Opticron ES 80 GA ED: digiscoping hasn't been good... (1 Viewer)

[earlytorise]

For a few years I've been using an Opticron ES 80 GA ED (I think it's either a v3 or v4), with a SDLv2 24-72x zoom eyepiece.

One thing I've noticed but never tried to do much about, until now, is that my phonescoping results have always been poor --- soft and hardly usable, even for the purposes of identification, whereas when I look through the scope with my own eyes the image is just fine.

This also applies to my recent cool Samsung smartphone, so I don't think the lens on the phone is to blame.

First, does anybody else have the same experience with regard to this scope combination or a similar one?

I don't have a phone adapter. Do you think it'd make a huge difference if I had one? I used to go check gull roosts with someone, and his phonescoping photos were fabulous even when he didn't use one. (Granted, he did use a Kowa scope that is superior to my Opticron.)

Would it also make a huge difference if I bought a fixed eyepiece? The problem is that I often crank the zoom up to the maximum when I scan for waders on mudflats, etc.

Thank you!

 

[BKoh]

1. Focus

Is your vision corrected to 20/20 when using the scope? If not, the scope is being focused for your short/long-sightedness and your phone camera may not be able to cope.

2. Phone camera

Does your phone camera have optical stabilisation? If not, at low shutter speeds your handheld shots will have some shake and may not be sharp. At high magnification the image is dimmer forcing slower shutter speeds, so even an optical stabiliser may not be enough, you need more light (brighter conditions or lower power). 60x vs 20x is 9 times less light = 9 times slower shutter speed, it may be OK to your eyes but the camera could be struggling.

If your phone camera has exposure settings, try underexposing to get a faster shutter speed, then brighten the shot in post processing. Or if the camera has manual settings, choose a faster shutter speed eg 1/30, and fix the brightness later.

3. Technique

For best results the smartphone camera must be at the same distance to the eyepiece as your eye, and held flat against the eyecup. Ideally the eyecup is adjustable and has a broad flat rigid surface. Fold-down rubber eyecups are bad in this respect. If you use a smartphone case, that increases the camera distance to the eyepiece. So you may need to adjust the eyecup when digiscoping vs visual use.

 

[SalmonBosha]

I'm using a Pixel 5 with my MM4 77 + SDL V3 (and 40831). To add to the above post, here are some things I've learned and/or would suggest:

- Distance to the subject makes a substantial difference. My best photos have been of birds less than 20m away.

- A decent phone adapter helps massively, and will help to address point 3 in the above post. I'm using the Vanguard Veo PA-65, which comes with a Bluetooth shutter button to reduce vibrations. In the case of my MM4, the eyecup needs to be fully down when I'm using the adapter and I need to zoom with my phone to deal with vingetting regardless of EP magnification. My Pixel produces acceptable results to 2x zoom.

- Shooting RAW and editing in Lightroom (mobile is fine) helps me to maximise image quality. It does a good job of subject recognition, so I can sharpen (etc) selectively, and I can desaturate certain colours to remove CA.

- Fixed eyepieces can help, but aren't a must. Good results can be achieved with a zoom, and the extra reach can be beneficial.

Please see some of my better photos below. I've taken thousands of disappointing photos to get a few that I'm happy with. In the end it comes down to practice, patience and a little luck.

Hope that all helps!

Simon