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

Extreme Digiscoping (1 Viewer)

Neil, I am very interested in the Sony RX100 II. I hope you can answer some of my questions. I have a Swarovski ATM 80 HD and a DCB adapter
1. Is it possible to shoot in RAW using 'burst mode'? My Panasonic can only do the smallest JPEG's in super burst mode, the only mode with no mechanical shutter in this camera (mechanical shutter causes vibration when slower then about 1/1000 shutter time)
2. Is it possible to use the highest camera zoom with the DCB adapter?
3. Is the image quality as good or better then the older RX100?
4. If I read your postings well, you also use the Sony Nex-7. How is its image quality when digiscoping as compared to the RX 100 II?
5. Do you know a still better long distance camera then the RX 100 II?

Thanks for your time,

Jan.

Jan,
I've got back from a trip to Botswana where I used the RX100 M2 a lot of all around landscapes/panaromas and digiscoping. I'm more and more impressed with this camera. I appreciated the flip-up lcd screen as I only had a small tripod with me.
1. The burst mode with Raw and Jpeg selected is faster than any other digicam I've used. It only takes a few seconds to clear the buffer. With the Nikon P330 I or Fuji X100 and could go off and make some tea.
2. I haven't used it with the DCB but it will do with the DCB 11. The lens extension is the same at wide zoom as at full zoom but retracts a little in the middle. It's 3 inches fully extended , from the back of the camera.
3. The image quality I've rated about 5% better than the RX100 but it could be a bit more.
4. It's easier to handle than the nex 7 and faster shutter speeds so more "keepers"at lower iso. I have to put the new Sigma 30 mm or Zeiss 24 mm on the Nex 7 to get similar quality.
5. Not at the moment. I don't have any other camera that gives as good results at full zoom. The older Nikon 8400 and Nikon P6000 are close though.
I am interesting in the just announced Canon G16 but we will have to wait and see. Normally their lenses aren't that suitable for digiscoping.
Neil
 
This morning I could digiscope this great spotted woodpecker at 145 meters distance. It is still very well recognizable.
 

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I digiscoped this White-crowned Sparrow this morning using a Zeiss 20-75X Zoom eyepiece at 75X and a Nikon V1 w/ 10-30mm lens at 30mm for an equivalent focal length of ~6075mm! The new Digidapter™ digiscoping adapter helped me achieve this view!
 

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I digiscoped this White-crowned Sparrow this morning using a Zeiss 20-75X Zoom eyepiece at 75X and a Nikon V1 w/ 10-30mm lens at 30mm for an equivalent focal length of ~9600mm (if my calculations are correct?)! The new Digidapter™ digiscoping adapter helped me achieve this view!

Wow excellent result!

It should be: 2.7x crop factor X 75x (eyepiece) x 30mm (lens) = 6075mm!
 
Always envious of the super-crisp, clear bird shots like that, gorgeous.

I can't get the small birds to hold still at that range, or I'm just not fast enough, or something. Just shot the same species at 40m not long ago. Not half as beautiful as yours!

Okay, that and at or below about 20m I start to have vignetting and bokeh oddities. My setup seems to have a sweet spot at about 40-60m. |:p| I'm still trying to master getting good shots in the 200-300m range, which seems to be about the maximum for resolving details with my camera.

You folks give me something to aim (or dream?) about. |:D|
 
Have been looking at the RX100 but zoom is 3.6 (rather than the 5x I would have usually looked at for extra distance). How much does this affect the 'reach' of images taken through a Kowa 883 with either 25-60 or 30x? Would like to take videos and also take pictures at range (150m+) for record shots of distant waders/gulls and also for colour ring reading. Would I seriously lose out by getting the Sony/a 3.6 zoom or would the higher pixels and larger sensor allow better cropping? Thank you for any help or comments.
 
Have been looking at the RX100 but zoom is 3.6 (rather than the 5x I would have usually looked at for extra distance). How much does this affect the 'reach' of images taken through a Kowa 883 with either 25-60 or 30x? Would like to take videos and also take pictures at range (150m+) for record shots of distant waders/gulls and also for colour ring reading. Would I seriously lose out by getting the Sony/a 3.6 zoom or would the higher pixels and larger sensor allow better cropping? Thank you for any help or comments.

The Zeiss lens in the Rx100/RX100 M2 is very good and you can rack it out to 100 mm ( full zoom). You are better off zooming the eyepiece before zooming the camera lens though. For reach you are better off with the 25-60 zoom (although I haven't used this eyepiece )
There is a lot of cropping room with the 20 Meg Sony sensor.
Neil
 
I took my new Sony Alpha Nex 6 out into the field yesterday and gave it a good thrashing using the kit zoom it came (16-50/3.5-5.6 ) and the Sigma 30/2.8 . I shot some video with it too. I'm liking this camera a lot as I can shoot fast jpeg +Raw images faster than the Sony RX 100 M2.
Anyway, my info will follow on the Nex 6 thread but I thought I would share a photo taken with the Sigma 30 mm lens with the STX 95 eyepiece cranked up to 70x. I'm posting a link as I'm in Sydney and don't have the original with me.
This equates to 3,150 mm using my lightweight Velbon travel tripod.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/7892550@N03/10552872164/

Neil
Sony Nex 6 + Sigma 30/2.8 lens and Swarovski STX 95 mm Scope and DCB 11 Adapter
Mai Po Nature Reserve,
Hong Kong,China.
October 2013
 
I took my new Sony Alpha Nex 6 out into the field yesterday and gave it a good thrashing using the kit zoom it came (16-50/3.5-5.6 ) and the Sigma 30/2.8 . I shot some video with it too. I'm liking this camera a lot as I can shoot fast jpeg +Raw images faster than the Sony RX 100 M2.
Anyway, my info will follow on the Nex 6 thread but I thought I would share a photo taken with the Sigma 30 mm lens with the STX 95 eyepiece cranked up to 70x. I'm posting a link as I'm in Sydney and don't have the original with me.
This equates to 3,150 mm using my lightweight Velbon travel tripod.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/7892550@N03/10552872164/

Neil
Sony Nex 6 + Sigma 30/2.8 lens and Swarovski STX 95 mm Scope and DCB 11 Adapter
Mai Po Nature Reserve,
Hong Kong,China.
October 2013

Wow ! Impressive o:D
 
I thought it would be fun to push the limits of the sport of Digiscoping and see what people in this forum are getting when they go "way out there". The DSLR guys are happy getting out to around 1500 mm these days with their big 600/800 lenses and teleconverters.

Neil i think you will find most of us DSLR guys with 600/800mm lense's would be mortified taking photos at that distance, the quality would just not be there. I would never take a photo at that distance with my 800mm unless it was purely for ID purposes and would be far from happy as would my friends who i go out with.
Regards,
Matt
 
Neil i think you will find most of us DSLR guys with 600/800mm lense's would be mortified taking photos at that distance, the quality would just not be there. I would never take a photo at that distance with my 800mm unless it was purely for ID purposes and would be far from happy as would my friends who i go out with.
Regards,
Matt

Matt,
You certainly wouldn't be happy with the quality of light we have to put up with in Northern Asia. Six months of the year high humidity and heavy pollution, two months of the year nice light but high humidity and no birds,four months good birds,mist/fog and pollution.
Basically little feather detail over 30 meters.
Give me the desert in the winter or Florida and Sydney in the Spring any day.
Neil.
 
While I was down is Sydney I was able to get away in the early mornings to digiscope the local peregrines that live in the sandstone cliffs all along the coast.
I used the Sony RX 100 M2 on my old Swarovski STS 80HD scope with the 25-50 zoom eyepiece.
This distance to the peregrines was about 300 meters and I was shooting though salt spray as it was about high tide at 7.00 am. The more the sun was out the more the spray got in the way.
I've posted a video here
https://vimeo.com/78590523
Neil.
 

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Snow Goose at 1.8 km

Long distance record shot of White-morph Snow Goose (verified by closer sightings) in with Barnacle Geese. Measured 1.8 km on google maps.

Late evening light at NE Scotland, Strathbeg reserve . The image was grabbed from AVCHD video taken with RX100 on Ultima 80ED.

I am very happy with the RX100 but do you think that using say the Swaro 95 scope would give appreciably better results in this very low light and extreme distance ?

I know that the photo isn't particularly good quality but posted in the spirit of extreme digiscoping and what it can achieve.


Scotview.
 

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Long distance record shot of White-morph Snow Goose (verified by closer sightings) in with Barnacle Geese. Measured 1.8 km on google maps.

Late evening light at NE Scotland, Strathbeg reserve . The image was grabbed from AVCHD video taken with RX100 on Ultima 80ED.

I am very happy with the RX100 but do you think that using say the Swaro 95 scope would give appreciably better results in this very low light and extreme distance ?

I know that the photo isn't particularly good quality but posted in the spirit of extreme digiscoping and what it can achieve.


Now that's " out there". Good one.
Neil.
 
OK, thanks for the clarification Neil.


Very nice setup! Is this your private cabin or is a public?

Sorry , I think I missed your question. This is one of the hides at Mai Po Nature Reserve in Hong Kong. You do need a permit to access the Reserve though.
Neil.
 
XZ-1 + seben 18-54 ED

my first trial with XZ-1 @ 112 mm, f/2,8, 18x => 2000 mm FF.
It's known that the XZ-1 is not a digiscoping camera and vignettes, but I already own a XZ-1 and I will see how I can manage digiscoping. I think the scope is not bad.
 

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