Anybody used a set of binoculars with a built in camera.
A few times recently whilst on my daily exercise I've seen things through the binoculars which would have been nice to capture.
Also seen birds, deer, a fox, hares etc.
Has anyone used these things?
Seems like a sensible idea but not much good if the quality is rubbish or usability is poor.
Cheers
Dave R
Search for digital binoculars
or if you really want to pay for quality
digital binoculars swarovskli
But have you used them?
Applying a bit of lateral thought, you can get adaptors to allow a phone camera to me mounted on a telescope of half a binocular.
These always seem to be crap - the iris is never big enough so you always get a 'porthole' picture. I haven't tried expensive ones, but it seems like a normal binocular with a normal phone just isn't quite compatible.
realistically the limits on telephoto photography of this sort are camera shake, and in this contexts a DSLR with a VR telephoto is hard to beat
Ive used 400mm prime on a tripod, but realistically 300mm is the limit on a hand held.
Liek a sniper, the binocs are for spotting, the telehoto equiupped gun or camera is to take the shot...
My 12x stabilised Canon binocs are not bad, although they are both heavy and bulky (and not cheap). Just a matter of time before they fit them with a phone-type camera I guess (or even two, for stereo).
One would have thought it would be easy these days with ccd camera chips and whole assemblies being in phones. Brian
You could in them old days even do this with ordinary cameras. A bit awkward to hold though. Back in the day I got a good shot of a bloke putting a fuel hose into an aircraft fuel tank with a diy version. Did look a bit washed out thehough. Brian
I get far better pictures of distant objects from my Nikon P600 than I can see through my Carl Zeiss 10 x 80 binoculars. I have the bins on my windowsill but I usually go and get the camera if there's something happening. I should mention that I have a very good view in that direction.
I find that it's much easier to use the camera (with the screen) than it is to use the bins.
You want to get a camera.
Bill
Although not quite the same but I use my zoom (24) on the camera for viewing something of distant interest, Only downside is needing to steady the camera at that sort of Zoom....usually on top of my wifes head.
;)
Is she just the right height?
My wife is a little short at 4'11-1/2"
Kind of you to assume that I don't already have one.
Just as a hint, on a 35mm camera the 50mm lens is roughly natural size. So my longest lens (200mm) is roughly 4x natural size. My binoculars are 10x42 which gives a lot more detail.
So 35mm camera doesn't have enough magnification (unless I want to spend several hundreds perhaps thousands on a very long lens) which is then only usable with a monopod or tripod and is also a big thing to lug around.
Small format cameras with LCD screens on the back are fine if on a tripod and also not having bright sunlight shining on the screen. Ditto mobile phones. Both give pretty shaky results if hand held at 10x or higher. There is also the "just a minute while I dig out and power up and...shit, missed it!" situation. Not really comparable to leaning it on your window cill.
So, my use case is that I out walking in the countryside, am looking through binoculars, see something fleetingly visible and want to capture a picture.
I have large and small cameras and a mobile phone with a decent camera but these aren't working for me.
Cheers
Dave R
Doesn't really meet my use case (see answer to BW).
Cheers
Dave R
Also please see my response to BW up thread.
Cheers
Dave R
OK.
I suppose this is normal for the people on this Group trying to be extra helpful.
However I haven't had one response saying "I've tried this and found it good/bad/indifferent.".
Just loads of people suggesting that I get stuff that I have already got, but have decided isn't quite right for my use case.
Anyway, there is the rest of the weekend. :-)
Cheers
Dave RF
what you are asking for is the binoc equivalent of an electric car that has a range of 600 miles and takes a few minutes to charge I'm afraid. Combining a decent camera with a pair of binocs seems to be a compromise so the manufacturers don't bother when they can make good quality cameras and good quality binocs as separate products.
The only possible solution is this Pentax monocular that has a smart phone adapter, but it is only 6x
Good grief! I spend some time writing a helpful reply and I get a snooty response like that!
I'll rephrase it. Get a camera that will do what mine does. I did give you the model number, trying to be helpful.
Which is hopelessly inadequate for your purpose, just as my SLR with
200mm lens would be. That's why I pointed you towards a specific type of camera. Did you google it, and find out what the lens is capable of? Did you f*ck! Well I shouldn't have wasted my time. You can't educate pork.Obviously.
That's why I didn't suggest a 35mm camera.
Obviously. But with a proper camera the screen is on a ball socket thing so you adjust it for the best viewing conditions. I usually use the camera at waist height and look down at the screen. There's no problem with glare or anything.
Decent modern cameras have image stabilisation. At the longest focal length, which is the equivalent to 1,850mm on a 35mm camera, I can hand hold at 1/125 sec and get pin sharp results. And I've got essential tremor.
The camera is round my neck on standby. Soon as I touch it it's ready.
Like I said, buy a camera.
Bill
That's exactly what I said. I even suggested a specific model number as an example.
Bill
He's not thinking outside his little box. He can see distant things more clearly through his binoculars that he can through any of his (totally unsuitable) cameras so he thinks, "It has to be binoculars with a camera built in." He won't even consider a camera. Blinkered thinking.
Bill
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