[Neil]

Originally Posted by Bird spotter

Hello - Excellent photographs and thank you for sharing them.
Looks like you have the perfect setup there.
I purchased the Nikon Coolpix P300 today, very nice camera indeed. Take a look at my "temporary" digiscoping adaptor.One cardboard tube inserted into the other, simple and works perfectly.
Switched on the camera, "vignetting" experienced as expected,zoomed in a little with vignetting disappearing completely.
My digscopoing adaptor was quick to construct and cost nothing.I will of course need to get the real thing soon as this setup was just to make sure that all was well.

Nice job,
Neil

[Bird spotter]

Decided to upgrade my camera adapter to Version2.A more precise and cosmetically improved adaptor.

[Bird spotter]

Has anyone used the 75x DS wide eyepiece with the Nikon ED82 & FSB-8 bracket,if so how did you get on?
Only asking as I wish to have a higher magnification configuration at times.
The 30x DS wide eyepiece works very well. When I initially switch on the camera “vignetting” occurs as expected. Zooming in a little corrects this.
Presumably with the 75x DS wide eyepiece “vignetting” is more extreme at first and more zoom is required.

[postcardcv]

I almost bought a p300 today (saw a decent deal on an ex-display one), suspect I'll crack and buy it by the end of the week. Just need to work out some homemade adapter to make it easy to use with my Swaro.

[Bigshent]

Originally Posted by postcardcv

I almost bought a p300 today (saw a decent deal on an ex-display one), suspect I'll crack and buy it by the end of the week. Just need to work out some homemade adapter to make it easy to use with my Swaro.

Let those moths out of the wallet its a cracking compact

[postcardcv]

Originally Posted by Bigshent

Let those moths out of the wallet its a cracking compact

I might need a hammer and chisel to get it open... The camera is put aside for me for a couple of days while I ponder it, but I know I'll end up with it.

[ed keeble]

Originally Posted by postcardcv

I might need a hammer and chisel to get it open... The camera is put aside for me for a couple of days while I ponder it, but I know I'll end up with it.

I see there's a Coolpix P310 knocking about (maybe everyone on this thread knows this already). No idea if better for digi though: if it has better macro as claimed here, that might be relevant

http://snapsort.com/compare/Nikon-P300-vs-Nikon-P310

while I'm at it- here's a Shoveler with P300 from this morning, uncropped, unsharpened etc. just re-sized

[wilder]

Originally Posted by Bird spotter

Decided to upgrade my camera adapter to Version2.A more precise and cosmetically improved adaptor.

So, Birdspotter, did you decide not to get the FSB-8 adaptor? Did you find that your home made one worked sufficiently well in the end? If so, please can you let me know how you made it (eg. what length and diameter the tubes are, and how you fixed/painted them)?

I ask because I would really like to get one of these cameras, but I can't afford both the camera and the adaptor!

Many thanks

[ianreid]

Originally Posted by wilder

So, Birdspotter, did you decide not to get the FSB-8 adaptor? Did you find that your home made one worked sufficiently well in the end? If so, please can you let me know how you made it (eg. what length and diameter the tubes are, and how you fixed/painted them)?

I ask because I would really like to get one of these cameras, but I can't afford both the camera and the adaptor!

Many thanks

I definitely recommend trying out your own in the first instance if you are on a budget.

My homemade one (see pics earlier in the thread) works pretty much as well as any similar slide on adaptor such as the Swarovski DCA). The diameter of the tube will of course depend on your eyepiece.

The following video by Erik Normark is excellent and I have shamelessly used various ideas of his:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EXZuMFV-Yhw

Mine is used with a P300 and Swarovski 20-60S zoom. I found a tube of rigid plastic that fits smoothly but fairly snugly (not tight otherwise it'd be difficult to get on and off) over the eyepiece. If you don't have a tube the right size then the video gives a smart idea of how to make one.

The Swaro 20-60S has slightly larger diameter than the lens surround on the P300 so I then put tape around the end of the tube, folding it over into the inside of the tube to pack out the inner diameter, decreasing the diameter by a few mm until it fit tightly and snugly over the lens surround.

I then experimented with the extension of the lens, handholding the camera to the eyepiece to work out a suitable distance of the lens from the eyepiece. I then cut the adaptor to a length that would ensure when extended the lens is the right distance from the eyepiece.

To keep the camera from falling off the adaptor, you could do what Erik does with elastic bands. I did this initially using paper clipes taped to the the tube to hold the band. However I found the band was irritating, getting in the way of buttons and/or the LCD screen, so instead I secured a flat piece of metal lengthways along the outside of the tube, again just using tape. I made a hole in the end and bent the metal into place so that it the hole aligns with the tripod mount. A small 1/4 whitworth bolt then holds the adaptor in place.

An alternative if you can't find a tube with exactly the right diameter is to make one by trimming the top and bottom from a larger rigid cylindrical plastic bottle. Then cut lengthways so that if you flattened it out you'd have a rectangle of plastic. This wants to resume its cylindrical shape and you can decrease the diameter by squeezing a bit more so the long edges overlap. Tape it into position and you have a tubeo f the right diameter.

Cheers, Ian

[postcardcv]

Well I pick up my p300 this morning. A quick play with it seems promising, I reckon I'll get away with handheld digiscoping with it, the fast frame rate is very useful.

[Bird spotter]

Originally Posted by wilder

So, Birdspotter, did you decide not to get the FSB-8 adaptor? Did you find that your home made one worked sufficiently well in the end? If so, please can you let me know how you made it (eg. what length and diameter the tubes are, and how you fixed/painted them)?

I ask because I would really like to get one of these cameras, but I can't afford both the camera and the adaptor!

Many thanks

Hello - Yes I did buy the FSB-8 adaptor. Both versions of my home made adaptor worked but camera movement occured when I pressed the shutter button.
Perhaps I could have purchased a cable release and attached it some how to the adaptor to engage the shutter button,but decided to buy the offical Nikon FSB-8 adaptor.

The Bird Spotter Adaptor Version 2 (Pat Pending) Instructions.

• Cardboard tubing good quality.
• Black & silver tape for covering the tubing.
• Tube Length: 50mm
• Tube Internal Diameter 60mm one end (Coolpix Camera)
• Tube Internal Diameter 54mm other end (Fits over rubber eyepiece)
• When placing the tube over the camera lens housing and eyepiece rubber, it needs to be a "snug" fit.

[SeeToh]

Originally Posted by Bird spotter

Has anyone used the 75x DS wide eyepiece with the Nikon ED82 & FSB-8 bracket,if so how did you get on?
Only asking as I wish to have a higher magnification configuration at times.
The 30x DS wide eyepiece works very well. When I initially switch on the camera “vignetting” occurs as expected. Zooming in a little corrects this.
Presumably with the 75x DS wide eyepiece “vignetting” is more extreme at first and more zoom is required.

I have a 50x DS wide-angle eyepiece. Good for birdwatching but difficult to digiscope with unless you are only interested in getting record shots. It is difficult to focus and very prone to wind and other minor vibrations. Only used it sparingly for birdwatching

[wilder]

Thank you so much ianreid and birdspotter for your very in-depth replies. I now know that I can make a temporary adapter while saving for the FSB-8, but can get the camera in the meantime. :)

[postcardcv]

Well handheld seems to work ok but I would like to work a way to use it with my DCA for taking video clips. Has anyone got any cheap and easy solutions for connecting the camera to the DCA?

[ianreid]

Originally Posted by postcardcv

Well handheld seems to work ok but I would like to work a way to use it with my DCA for taking video clips. Has anyone got any cheap and easy solutions for connecting the camera to the DCA?

Not a positively helpful msg, sorry, but I can comment that the Jackar Universal Adaptor that has been used successfully with the Canon S95 does *not* quite fit the P300. The outer barrel of the P300 lens is about 2-3mm too wide for the inner diameter of the Jackar's tube.

The company suggested to me that I could get around this by moving the adaptor tube away from the lens using the adjustments available on the adaptor. I tried this but it puts the lens further away from the eyepiece than ideal, increasing vignetting.

The principal of this adaptor, though, is one that you might be able to make. The basic idea is that it screws into the tripod thread at the base of the camera and holds a suitable female filter thread in front of the lens. You can then screw a standard sized filter, or the DCA into this.

SRB-Griturn is a very helpful company from whom I have bought various bits and pieces, though mostly some time ago. They also have a similar adaptor (may be the same one) that you can see here: http://www.srb-griturn.com/dc-mount-1602-p.asp. If you went the DIY route then they sell various stepping rings that you could use for the filter thread.

Cheers, Ian

[Yilane]

Some improvement over my previous attempts (cheap scope, good eyepiece, DIY plastic adapter, P300 -- see details at post No 72). I had to work to remove CA (some still visible though) and to make some adjustments in PS (levels and sharpening mainly) but I think this is not bad. Bird was about 8 m away.

[Neil]

Originally Posted by postcardcv

Well handheld seems to work ok but I would like to work a way to use it with my DCA for taking video clips. Has anyone got any cheap and easy solutions for connecting the camera to the DCA?

The Vortex PS100 with 52 mm plate will do the trick
http://birddigiscoper.blogspot.com/2...ttachment.html
Neil

[postcardcv]

Originally Posted by Neil

The Vortex PS100 with 52 mm plate will do the trick
http://birddigiscoper.blogspot.com/2...ttachment.html
Neil

Cool, thanks for the info. I will have a look or one though I am half tempted to flog my m43 camera and buy a Nikon j1 for digiscoping instead.

[John Hague]

Originally Posted by ed keeble

I see there's a Coolpix P310 knocking about (maybe everyone on this thread knows this already). No idea if better for digi though: if it has better macro as claimed here, that might be relevant

http://snapsort.com/compare/Nikon-P300-vs-Nikon-P310

while I'm at it- here's a Shoveler with P300 from this morning, uncropped, unsharpened etc. just re-sized

P310 is cracking... only just got it but been posting a few photos and videos on my blog http://thedrunkbirder.wordpress.com/

I've also attached a shot of a Goldfich from last Sunday at Bempton Cliffs. Only one problem so far... I had to but a new PC that was fast enough to edit the HD videos!

[Neil]

Originally Posted by John Hague

P310 is cracking... only just got it but been posting a few photos and videos on my blog http://thedrunkbirder.wordpress.com/

I've also attached a shot of a Goldfich from last Sunday at Bempton Cliffs. Only one problem so far... I had to but a new PC that was fast enough to edit the HD videos!

Nice detail in this shot John. I'm tempted to pick up a 310 too.
Neil

[postcardcv]

my first day out in the field with the p300 produced quite pleasing results, poor light didn't help but the fast frame rate helped to nail some shots.

[Neil]

Originally Posted by postcardcv

my first day out in the field with the p300 produced quite pleasing results, poor light didn't help but the fast frame rate helped to nail some shots.

What a nice bird to have on your first day with the P300.
Neil

[ianreid]

Originally Posted by John Hague

P310 is cracking... only just got it but been posting a few photos and videos on my blog http://thedrunkbirder.wordpress.com/

I've also attached a shot of a Goldfich from last Sunday at Bempton Cliffs. Only one problem so far... I had to but a new PC that was fast enough to edit the HD videos!

Lovely pic, John. Is this the full res and have you done much post-processing?

Readers of this thread will know that for all the things I like about my P300, I still dislike the overly processed look of full res pics. If that issue has been addressed in the P310 then I might have to upgrade...

Ian

PS. Like a complete idiot, I drove yesterday to the Herefordshire CCC with my P300 sat on top of the computer at home. Didn't even realise until I got there. Could have been adorning this forum with pics with one of the megas of the British year. :-(

[Neil]

My P300 hadn't been out for a while so I took it with me today to the local park for a shootout with the Nikon V1,Panasonic GF1 and Canon G1 X.
Here are some photos from the P300.
I used the Swarovski UCA adapter which I use for 90% of my digiscoping.
Neil

Nikon P300 and Kowa Lens/scope and Kowa 20-60x zoom at 20x

Hong Kong,
China.
May 2012

[postcardcv]

Originally Posted by Neil

My P300 hadn't been out for a while so I took it with me today to the local park for a shootout with the Nikon V1,Panasonic GF1 and Canon G1 X.

I'd be interested to hear which 'won' the shoot out. What is currently your prefered digiscoping rig?