Sony (1 Viewer)

Looking for oppinions on the Sony cybershot DSC-V3,or any relevent info.

It seems to have the same lens as the V1 which was not good for digiscoping purposes with a normal eyepiece

Hello Henry,

Have you taken a look at the following website yet?
http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/read_opinions.asp?prodkey=sony_dscv3

There is quite a bit of feedback mentioned.

Regards,
Herman

Adey Baker said:

It seems to have the same lens as the V1 which was not good for digiscoping purposes with a normal eyepiece

Click to expand...

Hey Adey,
Why exactly is the V1 lens "no good" for digiscoping? (to big perhaps?)
Are you speaking of the Swarovski 20-60 eye piece?
What camera would you recommend for the Swarovski 20-60 eye piece? (upgrade from the cp4500)
How do you feel about the DSC-W7?
Thanks, Ben

Ben - I tried a V1 against my 32x Leica and found that there was still vignetting as you zoomed up. I think that it's only suitable with a very wide eyepiece of the 'astro' type (there was another thread somewhere - not sure where, now. probably by 'Yossi')

It's something to do with how the elements move inside the lens during zooming.

All the W cameras - and several other Sony models - seem to use the same lens. There are some photos that I've seen in the gallery taken on the W1 and W7 which both looked fine to me. The lens diameter is very small and hand-holding it to the eyepiece is a bit hit and miss as it's hard to find the exact spot, especially as you may need to move the scope a fraction, as well, to get everything centred. Plenty of practice will help, though!

The W cameras are threaded around the base of the lens to take an adaptor for filters, converters, etc., so this may be how it's mounted - adaptor>step-ring>digiscope adaptor. Perhaps someone using this camera will see this thread and tell us how they mount it..

There's no provision for a remote (cable or infra-red) so one of those brackets for mating-up to a conventional cable-release seems to be the order of the day.

7.1Mp compact cameras do tend to be criticised for 'noise' at anything other than the lowest ISO setting so I'm not sure what benefits there may be over the 5Mp W5 - you'll get more shots per memory-stick with the lower Mp models

Hey,
Check this out http://cameraeye.exblog.jp/
This seems to be a pretty good set up with the W7, looks like it has a well postioned cable-release and solid mounting adapter; I wish I could see the mounting adapter better.
The cable-release is of keen interest to me, unfortunily the forementioned site has no details that I could find (hopefully there available in more places than Japan)
http://www.scopetronics.com/attachkits.htm has a attachment kit for $70 US, but I'm sure someone makes a 30mm to T-mount for alot less: maybe someone in the forum knows of one.
That sounds sounds like a possible thread topic "What is the best way to attach a DSC-W7 to a spotting scope?" or "What is the best way to attach a cable-release to a DSC-W7"

Adey Baker said:

Ben - I tried a V1 against my 32x Leica and found that there was still vignetting as you zoomed up. I think that it's only suitable with a very wide eyepiece of the 'astro' type (there was another thread somewhere - not sure where, now. probably by 'Yossi')

It's something to do with how the elements move inside the lens during zooming.

All the W cameras - and several other Sony models - seem to use the same lens. There are some photos that I've seen in the gallery taken on the W1 and W7 which both looked fine to me. The lens diameter is very small and hand-holding it to the eyepiece is a bit hit and miss as it's hard to find the exact spot, especially as you may need to move the scope a fraction, as well, to get everything centred. Plenty of practice will help, though!

The W cameras are threaded around the base of the lens to take an adaptor for filters, converters, etc., so this may be how it's mounted - adaptor>step-ring>digiscope adaptor. Perhaps someone using this camera will see this thread and tell us how they mount it..

There's no provision for a remote (cable or infra-red) so one of those brackets for mating-up to a conventional cable-release seems to be the order of the day.

7.1Mp compact cameras do tend to be criticised for 'noise' at anything other than the lowest ISO setting so I'm not sure what benefits there may be over the 5Mp W5 - you'll get more shots per memory-stick with the lower Mp models

Click to expand...

Hi,

I'm using a W12 (same as a W1 except for colour/accessories, same lens as V1) with a Kowa 663 and rubber eyecup model 30xW eyepiece. I get no vignetting whatsoever throughout the entine zoom range on the camera. Vignetting appears to be a factor of both the scope eyepiece and camera lens, not just the camera.

I used to hand-hold, but this does take practice to keep the lens centred. I used to use a "narrow" 20x eyepiece which has a very snug rubber eyecup. This fits nicely to the lens barrel and tends to self-centre everything. Strangely enough, the 20x used to give slight vignetting in the very corners that required the camera zoom to be set to about 1.2x to get rid of. You would have expected the lower magnification eyepiece to have less vignetting but this isn't the case with the two models I have. It's eyepiece/camera combo, not any single factor that's the issue.

As for adaptors, I made my own, see
http://www.birdforum.net/showthread.php?t=3583&page=2
This thread has lots of other ideas for DIY adaptors. If you don't have DIY facilities, try this thread
http://www.birdforum.net/showthread.php?t=30084
If you have a Kowa scope and stacks of cash, you can buy the genuine Kowa adaptor setup. If you have a Zeiss scope and a very, very big pile of cash, you can buy the genuine Zeiss adaptor. This will cost you more than the camera though.

For cable releases, you can buy a rubber strap with a bit of velcro on the ends that has a moulding for a standard cable release on it. The rubber wraps around the camera and is secured with the velcro such that the moulding is over the shutter release button. You used to be able to get them from Jessops for <£5. I still use a Mk1 finger to press the button. As long as I'm not greedy with the zoom I find this is fine.

I wouldn't bother with 7MP resolution, it's completely over the top. See
http://www.birdforum.net/showthread.php?t=30689
Save your money and buy a 5MP model. Cheaper to buy the camera and less memory needed per picture = cheaper memory.

I have a range of pictures in my gallery taken with the W12, some good, some not so good. The not so good ones are because of my poor photography or sheer lack of light rather than the limitations of the camera.

Regards,

Duncan.

Hey Duncan,
Nice photos!
Counting the legs on a mosquito from 25 meters is pretty good!
I currently have the Swarovski STS-80 HD with the 20-60 zoom eyepiece and a 10x eyepiece with T-mount threads. The Swarovski digital camera photo adaptor has 28mm threads for the Nikons, but they do not have one with M42-.75 threads. :storm:
Duncan said.
"I wouldn't bother with 7MP resolution, it's completely over the top." This makes me think of something Bill Gates said "640K is more memory than anyone will ever need." Granted the 7.1 is plagued by noise and needs a physically larger CCD sensor. Personally I'm itching for a Foveon X3®: as for the price why would someone want to skimp on a camera after investing so much in a scope? Besides some people are Sony fans and are already set up with plenty of memory.

Swarovski Digital Camera photo adaptor can be found here.
http://www.swarovskioptik.at/english/produkt/index.asp?cat=Products&type=Telescopes&model=43