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ZEISS DTI thermal imaging cameras. For more discoveries at night, and during the day.

Videoscoping with Kowa and Swarovski (1 Viewer)

Neil

Well-known member
I've been shooting a lot of video over the last 12 months and putting it up on Vimeo as I can post full HD there.
https://vimeo.com/user9492727/videos
Last year I was using the Kowa Lens/scope Prominar exclusively but this year was provided a Swarovski STX 95 mm Scope which meant my Kowa mostly stayed at home, although I did shoot with both scopes on Wednesday.
My camera of choice at the moment for Video is the Sony RX 100 as I like it's 1080/60p setting and use this most of the time.
I've also been impressed with the Nikon Coolpix P310 and have been using that as well.
I would like to be able to shoot the Canon G1 X on the scope too but it's too hard to set up to eliminate vignetting. The Kowa VA3 does a good job with that camera though.
The STX 95 gives a good range and I've been out to the 70x end on several occasions, especially when recording leg flags.
Neil.

Hong Kong,
China.
March 2013
 
Some very nice stuff there Neil, particularly like the Curlew Sands, the Sony seems to have the edge.

The Zeiss designed lens on the RX100 is very good and of course Sony's sensors are good too. I use this camera as my main travel camera these days and the canon G1X and Nikon D800 stay at home.
Neil
 
Very nice examples on all postings...love it.... Is video going to surpass 'shots' in digiscoping? The ability to is certainly there although with current cameras the ability is there too. jim
 
Very nice examples on all postings...love it.... Is video going to surpass 'shots' in digiscoping? The ability to is certainly there although with current cameras the ability is there too. jim

Jim,
There are professional photographers using RED cameras who only shoot video and then take stills off them. From the quality I've seen we'll all be doing it in less than 5 years. although it takes up a lot of space on cards and hard drives.
Neil.
 
Hi Neil. Very nice videos you have here. I plan to get a ATX95 too. Which adaptor did you use with the RX100? DCBII?

Thanks

Yes, I use the DCB 11. It's an excellent adapter and it easy to take on and off when you need to view through the eyepiece.
Neil.
 
Thanks Neil for the reply. I think it sounds as a nice system. Can you use it at high magnification, say 50-70x too? For videoscoping, would you have any other type of cameras in mind, perhaps a bit cheaper?
Thanks a lot!
 
Thanks Neil for the reply. I think it sounds as a nice system. Can you use it at high magnification, say 50-70x too? For videoscoping, would you have any other type of cameras in mind, perhaps a bit cheaper?
Thanks a lot!

I often use it at 70x, especially for video.
I also use the Nikon P330 as an alternative to the Sony RX 100 and find it very good. It has a very fast burst mode and Raw. The previous model the Nikon P310 will also do a good job.
There are threads in the Forum on both cameras.
Neil.
 
Hi Neil, just another question...

I wondered how much total magnification were you able to achieve at 70x with the RX100 (i.e. how much can do you zoom in with the camera lens).

Best,


Nathan
 
Hi Neil, just another question...

I wondered how much total magnification were you able to achieve at 70x with the RX100 (i.e. how much can do you zoom in with the camera lens).

Best,


Nathan

I'm normally at 50/60 mm on the camera zoom , so at 70x that equal to about 3,500 mm in camera lens terms. I have shot at full zoom on the camera lens but you need a very steady tripod and not much wind. I'm normally digiscoping from inside a wooden hide and if there are other people moving about it's very hard to keep out the vibration.
Neil.
 
Yes I guess the stability tripod then becomes quite an issue. Do you also make videos with a reflex using the TLS APO? I guess then you loose quite some magnification power, but the videos may be of better quality?
 
I'm normally at 50/60 mm on the camera zoom , so at 70x that equal to about 3,500 mm in camera lens terms. I have shot at full zoom on the camera lens but you need a very steady tripod and not much wind. I'm normally digiscoping from inside a wooden hide and if there are other people moving about it's very hard to keep out the vibration.
Neil.

This posting has been a few months... I have been doing a bit of video in my neck of the woods...

I see you are shooting with some pretty high zoom...which does net you more upcloseness but at a cost. 70X...? really?
 
Videoscoping shorebirds

Hi there,
I'm an ecologist and I need to videoscope waders for a project. I have a Swarovski and I have to buy an adapter and a camera. Any suggestions?. I need videos with a quality similar to the videos of Neil and Rockfowl.
For what I have seen so far, the TLS-APO looks like the best option, but any suggestions or indications will be more than wellcome. No idea about the camera, however.

I have done some digis and videocoping before with a Leika-Televid, but it was some years ago... So it's like I'm new to this again.

Thank you!,
Cheers
 
Hi there,
I'm an ecologist and I need to videoscope waders for a project. I have a Swarovski and I have to buy an adapter and a camera. Any suggestions?. I need videos with a quality similar to the videos of Neil and Rockfowl.
For what I have seen so far, the TLS-APO looks like the best option, but any suggestions or indications will be more than wellcome. No idea about the camera, however.

I have done some digis and videocoping before with a Leika-Televid, but it was some years ago... So it's like I'm new to this again.

Thank you!,
Cheers

I don't use the TLS APO much as I like the flexibility of being able to quickly change cameras to change batteries,memory cards and let them cool down. The Nikon V! overheats quickly in the heat of summer. I also prefer to shoot in 1920x1080/60p and none of my DSLRs do that. My Sony RX 100 and RX 100 M2 do. My preferred camera at the moment is the Sony RX 100 M2 and I would like the optional viefinder.
If I had a Panasonic GH3 then I would use that on the TLS APO all the time. It's nice not to have to worry about stray light getting in. I shoot from hides and camouflage most of the time so this is not so much of a problem for me.
Neil
 
Shorebirds videoscoping

I don't use the TLS APO much as I like the flexibility of being able to quickly change cameras to change batteries,memory cards and let them cool down. The Nikon V! overheats quickly in the heat of summer. I also prefer to shoot in 1920x1080/60p and none of my DSLRs do that. My Sony RX 100 and RX 100 M2 do. My preferred camera at the moment is the Sony RX 100 M2 and I would like the optional viefinder.
If I had a Panasonic GH3 then I would use that on the TLS APO all the time. It's nice not to have to worry about stray light getting in. I shoot from hides and camouflage most of the time so this is not so much of a problem for me.
Neil

Hi Neil,

Thank you a lot.
I hope I will be able to record the birds from a car, since there are tracks close to their feeding grounds/roost. For what you have told me, it looks that the DCBII adaptor is better than the TLS-APO. The main problem for me with the TLS is that you can not use the telescope, since the camera is attached all the time. On the other hand, I will be driving around and thought that maybe it's more secure to have the camera well attach.

Thank you for sharing all the info about the cameras.

Cheers
 
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