Digiscoping with the Nikon P6000 (2 Viewers)

temmie · Sep 10, 2009

Thanks for that! :t:
The lanceolated warbler and Ruddy KF are really shining in those pictures! I thought, for a second, that you had a magic steady hand and digiscoping set-up, but it seems to come down to fast and accurate placing of the camera, and the shutter device... Do you take all your better digiscoped pictures at ISO 100?

petemorris · Sep 11, 2009

temmie said:
Do you take all your better digiscoped pictures at ISO 100?

I always try to keep the ISO as low as possible, and will often use a slow shutter speed rather than a high ISO, especially if the bird is relatively stationary. Noise in these small compacts is bad, sometimes even at ISO 100, so best to keep it as low as you can!

Cheers

Pete

bughunter · Sep 11, 2009

A final note regarding remote setting - I found out, how it works:
If you are in U1, switch remote on, it will be away after next power on.
If you are in A, switch remote on, then it stays on even after power cycle. If you save that config to U1 or U2, then it stays also there.

petemorris · Sep 11, 2009

bughunter

It's my understanding that with the remote, you cannot pre-focus and then take the shot at the desired time (and knowing the camera has focused on the right thing). Is this the case (ie do you press the button, the camera then attempts to focus and shoots)? How much of a nuisance is this?

Cheers

Pete

bughunter · Sep 11, 2009

Sorry, no real experience yet. The P6000 arrived some days ago, the remote this morning. I need anyway some time to focus the scope, so I think it will be faster than using the self timer. Let's see.
For the bracket (mounted on the flash socket) with cable release I haven't found a shop here in germany.

Jason Bugay Reyes · Sep 12, 2009

Excellent results pete !!!

davidtucker · Sep 22, 2009

Hi
Just bought a Swarovski ATS80HD w/20-60 and comes with a DCA. Ordered a Nikon P6000 and remote trigger today. I sold my 500mm lens as I found it too heavy and thought I would "give digiscoping a go"

I have followed this thread with interest, and would I be right in assuming that Macro Mode with apature priority, with a shutter speed greater than 1/250 is the way to shoot?

Has any one ever used a SB800 for "fill flash" as I note the P6000 has commander mode and a hotshoe.

Last question, does anyone use Raw, I note the write speed is 5 secs..?

Will be out tomorrow and hopefully share and image, if all goes to plan..

Great Thread

Dave

RJM · Sep 22, 2009

Even JPEG is unmercifully slow. Bring a book so you will have something to do while the camera writes to memory!

FWIW, I use an SB900 for fill flash on my D90 and 150-500mm zoom lens. Good for about 25m at 500mm. Also use a small Canon 270EX on my Canon SX1 good for about 10m at 560mm.

cheers,
Rick

pete_gamby · Sep 22, 2009

I heard today from a very reputable photo dealer in Scandinavia that the P6000 will be discontinued very soon - looks like it might be time to push your nearest and dearest to buy you that holiday season gift as soon as possible

Neil · Sep 23, 2009

davidtucker said:
Hi
Just bought a Swarovski ATS80HD w/20-60 and comes with a DCA. Ordered a Nikon P6000 and remote trigger today. I sold my 500mm lens as I found it too heavy and thought I would "give digiscoping a go"

I have followed this thread with interest, and would I be right in assuming that Macro Mode with apature priority, with a shutter speed greater than 1/250 is the way to shoot?

Has any one ever used a SB800 for "fill flash" as I note the P6000 has commander mode and a hotshoe.

Last question, does anyone use Raw, I note the write speed is 5 secs..?

Will be out tomorrow and hopefully share and image, if all goes to plan..

Great Thread

Dave

Dave,
I did use fill flash on camera on some hummingbirds at about 6 meters. Works ok if you understate it.
I only shoot Raw when I have enough time as the 5 seconds seems much longer.
Neil.

davidtucker · Sep 24, 2009

Thanks Neil, does the P6000 have a histogram display? My new P6000 arrived yesterday, but could not find a histogram to use for metering....:-C

mikenott · Sep 24, 2009

Neil - a simple but important question. At what distance are you taking your pictures with the P6000? My average distance is 30-40 metres, but yours seem to be a lot closer. I think this is a fundamental issue that some of us "newbies" fail to understand and admire your shots thinking we can achieve the same through twiddling with settings, whereas the reality is perhaps more to do with distance?

Or am I talking a load of bo**cks (again

)??

Michael

Neil · Sep 25, 2009

mikenott said:
Neil - a simple but important question. At what distance are you taking your pictures with the P6000? My average distance is 30-40 metres, but yours seem to be a lot closer. I think this is a fundamental issue that some of us "newbies" fail to understand and admire your shots thinking we can achieve the same through twiddling with settings, whereas the reality is perhaps more to do with distance?

Or am I talking a load of bo**cks (again )??

Michael

Michael,
You are right. Closer is better. I like to digiscope in the 10-20 meter range but at Mai Po I'm usually in the 20-80 meter range. As has been mentioned before a longer eyepiece and shorter camera zoom also makes a big difference. Last but not least is time of day and air quality. I like to be in the field as close to sunrise/sunset as possible. Heat haze is a digiscoping killer in the summer.
Neil

Neil · Sep 25, 2009

davidtucker said:
Thanks Neil, does the P6000 have a histogram display? My new P6000 arrived yesterday, but could not find a histogram to use for metering....:-C

Dave,
Sorry to be a bit late on this one. The Histogram only seems to appear after photo taken when you review. If you hit the Display button on the back of camera ( top right ) it appears. Neil.

Neil · Sep 25, 2009

Here are a couple more from the park today with the P6000.
Neil.

ps I couldn't help myself and posted three in the Gallery too.

Nikon P6000 and Swarovski STS80HD scope and Sw 25-50x eyepiece and UCA adapter and Telescope Rail

Kowloon Park,
Hong Kong,
China.
Sept 2009

davidtucker · Sep 25, 2009

Thanks Neil,

have found the Histogram, first impressions of the P6000 are very good, (actually excellent) not been able to digiscope as yet as I need an adapter to fit the Swarovski DCA to the P6000.

Will post results as soon as I am able to start digiscoping.

Dave

bughunter · Sep 25, 2009

Yesterday I visited the local zoo to train my digiscoping capabilities with my new P6000.
Inspired by Neil's pics of flamigo eyes in the G1 thread here is an eye pic of an Northern Ground-hornbill (Bucorvus abyssinicus); also Black Crowned Crane (Balearica pavonina) and a young Golden Eagle.
I really like the auto focus and the quality of the pictures of the P6000.

AT80HD, 25-50 zoom, P6000 with DCB-A and remote shutter.

davidtucker · Sep 25, 2009

bughunter said:
Yesterday I visited the local zoo to train my digiscoping capabilities with my new P6000.
Inspired by Neil's pics of flamigo eyes in the G1 thread here is an eye pic of an Northern Ground-hornbill (Bucorvus abyssinicus); also Black Crowned Crane (Balearica pavonina) and a young Golden Eagle.
I really like the auto focus and the quality of the pictures of the P6000.

AT80HD, 25-50 zoom, P6000 with DCB-A and remote shutter.

No1 is outstanding, what settings did you use on the P6000, ie metering iso.....etc Would be interested in how you set up for these shots:t:

Neil · Sep 27, 2009

bughunter said:
Yesterday I visited the local zoo to train my digiscoping capabilities with my new P6000.
Inspired by Neil's pics of flamigo eyes in the G1 thread here is an eye pic of an Northern Ground-hornbill (Bucorvus abyssinicus); also Black Crowned Crane (Balearica pavonina) and a young Golden Eagle.
I really like the auto focus and the quality of the pictures of the P6000.

AT80HD, 25-50 zoom, P6000 with DCB-A and remote shutter.

This are good results and one of the ways I like to digiscope. You can be much more unintrusive digiscoping than setting up at 500/600 plus 1.4x tele and DSLR.
Neil.

bughunter · Sep 27, 2009

davidtucker said:
No1 is outstanding, what settings did you use on the P6000, ie metering iso.....etc Would be interested in how you set up for these shots:t:

Thanks!
For the settings I used what Neil recommended:

Aperture Priority

Image Quality Jpeg Fine

Metering Spot AF Area

AF Area Mode Manual

AF Mode Single AF

I used here ISO 64 (sometimes also Iso 100 or 200 due to light).

remote shutter, forces usage of single picture (really pitty, that the remote do not work like the CHDK for Canon: press there means focus, if you go off and on again within 500ms it releases; otherwise it focuses again. That way you can prefocus and wait for action. Not possible with Nikon)

Attached is a second (hand hold without scope) picture to get a feeling of the distance. It was made using the wide lens setting of the P6000.

Digiscoping with the Nikon P6000 (2 Viewers)

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