simple and light digiscoping kit, advice please (31 Viewers)

[Newton Stringer]

Hi... AGAIN !! Thanks all for some great info and advice... I am a total novice so you'll have to bear with while I ask a few more dumb questions !!

I forgot to ask I assume the F30 has a tripod screw fitting ?....or some sort of filter thread on it so I can attach it to one of these universal adaptors ?

The SRB and the Olivon adaptors both look very interesting, but are they easy to just take on and off once you have them set up correctly ? Will removing them from the scope and putting them back on again later mess up your initial set up ? I ask because I don't want the adaptor bolted to the scope all the time and I don't really want to be spending ages setting it up every time I want to use it either... Or is this just an unrealistic demand on my part ?!

Finally is anyone using a televid 62 with a 32x eyepiece for digiscoping ? I understand that the 26x will be better, but i only have 32x so I need to know if it will work ok.

Thanks all...

G

 

[NoSpringChicken]

I forgot to ask I assume the F30 has a tripod screw fitting ?....or some sort of filter thread on it so I can attach it to one of these universal adaptors ?

The SRB and the Olivon adaptors both look very interesting, but are they easy to just take on and off once you have them set up correctly ? Will removing them from the scope and putting them back on again later mess up your initial set up ? I ask because I don't want the adaptor bolted to the scope all the time and I don't really want to be spending ages setting it up every time I want to use it either... Or is this just an unrealistic demand on my part ?!

The F30 has a (plastic) tripod thread on the left hand base of the camera but it doesn't have a filter thread.

The Olivon adaptor comes with a threaded sleeve which happens to fit a matching thread at the base of the eyepiece on my Acuter scope. It incorporates a shoulder which means that the adaptor can be slipped over the sleeve, pushed down to the shoulder and tightened up. In this way the adaptor can be positioned in the same place each time in about five seconds. It probably wouldn't work so well on your scope if the supplied, or similar sleeve, couldn't be fitted.

I'm not sure about the SRB adaptor but it is made to fit your particular eyepiece so it should be easy to fit and replace.

Ron

 

[iporali]

Finally is anyone using a televid 62 with a 32x eyepiece for digiscoping ? I understand that the 26x will be better, but i only have 32x so I need to know if it will work ok.

Yes, it will work OK. The two areas where the 26x would have been better are:
a) eye-relief, which means that due to vignetting you can't quite use the entire zoom range of the camera. But it is just a matter of zooming-in.
b) brightness, due to less power

In practice these mean that you have slightly narrower field-of-view and the exposure times are slightly longer than with the 26x - BUT using a good low-light camera like the F30 and an adjustable adapter like the SRB, you will get perfectly usable powers and speeds for digiscoping. You could also check if this http://www.srb-griturn.com/index.asp?function=DISPLAYCAT&catid=17 kind of solution would be sufficient for your needs.

Best regards,

Ilkka

 

[elleng12]

SRB swing away adapter

I have the F30 and can also recommend it as a good digiscoping camera. For me the main downside is that you can't save your favourite settings as I could with my Canon A95 (it would even save the zoom setting that was best for digiscoping!) though ISO settings are retained the next time you switch on with the Fuji.

Personally I've never noticed any colour fringing, though images at higher ISO settings do come out a little over-processed with the F30. On the other hand, the F30's ability to shoot at higher ISO settings with little noise is its single best feature, and I've got many shots with it that I simply wouldn't have got with most other cameras.

You should also take a good look at the Samsung NV3, which has an internal 3x optical zoom, making it perfect for hand-held shots. I'm quite tempted by it myself. If the F30 was easy to hand hold like this I think it would be the perfect digiscoping camera. I will have to check out the SRB 'centering/allignment' collars that Ilkka mentions.

Can you tell me where I can but a SRB swing away adapter? I see you have
mentioned their products?
Thanks,
Ellen

 

[Kalispera]

Hello Ellen,
The website address for SRB is: www.srb-griturn.com
Their website gives you details of the swing-away adapter for whichever camera you own, also they will fit a release cable arm and cable if you so wish.
They are a solid company and I believe that posting to your side of the water is no problem.
Regards, Donald

 

[jc001]

Hi,

Im using the leica apo 62,canon a95 camera,and a simple homemade digiscoping adapter.This setup works fine for me.
The a95 is 5mp which isnt great,but i think it can utilize those 5mp very well,probably better resolution than my 7mp fuji f810 camera(also good with this scope) ...a95's very cheap too,i got mine off ebay for less than £100,could probably get one cheaper now.

Ive attached a handfull of pics:
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/60/207464840_599cd9e27e_o.jpg
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/132/359628108_9fdf094995_o.jpg
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/59/207490135_b02d745e89_o.jpg
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/105/315669120_3c7811ff72_o.jpg
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/250/447785130_2cfda20aec_o.jpg
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/186/366054075_f12cbb0666_o.jpg

Hundreds more on my site.

Hope this might help...i think your onto a winner with the apo 62 anyway

 

[Kalispera]

Outstanding shots these jc001!!

 

[jc001]

thankyou.
they dont all turn out like that,i cheat by taking plenty of pics

 

[Newton Stringer]

Hi jc001

Top pics those ! A few questions....Did you take those with a 26x or 32x eyepiece ?

A lot of people are raving about the canon on this site too... I think it has the ability to recall settings which could be an advantage I guess ? Can you take a lot of pics easily then ? How many shots per second is it ? Do you use a shutter release cable thingy ?

Was going to buy a camera in the next couple of weeks... was settling for the F30 but you've got me thinking again now... a lot of people rave about the canon....for my novice purposes maybe this could be cheaper and just as good ? Are there any problems or drawbacks with the canon ? I'm guessing its not as good in low light conditions ?

 

[jc001]

Hi newton birder,
I only have experience of nikon 4500,fuji f810 and canon a95,and the one i digiscope with 99% of the time is the a95,its a great all rounder camera,good for macro and normal shots too,great colour and resolution.I think always the best way to pick new kit is to ask to see the pics,usually they will decide for you.
I only ever used it in manual,so im not really sure about all the features.I always have it set to iso100 f4-f5 ish and just adjust the shutterspeed as i need to.
I think it can do 2 or 3 shots a second?
I do use a normal shutter release cable,with a very simple homemade thing to hold it in place,but a95 compatible ones can easily be bought.
Low light hasnt been a major issue for me,most of the time i get decent shutterspeeds.
No issues with it really,its a great camera,amazing really for the price you can get one on ebay.

Hope this helps

jc

 

[SteveClifton]

I have both the A95 and Fuji F30. I haven't used the Canon once for digiscoping since I got the Fuji at Christmas, though after looking at jc001's excellent pictures I'm starting to wonder why again.

Yes, you can save all settings including the necessary amount of zoom to eliminate vignetting (just switch on and go). I've never used a cable release, just the 2 second timer, and I'm not sure how many shots per second it can take, I've never been bothered to find out, though it is slower to start up and process pictures (longer delays between shots) than newer cameras. Also, the highest ISO setting is 400, which means low light is a bit of a no-no. Still a good camera with lots of excellent features, which is capable of excellent quality pictures.
I might be persuaded to sell mine if you're interested, as I doubt in all honesty I'll get much more use from it now (pm me if you are interested)
Cheers, Steve.