Digital Camera whats good for photos pcb

[craig6928]

hi im looking into purchasing a digital camera for around £100 that can take good photos of a circuit board close up

the idea is we want to use this for refs when we get a damaged power unit in for repairs

would need it to be able to take really good photos of the circuit board
so you could read the writing on it

cheers

[fzabkar]

IMHO the best PCB camera is a CCD scanner.

Tip: How to take a good PCB photo:
http://malthus.zapto.org/viewtopic.php? ... 120&p=1083

Some good tips by HaQue, also.

Here are some examples of scanned PCBs:
http://malthus.zapto.org/viewforum.php?f=112

[craig6928]

hello i know about using a scanner

but we would like to take photos of power units which are a little bit bigger.

thanks for the links

[LarrySabo]

Here are a few suggestions for point and shoot cameras with good macro capability. A used Canon SX100 or SX130 IS would be worth considering, too. Personally, I love my Lumix DMC FZ35 and its macro capability.

[Touchclarity]

Lighting is key to any photo.... if you are using a DSLR, consider a ring Lamp / Flash....... makes all the difference when taking macro pics....

[craig6928]

hello thank you for the help and the guides on what camera to buy

i seen some with 21mp

looked into DSLR, and was checking out the ring Lamp / Flash.
but we looking for a basic camera.


just have to decided on which one to buy now

[craig6928]

so went out and got a nikon coolpix 20.1 mega pixels around $120

quick photo i taken of a hard drive pcb board

i would recommend this camera its very well made and it takes amazing good photos

Attachments

[HaQue]

That is a pretty detailed picture, seems like a good choice for that low price.

If you add some good, all-round lighting I don't think you would get too much better for the $$

I added a LED ring to my stereo microscope and it has a dimmer switch. Was about $30 and I am absolutely happy with the view I get now.

[Touchclarity]

One of the last pics taken with a DSLR, Ring Flash and Macro Lens fitted....

Attachments

103558A_1.jpg (94.45 KiB) Viewed 19736 times

[craig6928]

that a good image for sure it makes the diffrent using a ring flash and using a dslr

i got some led light that i can use when i take the photos.

just have to test it on a main power unit and see what type of result we get.

idea is when we get a power unit that has blown its tracks we can repair it
with the photo we have as a refs.


thanks all

[fzabkar]

so went out and got a nikon coolpix 20.1 mega pixels around $120

quick photo i taken of a hard drive pcb board

i would recommend this camera its very well made and it takes amazing good photos

My scanner beats your camera hands down.

http://malthus.zapto.org/viewtopic.php?f=112&t=117

[craig6928]

not sure on that one
can you scanner do a perfect scan of a power unit
which i need it for not hard drive pcb

[fzabkar]

The other good thing about a scanner is that it can produce front and rear images which have a direct 1:1 correspondence. That's indispensible for reverse engineering purposes.

For example, if you wanted to follow a trace from one side of the PCB to the other, you would take a mirror image of the underside and then line up both the top and bottom sides with the same registration point. Place your cursor over a particular plated through-hole on one side, switch to the other side, and the same hole should be directly under your cursor.

[craig6928]

hello the issue we have is that the power unit are not flat

so you can work out some of the information but not all the components
on the board.

[HaQue]

Obviously there are going to be times where one might be more suited to a picture.

It is good to know all the different ways so we can choose.

When I am trying to investigate a PCB The detail from the scanner would be great. If I was needing depth, a camera may be better.

I have 2 scanners in my office and I tried to find out if they were CIS or CCD to no avail. They are both old, HP Scanjet 2400 and a Scanjet C2670 (IIRC) with a ADF document feeder. The latter looks more robust and may be the best candidate... though drivers for win 7 are proving difficult to track down.

I like the idea of such good pictures for my Flash Mem site

[fzabkar]

HP Scanjet 2400, 3670, 3690, 3970 Digital Flatbed Scanners User's Manual:
http://h10032.www1.hp.com/ctg/Manual/bps05795.pdf
http://ec1.images-amazon.com/media/i3d/ ... 021004.pdf

"Scanning element - Charged-coupled device"

I couldn't find any reference to "C2670".

[HaQue]

Thanks, I will have to test it out when I can get some time in a few days. The other one could be C6270 but I will need to check it. The manuals are probably around my offices somewhere to check the second one.