Below we have put together an example package using the Sony DSC-W50, Kowa TSN 823, 32xw eyepiece, Kowa DA-1 & Sony VAD-WB. The Sony suits digiscoping very well having a large 2.5” screen to help focussing & viewing, the 3x zoom gives a full frame shot when used in this combination on wide angle allowing flexibility for framing. Its 6 megapixel resolution allows for huge enlargements & its Carl Zeiss lens complements the Kowa’s fluorite lens giving fine detail & sharp results. The Sony allows film speed or sensitivity to be increased for use on grey days & has the option of a 2 second self timer to further reduce the chance of shake.

As a comparison we have included a shot taken from the same position with a Nikon D200 digital SLR with the 80-400 VR lens.

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Digiscoping  top

Digiscoping is the use of Digital camera & telescope in combination to achieve huge magnifications & save images for future reference.

The choice of which camera, scope & attachment to use can be quite bewildering so we have put together this guide to point you in the right direction.

Choice Of Camera  top

The vast majority of digital cameras can be used for digiscoping however there are certain designs which suite the application far better. Cameras to avoid are the ‘superzoom’ models, ironically cameras which have a very powerful optical zoom while offering great flexibility when the camera is used on its own work against you for digiscoping. The two main reasons are Vignetting & camera shake. Most digital cameras give some degree of vignetting or shading of the image at the corners when the camera is put to the eyepiece while on the wide angle end of the zoom, if the camera has a 2,3 or 4x optical zoom a full frame shot can normally be achieved with a couple of taps of the zoom button. A 6,8 or 10x optical zoom camera can start off with a little pinpoint of light in the centre of the frame & you don’t start to get close to a full frame until towards maximum zoom & by that time the combined magnification could be 200x or over & camera shake & narrow field of view would make it almost impossible to take an acceptable shot.

Cameras which have a wide diameter lens can also work against you, if the cameras lens is wider than the eyepiece you wish to use vignetting will normally be a problem.

The choice of camera can also depend on how you wish to attach camera to scope. The two main options are the ‘cup’ design such as the Kowa DA-1 or the bracket such as the Digimaster II. The cup design requires the camera to have a screw thread on the lens assembly or the ability to take a thread adaptor – these normally allow you to fit an additional wide or telephoto lens to your camera but are also very useful when it comes to digiscoping. Many cameras don’t have this thread option but can still be fitted to the scope by use of a bracket design.

Choice Of Scope  top

Many & varied on this one – most scopes can be used regardless of objective lens size or straight or angled body. Larger lens diameter scopes can have advantages such as light gathering but smaller 50, 60 or 66mm scopes can still be used to great effect. The choice of eyepiece has a greater bearing, 20xw or 30xw tend to work best but zooms still work ok as long as you stick to the low end of the scale.

Cup Or Bracket?  top

The two options both have their benefits, the cup design tends to be smaller & lighter but can reduce the number or compatible cameras, the bracket option while larger normally gives you the option to swing the camera out of position to allow normal use of the scope & then back into position very quickly to take a shot, brackets also allow a much wider range of cameras to be used & should you change your camera you can normally use the same bracket.