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SLR Magic 12-36x50 ED Spotting Scope (1 Viewer)

I am still getting to grips with My Sigma 50-500mm on an E520, but def getting better :) so will try the EC-14 on it when we get some better light.

My friend is using a G1 with a Pany 70-300 and getting some cracking shots, i think that lens outperforms my oly 70-300. She is yet to try the Bigma on it.
 
Today I got a reply from SLR Magic and they kindly provided me with some samples.

Its the same as ebay site but bigger.

:t:

i like the more closeup flamingo shot that is showing on ebay, but as my connection was and still bad, i did not brows the images very well, on a first look the shots are not so sharp, but that could be for many different reasons, one very important is that he/she is using it for first time, some lenses take a month for the user to adjust for them.

it took me about 5 months to get satisfactory results form the Bigma + E620, and after getting used to the Bigma it took me two weeks to start to get some sharp images with the E5.

would like also to know some more technical about it, like how it performs with AF.

thanks so much Chris.
 
I am still getting to grips with My Sigma 50-500mm on an E520, but def getting better :) so will try the EC-14 on it when we get some better light.

My friend is using a G1 with a Pany 70-300 and getting some cracking shots, i think that lens outperforms my oly 70-300. She is yet to try the Bigma on it.

i have used the E520 for only one month and it was mostly with the Olympus 70-300mm, and i was not happy.

when i got the E620 not happy also with the Olympus 70-300mm, but gave me super results with the Bigma.

using the Bigma with the mirror less EPL1 gave very good results, but only with Manual focus, as AF is very slow and for bird photography very frustrating.

not sure how the mirror less G1 with do with the Bigma and will the electronic viewfinder give accurate view for sharp focusing. would love to see the results.

the lens you are talking about should be the pana (Lumix) 100-300mm for the m4/3. yes it is a super lens in every aspect, fast AF, accurate focus, as well as relitavly fast (max aperture is 5.6), not to mention its light weight.
 
Year the SLR Scope looks not so sharp as some £1700 scopes but that in a sense was to be expected. At the end of the day in digiscoping you pay for what you get.

However I am yet still to see more samples and a proper review before I can fully say this scope just isn't worth it.

Here are from a Swarovski Scope and as you can see more money is a sharper image. I might end up getting this scope in future who knows.
 

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  • Photographic images made ​​with Panasonic GH2, Swarovski STM 80 HD, 25x50 eyepiece adapt
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  • Photographic images made ​​with Panasonic GH2, Swarovski STM 80 HD, 25x50 eyepiece adapt
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Have you thought of trying the EC14 convertor with the Bigma? I have heard it works quite well, the EC20 can be more difficult.

Hi

I have tried both combos.

The EC14 together with the 50-500 is capable of producing decent results. Here are a few samples of images @ 708mm that I am quite pleased with, slightly cropped and resized for rendering on this forum.

708mm is a respectable focal length, use of tripod is strongly recommended.

  • Sample 1. E-620, 1/250s, F/10, 800 ISO, 5 meters distance
  • Sample 2. E-620, 1/200s, F/8, 800 ISO, 18 meters distance

The Bigma with EC20 is however a completely different story. I have made some serious attempts but none has ended up with any satisfactory result. Pictures end up soft even in good light conditions. Stay away from this combo.


/Tord
 
Hi

I have tried both combos.

The EC14 together with the 50-500 is capable of producing decent results. Here are a few samples of images @ 708mm that I am quite pleased with, slightly cropped and resized for rendering on this forum.

708mm is a respectable focal length, use of tripod is strongly recommended.

  • Sample 1. E-620, 1/250s, F/10, 800 ISO, 5 meters distance
  • Sample 2. E-620, 1/200s, F/8, 800 ISO, 18 meters distance

The Bigma with EC20 is however a completely different story. I have made some serious attempts but none has ended up with any satisfactory result. Pictures end up soft even in good light conditions. Stay away from this combo.


/Tord

WOW Tord both images are stunning . i was not very happy with my trials, but in reply #11 some images form Colin Bax with the Bigma + EC1.4 and the results are very nice.

the EC20 is just a waist of money, it gives poor results even with the Macro 50mm/f 2.0, its also give horrible results with the Sigma 70-200mm, f2.8.

any suggestions for mirror lenses.
 
WOW Tord both images are stunning . i was not very happy with my trials, but in reply #11 some images form Colin Bax with the Bigma + EC1.4 and the results are very nice.

the EC20 is just a waist of money, it gives poor results even with the Macro 50mm/f 2.0, its also give horrible results with the Sigma 70-200mm, f2.8.

any suggestions for mirror lenses.
Thanks for kind words.

Well, the EC20 is not a complete waste of money. You do need prime/high speed optics optics in front of it. The major issue is that standard telelenses are not that great looking at maximum aperture and the EC20 adds a -2EV penalty and in effect transforms the Bigma into 1000mm F12.6 or something like that. Then the AF has a hard time so you better fine tune the focus in MF mode. At 1000 mm F12.6 you have a DOF in the order of 0.1 meter. With a dark picture in the viewfinder, it is not easy. Expect quite a low keeper rate.

In good light conditions, it is possible to achieve acceptable results, though. Below are some samples, shot with E-620 and this combo at 1000 mm:

Sample 3: ISO 400, 1/400s, F/13, distance 18 meters
Sample 4: ISO 400, 1/250s, F/13, distance 18 meters
(both distances happen to be same)

Images are as you can notice on the soft side. It was also quite windy that day.

/Tord
 
thanks so much Chris, the pic's are really nice, not as the ones that come from the Kowa, but for the price i think its OK.

wonder why it is not sold by amazon or B&H.
 
Thats what I think in a way. The only thing thats stopping me from buying one is the fact that I just found out that the one on ebay is the scope and the attachement thats what you pay for. There is a price on adorama, which apparently is the price for the scope only and you have to buy the attachment seperate. However does it say that ?....no

I am asking SLR Magic if they would sell it me for their original intro offer but I think now that the samples are out no =) , Funny hey

http://www.adorama.com/SLR123650ED.html
 
I use the Bigma with my Olympus E1 & E510, but will need a body upgrade soon. I have also used it with my Lumix GF1 to take videos & not-so-skittish birds because focusing takes time on manual settings. I'm looking to either get the Lumix 100-300mm & go m4/3 all the way or get an E5. The OM-D is very tempting but I have a budget that I'd like to keep to. Travelling on my own to assignments is really getting to me for I have to hand-carry all my electronic devices for fear of losing them in transit. I'm very bent on going m4/3 but will consider faster AF with the E5 to be one of the deciding factors.
 
I use the Bigma with my Olympus E1 & E510, but will need a body upgrade soon. I have also used it with my Lumix GF1 to take videos & not-so-skittish birds because focusing takes time on manual settings. I'm looking to either get the Lumix 100-300mm & go m4/3 all the way or get an E5. The OM-D is very tempting but I have a budget that I'd like to keep to. Travelling on my own to assignments is really getting to me for I have to hand-carry all my electronic devices for fear of losing them in transit. I'm very bent on going m4/3 but will consider faster AF with the E5 to be one of the deciding factors.

the Bigma works so well with the E5, so if you can afford it go for it, but if size matters to you, then i would strongly recommend to go m4/3 and get the Lumix 100-300mm, you will not regret it.

but which body, pana G3 or Oly EPL3, that is up to you if you can do with out the VF and use only the live view the Oly, is a good choice as it has an in body IS.

but if the VF is must for you, consider how much it will coast you to add the external Oly VF + the camera, compared to pana that has a built in VF.

BTW i have tried the EVF with my EPL1 and its a marvelous one, and also tried the live view with EPL1 + Lumix 100-300mm and found the AF to be really fast.

Bigma AF does not work good with the EPL1, wonder how it performs with the new pen cameras, but as the magnification provided by the EVF using the MF is easy and accurate.

check this

http://www.flickr.com/photos/ammadoux/5917278862/in/photostream
 
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