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

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  1. M

    SDL v3 Eyepiece Now Shipping

    I looked at doing this, but I found it difficult to remove the O-ring that I'd inserted into the end of the eyepiece to adapt the SDL v2 for the Kowa, and I didn't want to damage the O-ring. So unfortunately I can't do a comparison between the two eyepieces on the MM4. However, as I mentioned...
  2. M

    SDL v3 Eyepiece Now Shipping

    Thanks for your responses. I have now bought the MM4 60 ED/45 with the SDL v3 eyepiece, and the combination is excellent. It works well on my Velbon Sherpa D200 tripod, and doesn't feel unbalanced. The tripod adapter actually has two 1/4" thread holes for a tripod mounting screw, so you can...
  3. M

    SDL v3 Eyepiece Now Shipping

    Good news about the SDL v3. I'm planning on buying a MM4 60 angled scope, and mulling over the eyepiece. I currently use a SDL v2 with an old Kowa TSN-3, and am very pleased with it. I've seen and heard comments that the SDL v2 was really designed for the larger scopes and that it is a bit...
  4. M

    Hearing aids for hearing bird calls

    Thanks the comprehensive reply. It's good to hear about other peoples' experience. I've had a "free" hearing assessment from one of the smaller high street chains, and was told that the top-of-the-range would help with clarity with background noise. My next approach is to try an independent...
  5. M

    Hearing aids for hearing bird calls

    That's interesting, though a bit disappointing...
  6. M

    Hearing aids for hearing bird calls

    Hi all, I'd like to find out about people's experience with the use of hearing aids to help hear high pitched bird calls. In recent years I've noticed that I can no longer hear some higher pitched bird calls, e.g. Redwings' 'seep' calls when flying overhead, and I can't hear crickets any more...
  7. M

    Birding around Morzine, French Alps

    Hi Richard, Thanks for the quick reply - especially since it's an old thread! I didn't see any Snowfinches on this trip, but I've usually seen them on previous ski trips, often hopping around very close. Plenty of Alpine Accentors around the mountain restaurants, a couple of Nutcrackers...
  8. M

    Birding around Morzine, French Alps

    Green or Grey-headed Woodpecker? Hi all, Thought I'd add on to this thread rather than creating a new one, as my question is about similar habitat in the French Alps. I was skiing in the 3 Valleys just above St Martin de Belleville on 4th Feb, near some pine trees (around 1600m altitude)...
  9. M

    Birding in Extremadura

    Do you have the Dave Gosney guide? We used it in April 2014 and the site directions were very detailed and reliable. Hopefully others on this forum will be able to provide more up to date details. Mike
  10. M

    Recommended birding guides.

    I'd like to add some recommendations for birding guides in Uganda. We travelled on a Naturetrek "tailormade" trip in November 2017 and had a great time. The local agent was Let's Go Travel and they provided our bird guide, Paul Kaggwa Kibirango. He is a very friendly and helpful chap with...
  11. M

    Canon SX50 Specs

    Hi Dwight, I understand perfectly the point about shutter speed, and I agree with you about Av vs Tv mode. I used to use an Olympus OM1 film SLR, which had fully manual exposure and focus, so I fully understand the concepts of aperture and shutter speed, but in these dates of automatic cameras...
  12. M

    Canon SX50 Specs

    Hi Dwight, Thanks for the advice. I checked the properties of the original shots and you are correct that they were using Spot metering, and this is probably the cause of the problem (though both shots were actually in Av mode). I tried various modes, including Auto and Program (with exposure...
  13. M

    new eyepiece for tsn 1

    I'm pleased to report that with the 5mm O-ring the eyepiece sits firmly and doesn't wobble or move when you change the zoom. Thanks all for your help! Mike
  14. M

    new eyepiece for tsn 1

    Thanks johnf3f and jring. I've ordered a 5mm cross-section O-ring, and will see how well it works. Mike
  15. M

    new eyepiece for tsn 1

    Hi Joachim, Thanks for the quick response. I'm not sure what you mean by this, but the O-ring is 32mm inside diameter, and 4mm cross-section. I've attached two photos, one showing the eyepiece with the O-ring and the other without the O-ring. I thought the O-ring was just acting as a spacer...
  16. M

    new eyepiece for tsn 1

    Hi all, I have had the Kowa TSN-3 with 30x WA lens for many many years, and have been very happy with it. But I felt that I needed a zoom option, so bought an Opticron SDLv2 eyepiece as discussed on this thread. I also considered the Kowa TE-9Z, but the eyepiece is narrower and I thought the...
  17. M

    Canon SX50 Specs

    Hi Rafael, I've tried to work out the zoom level from the shooting info, and I believe the first one was around 25x and second was around 14x. I did find the exposure was often better when zoomed in (presumably because the brightness range was less). Mike
  18. M

    Canon SX50 Specs

    Thanks, HermetIbis. I've attached a couple of photos of chimps taken close together, though not the same subject. The first one was 1/100s, f5.6 at ISO 3200, and is exposed ok. The second one was 1/13s, f5.6 at ISO 3200, and is overexposed by a factor of 7 compared to the first. Because the...
  19. M

    Canon SX50 Specs

    I've had an SX50HS for a couple of years now, and have been very happy with its versatility, recognising the limitations of the small sensor. I've just returned from a trip to Uganda where we spent a lot of time in the forest, including trips to see gorillas and chimps. However, the camera...
  20. M

    Help with Vietnam bird id

    Another id question - on our boat trip on the Mekong Delta on 9th August I saw a couple of what I thought were Barn Swallows over a very wide part of the river. When I consulted the Craig Robson book I read that Pacific Swallow would be more likely on range and time of year, but Barn Swallow...
  21. M

    Help with Vietnam bird id

    Thanks. We saw Asian Palm Swift in Hue, and I remember it had very thin wings compared to Common Swift. The brown swifts in Saigon didn't, and I've identified them as Germain's based on a website I found listing the birds of Saigon - just wanted to check there were no other possibilities. Mike
  22. M

    Help with Vietnam bird id

    @andyb39 - many thanks! There were also large numbers of two different swift species in Saigon city centre around the Rex Hotel (on 7th August). One species was black, with a white rump, similar in size to Common Swift, and nesting under the eaves of buildings opposite the Rex Hotel - I've...
  23. M

    Help with Vietnam bird id

    Hi all, In Aug 2016 I visited Vietnam on a family group tour, so there were very limited birding opportunities. I managed to get a few bird photos, which are on Flickr at: https://flic.kr/s/aHskDN23cE I'm sure they are all common species, and I think I've managed to identify most of them...
  24. M

    Canon SX50 Specs

    Haven't tried it myself, but the link says you can download it if you really want it - so I guess it will run ok. Sorry, I can't offer any other suggestions as I don't have personal experience of using any other video-editing software - maybe someone else on this forum can help? Mike
  25. M

    Canon SX50 Specs

    How about using Windows Movie Maker? I believe you can still download it for Windows 10. http://windows.microsoft.com/en-gb/windows-10/where-is-movie-maker-in-windows-10 I have to admit I haven't used it for a few years, but I remember it was very easy to cut bits out of the video, and to...
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