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Experience on Canon A80? (1 Viewer)

osy

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Hi,

I am planning to get started with digiscoping and I am wondering if anyone has tested the new Canon A80 with the Canon lens adapter (LA DC52D)? I went to a local camera shop with my scope and found to my surprise that A80 fits optically as well to it than the Coolpix 4500. Vignetting was not bad at all and it was easy to get rid of it by zooming in a bit. They did not have the adapter available, though.

Before buying what everyone else seems to be using, I would like to see how this new model (which is otherwise more to my liking) would fit to digiscoping...

regards, Otso
 
Otso
I have had this camera for just over a week. I haven't got the adaptor yet but have been holding the camera to the lens of my Opticron ES80 with HDF 20-60 zoom. I haven't taken very many photographs, nor worked out the manual settings properly, my last camera was completely Auto with no zoom function ( I have been using the settings for fast action ).
With the few photo's I have taken, I am very happy. Many more have been in focus than my old camera!.
To help centre the camera lens to the eyepice I have cut down a Fuji 35mm clear plastic film container which fits the lens of the camera perfectly. I use the bottom 1cm of the container with a hole cut in the base the same size as the eyepiece lens. I then pack around the outside of the container with thick tape until it just fits inside the eyepiece. This ensures the camera lense is centred in the eyepice, but doesn't touch the eypiece glass. I will get around to trying the lens adaptor at some time in the future when funds allow.
 
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Hi Alan,
Interesting to hear about your experiments! I wonder what is your experience on vignetting? What is the zoom level of the camera when the black "frames" disappear and the picture fills the view finder LCD? Do you have pictures taken with different zoom levels that you could share?

Otso
 
The older Canon Powershot cameras (A30/40/50) are all good digiscoping cameras, with a number of digiscopers using them...it sounds as if the A80 is no exception. Good luck, and be sure to post your bird images taken with it in the gallery.
Regards,
Andy
 
osy said:
Hi Alan,
Interesting to hear about your experiments! I wonder what is your experience on vignetting? What is the zoom level of the camera when the black "frames" disappear and the picture fills the view finder LCD? Do you have pictures taken with different zoom levels that you could share?.
Otso
Otso
Unfortunatley I didn't do any test shots at different camera zoom magnifications.
There is certainly vignetting at zero zoom and it has disappeared when you get to the max zoom X3, but at what magnification it disappears I have no idea.
Next weekend I will do some tests and post the images if you wish. I currently leave for work in the dark and arrive home in the dark so not possible until then,
 
osy said:
Hi Alan,
test pictures would be great, if you have change to make and post some.

Examples of some nice test pics:
http://www.digiscoping-uk.co.uk/digiscoping/test-photos-leica.htm

Otso
Otso

Here goes:
Remember these are hand held to the Eyepiece of an Opticron ES80 GA with a 20-60 HDF Zoom set at 20x.
Camer is a Canon Powershot A80. Photo are set to L Fine, then cropped to 320x?
The first two are just the camera at 0 Zoom (38mm) and then at x3 ( 114mm ). The camera seems to zoom out in 6 steps. So there are 7 Pics in this set, 0 zoom then one for each step. The target is the left post which is about 60 yards away.
O.K.
Looks like I can only attach 5 file per post.
1 Camera Only. No Zoom
2 Camera Only. 3 x zoom
3-5 First three steps of zoom through scope:
 

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1-4 Middle and last three steps of the Powershot 80's Zoom from 0 to 3x zoom.
As you can see, vignetting disappears at about 1.5x Zoom if the camera is set to the centre of the scope eyepiece.

Just for the hell of it I took the last image and cropped it, no other changes.

HTH
 

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Hey,
That was a nice series of pictures you have taken. Pretty good, considering the camera was handheld!

I suppose you pressed the camera against the eyepiece of your scope regardless of the zoom level, right? I mean, taking the same series of pictures using a fixed adapter, might give different results, as the camera lens would not touch the eyepiece on lower zoom levels.

By the way, there seems not to be any EXIF information (like expousure time) in your pictures. Perhaps the photo editing software you used to resize the pics does not save that?

You results look so promising, that I will have to take my Kamakura SP 80ED to the local shop and take some test shots of my own!

thanks, Otso
 
osy said:
I suppose you pressed the camera against the eyepiece of your scope regardless of the zoom level, right? I mean, taking the same series of pictures using a fixed adapter, might give different results, as the camera lens would not touch the eyepiece on lower zoom levels.

By the way, there seems not to be any EXIF information (like expousure time) in your pictures. Perhaps the photo editing software you used to resize the pics does not save that?

thanks, Otso
As I think I posted earlier, I chopped off the bottom half inch (approx) of a Fuji Clear 35mm film platic container and cut a hole in the bottom the size of the Scope lens glass. I then wrapped thick tape around the outside of the container until I would just fit inside the scope eyecup. The camera lens is now more or less centred without touching the scope eyepiece glass.
The centre piece of the camera lens is bout 95% extended at 0 zoom and then retracts into the camera outer lens at medium zoom and the extends again to 100% at full zoom. So, the camera lens is closest to the scope lens at full zoom, next closest at zero zoom and furthest away at medium zoom.

I hope you understand my expanation?!
At full zoom the camera lens just touches the bottom of the 35mm container.

Regarding the exif info, I have not found anything out about displaying that on the photo, I will have to re-read the manual, yet again, to see if it can be done, and if so, how!.
 
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alan_rymer said:
Regarding the exif info, I have not found anything out about displaying that on the photo, I will have to re-read the manual, yet again, to see if it can be done, and if so, how!.
This month I learned about EXIF files. Well today really!.

It seems that Paint Shop Pro deletes the EXIF info when you save a file. I used PSP7 to reduce my image size. I also accidentally saved the second image ( Camera max zoom, no scope ) so I have lost the exif info for that file.
I am attaching two screen captures which together give the EXIF details for the series of 9 shots ( minus the second of course ). First gives the first bit of info for all files, second, the last bit of info for all files.
 

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Thanks Alan. Did you notice that images CZ4 and CZ5 have the same focal length, only different speed?

The lens movement going back and worth is really interesting! The same seems to be the case with A70 as well.

regards, Otso
 
Alan, maybe you corrected this already, but whenever you work on a photo in software other than that supplied by the camera maker (Canon ZoomBrowser is good for viewing and storing - Photoshop better for manipulation) never REsave the photo. Sounds funny but I mean use ONLY the "Save As" feature of the software so that the original file is virtually unaltered in any way for your archives. At some point I write these archived original photos to a CD and can pull them up WITH exif info if ever needed.
Also, I hand-held a Powershot S-20 to scope for all my shots for a few yrs. I eventually got so I'd never touch the sope e.p. glass but rather "float" the camera lens in the best position inside the eyecup based on how the LCD display looked.. least vignette, etc. It's not as hard as it sounds, because I rest a couple fingers of my left hand on the outside of the eyecup as a reference feeler. I've now switched to a swing-away adapter that lets me be much more creative, and we should be taking orders for these soon. I'll advise when I put up a "Review" on the site.
 
Forcreeks said:
Alan, maybe you corrected this already, but whenever you work on a photo in software other than that supplied by the camera maker (Canon ZoomBrowser is good for viewing and storing - Photoshop better for manipulation) never REsave the photo.
Also, I hand-held a Powershot S-20 to scope for all my shots for a few yrs. I eventually got so I'd never touch the sope e.p. glass but rather "float" the camera lens in the best position inside the eyecup based on how the LCD display looked.. least vignette, etc.
Forcreeks

It was a mistake!. The original is actually on another PC so nothings lost anyway.
I know what you mean about floating the camera over the lens, there's no shake on the scope, my only problems are my shakey hands and flaky eyes!.
 
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