Comments on: Cheap Digital Microscopy

By: Gina

Gina — Thu, 14 Jan 2010 06:49:36 +0000

Hi, I'm from Indonesia. A few days ago I also bought a USB microscope at a online computer store. I bought it for my biology assignment. I think this tool is very practical and multifunctional. Nice gadget. .:)

By: L Livermore

L Livermore — Wed, 06 May 2009 23:21:20 +0000

@ Tristan: Yeah, £50 sounds too cheap for a decent image!

@ Kolby: For the museum work I am using my Nikon stock lens (18-55mm) with a x10 Hoya macro filter. I got a Sigma 105mm macro lens for taking photos of insects in the field.

I prefer using the stock lens at the museum because I can slightly alter the focal depth without physically moving the camera and the specimen stacks fairly easily. This is usually fine for 5mm and bigger specimens, but not good for smaller specimens or taking photos of legs hairs or tarsal claws.

I have heard good things about the Canon MP-E but for now I am limited to using Nikon lenses.

By: Kolby

Kolby — Mon, 27 Apr 2009 21:23:00 +0000

I’m interested in hearing what you decide and seeing your resulting images. I’ve been using the Canon MP-E 65mm lens to great success but wondered how it would compare to close-up shots with a microscope.

What macro lens are you currently using? Alex Wild has posted his SLR vs. Microscope comparisons over at his blog: http://myrmecos.wordpress.com/2009/02/11/slr-vs-microscope-for-imaging-museum-specimens/

By: Tristan B

Tristan B — Sat, 25 Apr 2009 23:02:26 +0000

I’d been keen to learn more about this Laurence – sounds promising and I’m sure you could stack the images with Combine ZM or similar. Just could be too good to be true at <£50!