Thread subject: Diptera.info :: Photo with binocular

Posted by zcuc on 28-07-2008 09:24
#1

Hi All,
I saw some of you are taking amazing photos with your binocular. I would like to ask for recommendation on that subjct.
I tried to take photo by holding my camera to the 10x eyepieces but the photos doesn't clear and sharp as when I take normal photos or as I see some of you posted here.
Do you have any idea how can I improve the result? Anyone used camera adapters that inserted instead of a normal eyepiece?

Thanks

Edited by zcuc on 28-07-2008 09:24

Posted by Andrew Whittington on 27-10-2008 11:03
#2

There are various methods, but first it depends very much on the type of camera you are holding to the eyepiece.

I have moderately successful photographs taken this way with a Nikon Coolpix S1 in which the lens orifice is a little smaller than the eyepiece orifice. I use marco settings and zoom in until the circular effect caused by the binocular tube is no longer visible. Then I focus using the microscope focal knob, but view the screen on the camera back until it's in focus. Using BSS (Best Shot Selector), which takes a series of five photos, the camera selects the best photo based on most focussed and best balanced light-colour criteria.

The main problem with this method is depth of field. The focal plain is very narrow, more so the higher you push the microscope magnification. So some of the insect will usually be out of focus. You can limit this to some extent by photographing at low magnification on the microscope but increasing the zoom of the marco as far as it will go without exceeding the macro limit, then cropping and (with limited success) magnifying in Photoshop, but it has limitations.

To eliminate all the focal plain problems and produce the perfect pictures you sometimes see, you will need to mechanize the system more. The camera needs to be fitted and a series of photos need to be taken progressively moving through the focal range from top to bottom. These photos then are "stitched" together in a computer program (Photomontage or Helicon Focus for example).

This thread (among others - try searching for keywords such as Nikon) was very helpful:
http://www.diptera.info/forum/viewthread.php?forum_id=21&thread_id=1863