.

S110, SX200is,

 

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