Dear Dr. Troscianko,
I am planning to start to perform photography and multispectral image analyses on my acquired images using the MICA toolbox. The wavelength range I am interested in goes from 300-320nm until 780nm.
The camera that most likely I am going to use is a converted Sony a7S (12.2MP) with a Sony FE 28-70mm f/3.5. I see the same/similar body and lens models amongst the Toolbox’s calibrated camera pre-sets.
I wanted to ask if you encountered any problem in performing UV+RGB photography with such body and lens models and if perhaps there are particular things to be taken into account (e.g. if 12.2 MP are enough for all purposes). Also, will I still need to use a spectroradiometer even if my model+lens combination is among the pre-sets of the MICA camera calibration?
In conclusion, I plan to use HID lamps used for terraria in my setup. Intensities change accordingly to bulb model and distance at which the light source is put. Is there a recommended intensity range for UVA and UVB that I need to keep in mind for obtaining good results?
Thank you in advance for your time and help, together with many thanks for having developed such nice toolbox and user guides!
Best regards,
Federico
Hi Federico, I’m afraid the Sony lens won’t be any good for UV. You’ll need to use a lens that can transmit UV (see the user guide section). The camera body should be fine once converted to full spectrum. The resolution doesn’t matter too much unless you really need higher resolution (just take the photos closer, or take more of them).
Dear Jolyon,
thank you very much for your answer and suggestions. I would definitely go for the Sony camera body and try to opt for a different lens.
Best,
Federico
Dear Jolyon, thank you for your reply and advice. I will then use the Sony A7S as body and look at a lens that will cover the range I need.
Concerning HID lamp use in a setup, is there any UV intensity range you would recommend to take into account in order to choose the proper bulb type? I would like to avoid putting lamps too close to the subject, and I see that different models have different intensities at the same light-subject distance.
Best,
Federico