Having recently shelled out a small fortune to buy a Kowa 88 scope with 20-60x zoom lens, I find myself wondering about doing a little digiscoping. I already have a Panasonic M4/3 camera with a 14-42 lens but looking at the price of adapters and a 20mm lens (which I'm told I ought to use) I find I could get a smaller, lighter camera with a 1" sensor (v. handy for other uses) for less. Which way should I go given I'm looking at good record shots rather than fine photography? If I stick with M4/3 what do I need? If I opt for a smaller 1" sensor camera which is best & what else should I think about?
John, you might want to consider the Kowa DA10 adapter which is about £120:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nB6X6uq4c0M
Paul Hackett (in the linked video) is the Kowa Digiscoping expert so perhaps you can contact him either directly through Kowa or via social media? Think he's also on Birdforum too?
I know that the received wisdom is to use a short prime lens of around 20-30mm, but I seem to remember that some of the older m4/3 short zooms worked well for digiscoping, so perhaps yours is worth a try too until you decide whether to invest more £££ later?
I don't use Kowa (Swaro myself) but the principal is the same: Connect camera and camera lens via lens' filter threads (might need a step-up/down ring to get them to fit) to the outer ring of the adapter. The inner ring stays on the eyepiece permanently. Just slide it on/off to take a photo and secure with one locking screw.
I don't know whether you're a photographer at all, but a basic understanding of long-lens technique applies: Use shutter release to trip the shutter, and magnified live view to focus manually via the scope (camera lens set to MF) though you could also do this via the EVF on a m4/3 camera if it has a view-finder.
Kowa do make other adapters for use with e.g. compact cameras, and many have YouTube videos too. I seem to recall that Sigma make a decent cheapish (c.£120) 30mm prime for m4/3 with internal focus so it doesn't need to be too costly. As with any digiscoping, finding the optimum lens to use with your scope is key, so explore as many options as you can. As I said, Paul H will be able to answer many of your questions I would guess...