CHDK and Canon A480 Quic

CHDK and Canon A480 Quick Start Guide
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CHDK is an alternative firmware for some Canon cameras. It provides access to lots of cool features that are found only on high end SLR cameras, plus some features that are not found anywhere. Why the Canon A480? Because refurbished cameras are available for $75 from Adorama with a one year warranty and only one version of firmware has been seen on them to date. This means that there is a very good chance the firmware in the A480 you receive will be compatible with CHDK. This short guide shows how to quickly access some useful features. It is not intended to be exhaustive or replace the CHDK wiki or forums. CHDK can be set to automatically load when the camera is turned on, however I dont use that feature because I want to use an 8Gb SD memory card. Cards of 8Gb create complications when autoloading CHDK, but I want the extra space for long time lapse photography. Download and extract the A480 full CHDK zip file from the CHDK website. Extract the files to the top level of your SD card and put the card into your camera. Loading CHDK 1. Turn the camera on by pressing the Play button 2. Press the Menu button 3. Scroll down to Firm Update and select it, then select OK to confirm. After a delay the CHDK logo and version number will appear. 4. Half press the shutter button to switch to record mode
The rest of this guide assumes your camera is in record mode, unless stated otherwise. Turn on Histogram 1. Press Mode and <Alt> appears at the bottom of the screen. This allows access to the CHDK menu 2. Press Menu. Note that the menu may occasionally disappear while you are using it. Its still there, just press the navigation buttons and it will reappear. 3. Choose Histogram Parameters
http://www.britishideas.com/2010/06/03/chdk-and-canon-a480-quick-start-guide/
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4. Press the right button to change Show Live Histogram from Dont to Always 5. Press Menu to exit the menu 6. Press Mode and <Alt> disappears from the bottom of the screen. A live histogram will now be displayed on the screen.
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To turn off the histogram: 1. Press Mode to get into Alt mode then Menu 2. Choose Histogram Parameters then change Show Live Histogram from Always to Dont 3. Press Menu to exit the menu and Mode to exit the Alt mode Display Depth of Field CHDK can display depth of field information. To turn it on: 1. Press Mode to get into Alt mode then Menu 2. Choose OSD Parameters then DOF Calculator 3. Change Show DOF Calculator from Dont to Separat 4. Press Menu to exit the menu then Mode to exit Alt mode Choose a subject and half press the shutter button. On the screen you will see a set of values in meters. S = distance to subject R1 = distance towards camera before subject is out of focus R2 = distance away from camera before subject is out of focus DOF = depth of field (R2 R1) HYP = hyperfocal distance
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To turn off: 1. Press Mode to get into Alt mode then Menu 2. Choose OSD Parameters then DOF Calculator 3. Change Show DOF Calculator from Separat to Dont 4. Press Menu to exit the menu then Mode to exit Alt mode Manual Focus The Canon A480 doesnt have manual focus, but CHDK does. To enable: 1. In record mode press Mode to get into Alt mode
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2. Press ISO (i.e. up). The at the top left in red something like SD: 2369 FACTOR: 1 will appear. 2369 is the subject distance in millimeters 3. Press the flash button (i.e. right) to change the factor to 10. Press it again to change it to 100 4. Press the zoom buttons to change the subject distance. It will change 100 mm at a time. 5. Press the Macro/Infinity button (i.e. left) to change the factor back to 10. 6. Press the zoom buttons to change the subject distance 10 mm at a time 7. Press Mode to exit Alt mode. At the top left in red the current SD value should be shown 8. Half press the shutter button and the auto focus mechanism will focus on the subject. CHDK will then immediately change the focus to the previously set value. To turn off: 1. Press Mode to get into Alt mode 2. Press ISO (i.e. up). The red text showing the SD and factor values will disappear. Continuous Bracketing CHDK can configure the camera to change one or more of the shutter speed, ISO and subject distance every time a shot is taken in continuous mode. Here is an example using the subject distance: 1. Press Mode to get into Alt mode then press Menu 2. Choose Extra Photo Operations followed by Bracketing in Continuous Mode 3. Set Subj. Dist. Bracket Valu to 20 4. Set the Value Factor (mm) to 1 5. Set the Bracketing type to +/6. Press Menu and then Mode to exit the Alt mode 7. Press Func/Set and enable continuous mode. At this point in red at the top left will be BRACKET: +/- SD:20 8. Half press the shutter button to focus then hold down the shutter button to take a series of pictures Every time a picture is taken CHDK will oscillate the subject distance in front and behind the auto focus point in steps of 20 mm. For example if the auto focus subject distance was 100 mm then the sequence will be: 100 mm, 120 mm, 80 mm, 140 mm, 60mm, 160 mm, 40 mm, etc. If the Bracketing type is changed to + then the camera will keep increasing the subject distance for each shot and it will keep reducing the subject distance for -. To turn off: 1. Press Mode to get into Alt mode then Menu 2. Choose Extra Photo Operations followed by Bracketing in Continuous Mode 3. Set the Value Factor (mm) to Off 4. Press Menu and then Mode to exit the Alt mode
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Extreme Shutter Speeds
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It is possible to set the Canon A480 to a shutter speed of 1/100,000. Yes, you read that right. To enable: 1. Press Mode to get into Alt mode then Menu 2. Choose Extra Photo Operations 3. Change Override Shutter Speed to 1/100k and change the Value Factor to 1 4. Press Menu and then Mode to exit Alt mode. At red in the top left it should display TV: 1/100k Now take a picture of something bright, like a macro of a lightbulb. It is also possible to take very long exposures. Setting the Override Shutter Speed to 2048 will use 2048 seconds, which is 34 minutes! To turn off: 1. Press Mode to get into Alt mode the Menu 2. Choose Extra Photo Operations 3. Change the Value Factor to Off 4. Press Menu then Mode to exit Alt mode Changing Camera Modes When not using CHDK pressing the Mode button switches between Auto, P, Scene and Movie modes. However when using CHDK the Mode button switches between Canon menus and CHDK menus. How can the original functionality be obtained? When CHDK is loaded press and hold the Mode button down to switch between the camera modes. Time Lapse Scripts The CHDK forum has a lot of different scripts. I found the one which looked the best to me and tweaked it for the Canon A480. Copy the script at the bottom of this post and save as LAPSED3.LUA in the folder CHDK\SCRIPTS on the SD card. For high definition movies it helps to switch the camera to widescreen pictures first, as the pictures will have the correct aspect ratio. The widescreen images taken by the Canon A480 have better than 1080P resolution. To run the script: 1. Put the camera into record mode 2. Press Menu and change Review to Off 3. Press Mode to get into Alt mode then Menu 4. Choose Scripting Parameters then Load Script From File 5. Choose LAPSED32.LUA 6. Change Secs/frame to 2 7. Change Sequence minutes to 10 8. Change Focus to 1 9. Make sure Display off frame is always 0. Failure to do this will stop the time lapse script from working 10. Press Menu. At the bottom of the screen it should show the name of the script Time-lapse DIII V2 11. Fully press the shutter button to start the script. At this point the camera should start taking one picture every two seconds, which is pretty much as fast as it will go when using scripts 12. Press the shutter button again to stop the script 13. Press Mode to exit the Alt mode
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The following script was taken from the CHDK wiki and modified by me to work on the A480. I also added notes to the CHDK wiki page describing the propcase change needed. This version differs from the wiki version in that it uses the cameras auto focus lock button combination, which I found works a bit better than calling set_aflock. I didnt modify the version in the wiki because I am not sure which cameras have that feature. 001 002 003 004 005 006 007 008 009 010 011 012 013 014 015 016 017 018 019 020 021 022 023 024 025 026 027 028 029 030 031 032 033 034 035 036 037 038 [[ Author: Fraser McCrossan Tested on G9, should work on most cameras. Modified by andy atat britishideas dotdot com for the A480 uses camera's autofocus lock and Digic III propcases An accurate intervalometer script, with prefocus and screen power off options. Features: input is frame interval plus total desired runtime (or "endless") displays frame count, frame total and remaining time after each frame (in endless mode, displays frame count and elapsed time) honours the "Display" button during frame delays (so you can get it running then turn off the display to save power) can turn off the display a given number of frames after starting (might take a couple of frames longer to cycle to correct mode) can prefocus before starting then go to manual focus mode use SET button to exit See bottom of script for main loop. ]] [[ @title Timelapse DIII V2 @param s Secs/frame @default s 5 @param h Sequence hours @default h 0 @param m Sequence minutes @default m 5 @param e Endless? 0=No 1=Yes @default e 0 @param f Focus: 0=Every 1=Start @default f 0 @param d Display off frame 0=never @default d 0 ]] convert parameters into readable variable names
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secs_frame, hours, minutes, endless, focus_at_start, display_off_frame = s, h, m, (e > 0), (f > 0), d 039 040 041 042 043 044 045 046 047 048 049 050 051 052 053 054 055 056 057 058 059 060 061 062 063 064 065 066 067 068 069 070 071 072 073 074 075 076 077 078 079 080 081 082 083 084 085 086 087 088 089 090 091 092 093 094 095 096 097 098 099 100 props = require "propcase" derive actual running parameters from the more humanfriendly input parameters function calculate_parameters (seconds_per_frame, hours, minutes, start_ticks) local ticks_per_frame = 1000 * secs_frame ticks per frame local total_frames = (hours * 3600 + minutes * 60) / secs_frame total frames local end_ticks = start_ticks + total_frames * ticks_per_frame ticks at end of sequence return ticks_per_frame, total_frames, end_ticks end function print_status (frame, total_frames, ticks_per_frame, end_ticks, endless) local free = get_jpg_count() if endless then local h, m, s = ticks_to_hms(frame * ticks_per_frame) print("#" .. frame .. ", " .. h .. "h " .. m .. "m " .. s .. "s") else local h, m, s = ticks_to_hms(end_ticks get_tick_count()) print(frame .. "/" .. total_frames .. ", " .. h .. "h" .. m .. "m" .. s .. "s/" .. free .. " left") end end function ticks_to_hms (ticks) local secs = (ticks + 500) / 1000 round to nearest seconds local s = secs % 60 secs = secs / 60 local m = secs % 60 local h = secs / 60 return h, m, s end sleep, but using wait_click(); return true if a key was pressed, else false function next_frame_sleep (frame, start_ticks, ticks_per_frame) this calculates the number of ticks between now and the time of the next frame local sleep_time = (start_ticks + frame * ticks_per_frame) get_tick_count() if sleep_time < 1 then sleep_time = 1 end wait_click(sleep_time) return not is_key("no_key") end delay for the appropriate amount of time, but respond to the display key (allows turning off display to save power) return true if we should exit, else false function frame_delay (frame, start_ticks, ticks_per_frame) this returns true while a key has been pressed, and false if none while next_frame_sleep (frame, start_ticks, ticks_per_frame) do honour the display button if is_key("display") then click("display") end if set key is pressed, indicate that we should stop if is_key("set") then return true end end return false end
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101 102 103 104 105 106 107 108 109 110 111 112 113 114 115 116 117 118 119 120 121 122 123 124 125 126 127 128 129 130 131 132 133 134 135 136 137 138 139 140 141 142 143 144 145 146 147 148 149 150 151 152 153 154 155 156 157 158 159 160 161 162 163 164 165 166 167 168 169
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if the display mode is not the passed mode, click display and return true otherwise return false function seek_display_mode(mode) if get_prop(props.DISPLAY_MODE) == mode then return false else click "display" return true end end switch to autofocus mode, prefocus, then go to manual focus mode function pre_focus() local focused = false local try = 1 set focus mode to infinity set_prop(6, 3) while not focused and try <= 5 do print("Prefocus attempt " .. try) press("shoot_half") sleep(2000) if get_prop(18) > 0 then focused = true lock autofocus press("left") set_aflock(1) end release("shoot_half") sleep(500) try = try + 1 end return focused end if focus_at_start then if not pre_focus() then print "Unable to reach prefocus" end end start_ticks = get_tick_count() ticks_per_frame, total_frames, end_ticks = calculate_parameters (secs_frame, hours, minutes, start_ticks) frame = 1 original_display_mode = get_prop(props.DISPLAY_MODE) target_display_mode = 2 off print "Press shutter button to exit" while endless or frame <= total_frames do print_status(frame, total_frames, ticks_per_frame, end_ticks, endless) if display_off_frame > 0 and frame >= display_off_frame then seek_display_mode(target_display_mode) end shoot() if frame_delay(frame, start_ticks, ticks_per_frame) then print "User quit" break end frame = frame + 1 end restore display mode if display_off_frame > 0 then while seek_display_mode(original_display_mode) do sleep(1000) end
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170 171 172 173 end restore focus mode set_aflock(0)
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This entry was posted by Andy on June 3, 2010 at 10:35 pm, and is filed under Photography. Follow any responses to this post through RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback from your own site.
COMMENTS (49)
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#1 written by John about 3 years ago
Sorry to say, but on my A480, pressing ISO (up) does not get me the SD 2369 Factor 1 screen ?
#2 written by Andy about 3 years ago
You have to be in shooting mode AND alt mode. I just tried it and it works for me. If you cant get it to work then I recommend you post on the CHDK forum.
As I am new to this, the line numbers I should strip out of the script before loading it?
Yes. If you scroll to the top of the script and put the pointer over it, some icons should appear. Click on the one that copies the script to the clipboard. You can then paste it into Nodepad and save to your memory card.
When I save as an LUA file, my A480 sees it as a TXT file ?
There is a red square top left saying CHDK Unk Stat
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Pgina 9 de 17
Sorry not CHDK, but UBASIC Unk stat
#8 written by Jonathan P about 3 years ago
Thank you so much for posting this guide! Im trying to take multiple shots (of a book, flipping page between each shot), and am considering using an a480. Ill be using CHDK for remote shooting via USB. Ive been concerned about lack of Manual Focus. So, a question: will manual focus settings as youve described remain constant across multiple shots? Or will the camera automatically revert to autofocus after the first shot?
You have to enable hidden file extensions in Windows then rename the file to remove the txt extension that Notepad secretly added. CHDK is assuming the script is uBasic and not Lua because of the extension problem.
Works like a dream the 2 second setting on my camera translates to about 7 seconds per shot, what with write-time to the SD card perhaps a faste card? Thanks again, will try the wi-fi SD card and see if that simultaneously will write to my server so that I can review all photos remotely
Nope, you have a problem somewhere. I get an average of 2 2.7 seconds per shot with a regular 8Gb Sandisk card. Made sure you disable picture reviewing in the regular Canon menu. If it is still slow try disabling raw mode in CHDK and also try disabling noise subtraction in CHDK. If the scene is dark then noise subtraction can significantly slow things down. Even though its on the Raw menu it also affects jpegs.
Got the time per shot (set at 2 seconds as per tutorial) down to 3 seconds by turning OFF RAW+JPEG, and using smallest JPEG size of 640480 (fine resolution). Any further trimming is due to write-delay, Im sure!
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The widescreen option is smaller than 10MP and allows you to create high definition time lapse movies.
My A480 seems to shoot in RAW but only my Picasa viewer can open it CS3 doesnt like, neither does another dedicated RAW editor called Picture Style Editor
It may be a small bug in my CHDK but when I try to select DNG Format a dialog box shows up saying Cannot load CHDK/badpixel.bin Please run CHDK/SCRIPTS/TEST/badpixel.lua
Doesnt sound like a bug to me. Sounds like instructions.
Its confusing RAW dialog lets you set .CR2 as raw suffix, then later asks if you want .DNG set as raw suffix I am assuming that setting .DNG overwrites the previous .CR2 command? If so, mine is not allowing the change
OK, solved that last by running badpixel.bin. Now all I need is a RAW editor that can open A480 CHDK .DNG files any offers? @:)
PS7 I havent yet been able to open the DNG files, but CS3 it works fine!
#20 written by Ram Pathak about 3 years ago
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Pgina 11 de 17
Sir ,on running the script i am getting the error 40: module propcase not found no field package .preload['propcase'] using A480. please help,Thanks
#21 written by Pawel about 3 years ago
Nice page, really helped me to get into CHDK. I have also bought A480 for its small size, CHDK and relatively low cost. I have used your scripts for Timelapse and KAP in timer and full remote control. It works, some tuning of fardware and scripts are still necessary as well as learning of CHDH. Now Iam waiting for wind..
#22 written by Peter about 3 years ago
Hi, The A480 sounds the perfect camera for my project. I want to setup a time-lapse camera for my new house build only trouble is it is taking 8 months and i have no external power and i dont think the A480 batteries would last that long! Im visiting the site every 2 weeks so could change batteries then and am wanting to take around 5 photos a day. Any ideas on how i can setup an external power supply for the A480? I was thinking of using a car battery and wiring to the battery compartment with the appropriate voltage/current conversion.
#23 written by Dr.Balaji about 3 years ago
Dear Mr. Andy thank you very much for sharing the very useful information on timelapse photography. I use A480 canon. I tried Time lapse as per your instructions, its perfect. But, the output file format is .thm. I dont know how to open .thm file!!! please help me. Dr.V.Balaji, India
Never heard of a .thm file. Sorry.
Dear Mr. Andy,
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After following your valuble instructions, the camera works perfect.
Pgina 12 de 17
I just found that I have video file and .thm file (in the same name). But, I need to take time lapse photographs (jpeg), How to adjust the camera to get the time lapse photos (jpeg) instead of video thanking you Dr.V.Balaji
Finally I got it
I think ive worked out how to do my remote camera. I notice there is a DC input on the camera, if I can get a car charger that fits the camera then i can use this to power the camera off a standard car/motorbike 12v battery (with the right connections). Just need to find a compatible car charger for the A480.
This is working really great well done on some good tips.although watch out if you are copying files from a Mac rather than a PC, as the Mac adds some hidden stuff to the SD card you need to get rid of see http://chdk.wikia.com/wiki/FAQ/Mac If you are not seeing the Firm Update menu and you are using a Mac then this is the problem!
Im trying to take photos over a number of days any ideas on how i can not take photos overnight? I was wondering if i could use the clock and restrict it to take photos only between, say, 9am and 4pm ? Also need to disable the flash but i guess i can do this before i run the script, which would be the easiest option.
Have now managed to power the camera from a car cigarette charger. Found the spec of the DC-In socket and bought a regulated car charger with the right DC fitting and it works great with the 12V battery!
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#31 written by Jay about 3 years ago
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This guide is great. The time lapse script works like a charm on my A480 thanks Andy for sharing it with us. @ Peter what type of regulated car charger did you use? How much is the rated output current and voltage of the regulator? Thanks
Jay I bought a universal charger witch adjustable voltage on Amazon it has 2Amp output and variable voltage i set the voltage to 3v, based on the spec for the ACK800 official canon power supply. They just dont do a car charger one. The difficult bit was the connector, it needs a 0.75 x 2.5 DC jack, which was much smaller than the ones supplied with the universal charger so i had to buy an additional tip for the charger.
My house build cam is all setup now many thanks for the script Andy. Ive even modified slightly to only take pictures in the daytime as Im running my time lapse over a number of days. After a bit of research I added the following function to test the light before taking a picture and then wait until it is light enough. function wait_for_light() repeat sleep(5000) print(Waiting for light) t=read_bv96() until t>0 end Just added a call to this function as the first line after your while loop, ie, while endless or frame <= total_frames do wait_for_light() print_statusetc Works a treat!
#34 written by Mike.noob about 2 years ago
Change Secs/frame to 2 Can you change this to another number other than 2 or do you have to edit the script to change the interval?
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I just purchased an a480. Im looking at another memory card. Is there a particular reason for using 8gb or can you go higher?
#36 written by David about 2 years ago
i keep getting this error with this script UBASIC:1Unk stmt ? its very small and difficult to read. im on a mac. Help please !
The shit works. I got it working without help from anyone and have never done this before. There is plenty of forum info out there. Dave with the Mac. make sure you use something that will save the script to ANSI text.
#38 written by henry about 2 years ago
Im trying to use the script above as is and I cant seem to turn off the display while in time lapse mode. I know the author said to set the Display off frame to zero in order for the script to work but then how does one turn off the LCD to achieve longer battery life? the A480 doesnt have a display button so I cant turn off the display and then run the script. Thanks
Plug the video out cable in, but leave it unconnected to anything else.
#40 written by David about 2 years ago
i used acid and SDMinst works like a charm. i now have two a480s rolling on a home remodel. Im in Minnesota, and the cameras will be outside, so im curious if the cold will gum things up.
#41 written by Bob about 2 years ago
10/10/2013
Pgina 15 de 17
Thanks for posting this. My new A480 is my third CHDK equipped Canon. For some reason I had a lot of trouble getting it running on my 480 but thanks to your complete guide it works like a charm.
#42 written by Strype about 2 years ago
@Peter and others looking for external power: Check ebay, I found many external power supplies available specifically for the A480 at around $10. MacGyver not needed. as far as being outside in the cold: I place mine in a modified plexi-glass box with a chem pack hand warmer that lasts about 12 hrs for cold overnights.
#43 written by Peggy about 2 years ago
Hello, I finally chdk installed on my Canon A480, which is also new to me. 3 Qs: 1) I cant get the camera to give me shots with 10M resolution. Each shot is only about .5M 3) In the Adobe Bridge Advanced Dialog, I see files with .RAW extension. Adobe Photoshop CS3 wont open them. In chdk I changed the file extension to .CR2; when I upload the files to the Mac, they still display as .RAW and Adobe Photoshop CS3 still wont open them. Any ideas? Thanks so much.
1) Never mind on the 1st one; I just discovered that the tiny brochure with my used camera was only a Quick Start & not a manual. No wonder I couldnt figure anything out.
Never mind on 3) either for now; I just found a CHDK user guide in Wikipedia. Thanks.
#46 written by Aaron A. Aaronson about 2 years ago
Thank you! Everything works just fine after half an hour of setting up all of this stuff!
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.thm file is a THuMbnail file! CHDK works very well recently, there have been
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burglaries in my area I have just purchased some cheap power-supplies, and will have 3 x A480 cameras shooting at 10 second intervals which I can render into a movie using VirtualDub economic security cameras with great detail and resolution. I also intend to make a Eurostar movie London to Brussels and post it to YouTube
#48 written by Mike about 2 years ago
Hi Guys, Im using a A480 with chdk, im also using a power supply bough on ebay however when ever i try and enter camera mode to start the time laps script the camera tells me to charge the batteries but only when the power supply is connected ive tried fully charged batteries and no batteries same result. Any one know why this is? M
#49 written by Spanish about 2 years ago
Thanks! It works like a charm.
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