Photographing Birds through a telescope
Jan 19, 2015 06:55:50 #
I am looking for anyone who is actually using a telescope/camera combo to photograph birds. I need info about which telescope, and any tips that you might have. Thank you.
Jan 19, 2015 09:16:47 #
You might want to move this to either the Birds-In-Flight or the Main Photography Discussion section to more visibility for your subject ;)
Jan 19, 2015 10:30:58 #
Shellback wrote:
You might want to move this to either the Birds-In-Flight or the Main Photography Discussion section to more visibility for your subject ;)
Thank you, it's already there.
Jan 19, 2015 16:56:24 #
I have no experience in this endeavour, but if I were to embark on this ney I would chose a large apochromatIc refractor. A Schmitt-Cass or Mak-Cass may also work but the focal length may prove to be a problem a high magnification. The limiter would be the higher F number of some of the larger scopes and the stability of the mount.
I use a smallish scope that has a focal length of around 1400mm, if im remembering correctly and just touching the scope will set it to vibrating for a couple seconds. While I do believe its possible to go this route it can also be filled with frustration. If you already own the mount and scope i would say give it a try. If not and you have no wish to pursue astronomy goals i would go the tam or sig route. Just my opinion though.
I use a smallish scope that has a focal length of around 1400mm, if im remembering correctly and just touching the scope will set it to vibrating for a couple seconds. While I do believe its possible to go this route it can also be filled with frustration. If you already own the mount and scope i would say give it a try. If not and you have no wish to pursue astronomy goals i would go the tam or sig route. Just my opinion though.
Jan 19, 2015 18:04:04 #
Agree 100% with Oknoder. I have a 150mm telescope and once tried it for birding. Never again! Trying to follow a bird with a telescope and letting the rig settle from movement before shooting will leave you ready to heave the entire setup into a dumpster. On the other hand, a 500 or 600 mm lens on a gimbal head will let you track easily and quickly give you good results. Or a superzoom compact camera - a much more portable set-up but with some trade-off in image quality compared to a high-quality telephoto lens(not bad results though, stills and video).
Jan 20, 2015 12:04:37 #
Howard5252 wrote:
I am looking for anyone who is actually using a telescope/camera combo to photograph birds. I need info about which telescope, and any tips that you might have. Thank you.
Howard; Go to: Eagle Optics, and click on their piece about "digiscoping"; (a lot of people hook a good quality spotting scope to a digital camera and get some decent photos; I have never tried it, but I can tell you that it is NOT a serious replacement for a telephoto lens. Having said that......there are many reasons to own a good spotting scope, and it really isn't hard to attach one to a camera. You can find many stories on-line written by people who do digiscoping all the time, and some of them do get some pretty nice pictures.
http://www.eagleoptics.com/articles/digiscoping/
There you go! (took all of about 30 seconds; it even has a nice picture of a bird! ) Good luck!
BTW......(before I go ) If you do happen to get interested in spotting scopes........I have quite a lot of experience there; a lot of people make them.......all of the way from "little-bitty", 20 or 30mm objective, to 80mm objective; Eagle handles quite a few brands, but they DON'T handle a couple of the really great buys, namely Fujinon and Burris; (Fuji probably being about my favorite if you're not rich.) Swarovski and Leupold are the TOPS! Leica and Zeiss are tops also, but IMO, don't offer nearly the value per dollar spent. (great products, just too "pricey"....
You can spend a few hours on Eagle Optics great website and gain a whole education about optics, and it's all free! (Don't purchase ANY expensive optical device without first becoming knowledgeable about optics. ) It's fine & dandy to listen to other people's opinions, but it's much better to become knowledgeable enough not to need them! And once again...Good luck!
Jan 24, 2015 13:39:15 #
Gitzo wrote:
Howard; Go to: Eagle Optics, and click on their p... (show quote)
Thank you for your comments. I have done A LOT of reading about Digiscoping. All of my equipment is Nikon and as it turns out, they make some wonderful scopes for Digiscoping. I was lucky enough to find a "Refurbished" EDG 8275B from a reputable source. This is the 85mm scope with VR (Vibration Reduction) built into the scope. Nikon makes mounts specifically for their DSLR's so I'm sure the scope/camera will work well together. The SFS-L2 mount is on back order; as soon as it comes in I will "shoot" that eagle's nest that I found at 300 yards. I will also take a comparison photo using my 200~400 f4 with a 2x extender on it. I'll keep you in mind and give you a heads-up when I post something.
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