Microscope Camera For Nib Work

[WestLothian]

I would like to attach a camera to a trinocular microscope and I have 4 options as far as I can make out:

 

1. Buy a microscope camera "pro" level $5,000

2. Buy a microscope camera "am" level $700

3. Attach DSLR (Nikon D3, D300) by adapter tubes $70

4. Attach Compact (Panasonic LX3) through eyepiece clamp.

 

I have tried the options 3 and 4 and the LX3 understandably gives more useful depth of field than the DSLR. Options 1 and 2 involve more cash and may be disappointing with no improvement. In theory the microscope camera has the advantage of no extra glass, less chance of motion blur and a small sensor with greater depth of field. However they also have no aperture control and are typically much lower pixel count.

 

A sample of the LX3 result for a fine 0.5mm pencil lead is shown. The resolution is limited by other factors rather than the pixel count as can be seen.

 

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8429/7735217240_6591ff0b8e_z.jpg

 

Has anybody else compared these options?

Any experts on microscope photography prepared to offer their experiences?

 

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[wimg]

If you want the best results from miscroscope photography, you not only need a special camera, but also special microscope objectives. And you always will need a very, very sturdy tripod, placed on an extremely sturdy, immovable surface. Speaking from experience here .

 

Having said that, for the magnifications you are looking at, you will get equally good results from a "normal" camera mounted via microscope adapter, certainly up to, let's say, magnifications of 150X.

 

Depth of Field always is a problem at large magnifications, and the only way to get around that is image stacking. Personally, I would rather invest in an image stacking setup for microphotography, rather than a special camera. Also, nib photography can be done perfectly with a normal camera setup. For magnifications up to 40X I prefer to use a (d)slr. One has much more control over lighting and setup that way. Furthermore, it can be doen relatively cheaply with very good results. I'd suggest a bellows unit, which doesn't have to be automatic, a few extension tubes for extra magnification, and one or more enlarging lenses, preferably as short as possible (like a Rodenstock Eurygon 35 mm), and a reverse mount adapter.

 

If you really want to splash out on this type of photography, I'd suggest a few special microphotography lenses.

 

Do note that bellows and enlarging lenses can be had quite cheaply used, microphotography lenses are a bit more expensive, and potentially hard to find.

 

From my experience, having a proper microscope camera mounted to the microscope is very convenient, but if you don't take large numbers of photographs with the microscope, it is not really worth it, and neither is the cheapest option from an IQ POV. Personally, I would go with option 3 or 4, with 3 having my personal preference, because it also allows for the addition of a few extra items to the equation quite easily, like mentioned bellows plus reversed enlarging lenses, the addition of a stacking system for more DoF, and the option of the use of TTL-flash (something I have experimented with, and which works well).

 

HTH, warm regards, Wim

[WestLothian]

Thanks for your help and advice.

 

I have Nikon bellows and two sets of extension tubes. I have used these with reversed prime lenses at 20mm, 35mm and 50mm. My macro tripod is a 055CXPRO4 Manfrotto with MN405 pro geared 3D head and X-Y Positioning Plates (model 454) this is sturdy for D3 body to be used with the bellows. I use CombineZM software for stacking the resulting images from the macro photos of insects and other biological specimens. The working distances and lighting become very difficult at magnifications greater than 10x macro. I use TTL with SB900 SB800 and a camera controlled TTL cable.

 

The microscope that I have is a new Nikon stereo model SMZ745T with a long working distance of 100mm for manipulation or reshaping. Lighting is by the LED epi- and dia-scopic units on the stand. This should have the potential to capture sharper images with a greater depth of field either for stacking or using straight from the camera. I hope to see examples of the direct mounted cameras in options 1 and 2 if you know of a specialist site.

 

Thanks again and best regards,

Alistair

 

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Edited August 8, 2012 by WestLothian

[WestLothian]

After further experiments with DSLR and adapters I decided to go for the direct microscope camera with some improved results.

This is with an Optika 3 Mp camera at x50 magnification. Using mixed lighting and a small paper light tent.

 

 

Pelikan M800, Right Oblique EF Italic

 

 

This is with small reflectors to add highlights.

Edited December 12, 2012 by WestLothian

[tenney]

It seems that the microscopic view can make an otherwise nice looking nib look "scary".

 

What about one of those USB microscope cameras attached to a computer? Would that work ok?

[Rich L]

I just attached an ordinary DLSR to the "Trinocular" tube. My mike is a Leica M8. Nib pictures attached from a grinding exercise I did on an italic nib a while back. As long as I had the extra tube I saw no reason to try to adapt to the eyepiece. But, it looks like you put a video camera on it ??

 

I got scary pictures, too!

 

Cheers,

Rich

Edited December 13, 2012 by Rich L

[Earthdawn]

While not terrific it is still very usable for $30 shipped

http://www.ebay.com/itm/310363505500?ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1439.l2649

 

I have not played with it much so the pic is just a quick shot with it sitting on the coffee table.

 

http://i880.photobucket.com/albums/ac10/thevaporcafe/ahab2.jpg

[notbob]

While not terrific it is still very usable for $30 shipped

http://www.ebay.com/...984.m1439.l2649

 

You can now get this grade of USB microscope cameras in 5MP for a relatively higher price. I can't say with any experience if it is better or not:

USB microscope link

 

I've been researching them but have yet to buy. From what little I've learned, they are pretty iffy. It says 220X, but it's my understanding anything beyond 30X is merely moving the camera closer to the subject and refocusing, the actual optical/electronic zoom being limited to about 30X. There are more than a couple of these floating around, all different brand names and specs and all made in China. Serious optics are about a 30X jump in jingles.

[WestLothian]

Yes, bought a couple of the Dino-Lite ones of those USB LED ones for the workshop.

The magnifications are vastly overstated and take the screen size into account rather than the sensor size.

They are quite convenient but even the high resolution ones at around $500 give soft images at the full magnification.

The Optika is from the microscope manufacturer in Italy and has no optical elements, just a decent sensor that uses a USB connection for power and signal from a laptop.

 

My idea was that working to make the nib less scary under the microscope would make it much better for alignment, smoothness and other qualities.

The camera was to help tracking the progress and comparing with other nibs.