Techniques with your cell phone and Leica Bins (1 Viewer)

So after the Olympus 40-150mm (80-300) f/2.8 PRO Lens has been returned to borrowlens.com, and your shooting through your Leica Ultravid HD Plus 7x42's or whatever bins you have hand held with a cell phone, what are the techniques?

So below is one of the good ones and one of the mediocre ones.

1. For example, in the third picture, I could just make out clearly that African raptor's yellow bill with my eyes through the binoculars, but that detail was dropped from the photo. Is that just the camera's auto focus lens not quite focused optimally, or it's just not going to resolve the detail my eyes can see? With the white eagle in pic 2 I seemed to get everything.

2. Fully deploying the eyecups seems to be best when shooting, is there an intermediate place that is better?

3. Are there other technique suggestions for hand held digi-scoping?

4. The bigger the EP, the easier this technique is right? Although it's pretty easy now.

5. Do iPhones have a focus lock? Is there an iPhone adapter that won't damage your eye cups?

6. Yeah I know, where was my camera? Well on safari with me, but the first two pictures I was having breakfast, the third I was on my hotel roof with my binoculars.

Files reduced in size for posting. Except for cropping in photo 2 to remove the dark circle, files are 'as is' when shot. No digital software processing applied such as photoshop.

Thanks.

Pic 1. image through iPhone 6 alone (not 6s) Pic 2. Image iPhone 6 through Leica 7x42. Pic 3. iPhone 6 through Leica's.

dwever,

I can help with some of your questions. I have phonescoped with a binocular before but typically use my scopes. Some of my answers apply in both situations.

1. Yes, the autofocus on the Iphone can be off sometimes. Are you handholding the binoculars or do you have them tripod mounted. Even when the image appears sharp on the iphone screen I tend to tweak the focus a bit first and then tap the area I want in focus before taking the pic. Speaking of taking the picture, are you tapping the shutter button on the Iphone screen? If so then better options would be to either use the factory supplied Apple earphones (the volume control acts as a shutter release) or buy one of the inexpensive Bluetooth shutter releases to take the pic. I have done both. Both eliminate that last little bit of image shake at the crucial moment.


2. Nobody can really tell you what the optimal eyecup position is going to be for your phone and your binocular. Every combination is different. It really is a trial and error situation.

3. Can't really help you with handheld phonescoping. Everything I do is tripod mounted..or shoulder-stock mounted. However, have you tried taking a video and then pulling a still pic from the video via the "StillShot" app? I have done that countless times when I wasn't sure if I could get perfect timing.

4. I haven't really found a correlation between eyepiece diameter and ease of use. I don't handhold the phone to the scope though. I have several adapters.

5. I am not sure which IOS had the upgrade but, yes, there is a focus and exposure lock on the Iphone. You have to push and hold the area you want to focus on..for a few seconds. Then a "focus lock" message comes up on the screen. This works with my 5S and 6S.

The easiest, most inexpensive binocular/iphone adapter I have found is the Carson Hookupz Iphone adapter for binoculars. I think the cost now is around $15 on amazon.

http://www.amazon.com/Carson-HookUp...one adapter&qid=1461767459&ref_=sr_1_3&sr=8-3

All I can think of for now.