Hello From Western New York (1 Viewer)

Hello from Western New York and thanks for the invitation to your Forum!

I am from the Great Lakes area of the United States .. Upstate, Western New York, in a rural community near the Canadian border.

Interests are ... all things nature oriented, birding, digital photography & image editing, DigiScoping, Optics, Web Surfing, Gadgets & Electronics.

I am currently in the process of a meadow restoration project and am converting my 20 acre pasture/hayfield into a grassland habitat. This year was the 4th year for this project and saw the return of Bobolinks to nest in this area.

Gail R (WNY)

Hi Gail, a warm welcome to another digiscoper. Hope to see some of your pics in galleries and perhaps any digiscoping advice that you can offer in the Photographic forum.
Best regards
Andy B,

Thank you, Andy! This is my first day on this Bird Forum and I am just learning my way around.

This morning I posted a pic in the forum's 'Fun Gallery' , under my forum name garusll, I took of a fledgling Red-tailed Hawk gliding & calling over my meadow while I was out there DigiScoping. That was a still photo captured from a mini-DV Videotape from my SONY TRV-900 digital camcorder handheld to my KOWA 824 scope.

I was looking around for new forums as I am researching the Questar 3.5 scopes, both the Birder Model and the Field Model. I have always been intruiged with the Questars and their nifty control box levers for the built-in 1.6 Barlow and Finder Scope and breathtaking views.

My KOWA 824 ( I like the polycarbonate body since I do a lot of duckwatching in the wintertime on the Great Lakes, when in mid-Winter there might be a -40F Below Zero Windchill on windier days. The metal bodied scopes seem to contract enough in the very cold weather to make focusing unreliable) is my primary spotting scope.

My idea is that the Questar 3.5 would begin where my KOWA 824 leaves off .. top useable Eyepiece Magnification on KOWA is 60x (20x to 60x) under good lighting conditions. The Questar 3.5 using the 16mm Eyepiece would result in 80x Magnification and using the flip-in Barlow 120x. Would be great for those ducks far out in the Lake. And since Questar 3.5 Close Focus is about 15 feet, would make for some super-super closeups of birds.

Welcome Gail

Welcome to the Forum Gail It certainly sounds like you may have a lot to offer in terms of knowledge and experience. I hope that you get to enjoy the site and participate in the threads.

Hi Gail, good luck with the big scopes.....they're not very practical for the general birder who is always on the move, but certainly an idea if you spend much of your time in a blind. I've heard of people struggling with the odd focus system on the Questars.
I remember U.K. birder and digiscoper, Dick Newell, mentioning his experience using a Questar for digiscoping (Birds-pix, a long time ago). I've got a feeling that he didn't think the image quality was a great deal better than a Swarovski 80hd in most situations, but this is from a still camera point of view.
In all honesty, with Questars costing so much, I'd consider a semi-pro Canon camcorder with the ability to take 35mm lenses as a serious alternative for video at extreme distances.
In my experience, at the huge magnifications that you mention, I find heathaze and general air pollutants will usually ruin most shots... though shooting at the right time of day (early morning, evenings) can help.
Best regards,
Andy B

Hello Gail, welcome to the Forum. Gadgets and electronics, eh? Person after my own heart!

Welcome again!

George Raiche (DigiBird) also had some doubts re using a Questar scope for DigiScoping or as a birding spotting scope, especially since the Field of View would be smaller. And he was one who didn't care for the tiny, screw-head sized focusing knob.

Yet, I have a lingering desire to get my hands on a Questar 3.5 Field Model and try it out for myself. The Birder Model I have less interest in since with the finder scope being mounted under the main tube, it makes rotating the scope in its mount impossible.

I have been running about 50/50 with opinions on the Questar 3.5 .. they either love it or hate it; very little middle ground. I suspect the price has kept many from ever trying one firsthand.

Another way to go, if one were also interested in sky astronomy, would be the Questar Duplex Model, which is removable from its electric or battery driven fork mount. The 3.5 Models are small and easily backpack-able and are meant to be tabletop telescopes, sort of an observatory in a box that is ready to go right out of the box. Also, they are small enough, in their case, to be carry-on luggage if flying. Of course, the big thing with the 3.5 inch models is the small Aperture size not letting in enough light for the far distances .. but that mainly a prob for sky telescope use and not terrain scope use. And such a long Focal Length is going to be a slow lens.

No retail outlets in my area carry Questar products and I have been watching for ads for star parties but none so far. Hoping to hear more from others who may have used a Questar themselves.

Yes, George is 'big' on field of view....though it's not important when you actually get a camera on to the eyepiece. I saw a Questar once, and there is no way I'd be happy with it for birding.....birding wouldn't be fun anymore!
Most digiscopers are primarily birders, so very few would compromise portability and convenience for the sake of a slightly better digiscoped pic. Many of the 'fancy' astro scopes that are beloved by some are totally out of place in the birding world imho...., non waterproof, very fragile, heavy and often needing more extras to get the image the right way up.....they wouldn't last 5 minutes on a wet and muddy bird reserve, and there's nothing worse than having to treat your optics like they were the crown jewels
Regards,
Andy B

Hi Gail,
Welcome. I have just started doing some digiscoping - about three months ago. Getting some reasonable pics but want to do better. Think you will find some other digiscopers here.


Colin

Your own 20 Acres? Wow! You wouldn't happen to have Harriers quartering your garden by any chance????
If you had 20 acres in England you could open it as a nature reserve!