Camera ranking for microscopy use

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descall
Posts: 178
Joined: Sat Oct 01, 2011 3:12 pm
Location: United Kingdom

Camera ranking for microscopy use

Post by descall »

I was pointed towards the 'Micro Tech Lab' website which includes a 'Camera ranking for microscopy use':
http://www.lmscope.com/produkt22/Camera ... e=1&sort=3
I wonder if this is a reliable ranking and assessment? I ask because I notice many of the cameras used to capture the best images on this forum do not feature in their top 20, and I'd thought that images collected by something such as the basic Canon 700D cannot be improved upon for photography through the microscope. I'm guessing my rudimentary understanding is too simple. Many thanks for any insights :-)

microman
Posts: 122
Joined: Sat Jan 14, 2017 2:16 pm

Post by microman »

Illumination technique and microscope resolvingpower probably is way bigger factor in most cases. Charles Krebs used a Canon T3i and his shots are amazing.

It costs like 300 bucks now wit kit lens. Not that its the best buy nowdays but there are more factors to consider for sure :)
But the lists seems pretty good if the microscope gear is up to snuff or whats the word.

Ichthyophthirius
Posts: 1152
Joined: Thu Mar 07, 2013 5:24 am

Post by Ichthyophthirius »

Hi Des,

It seems largely down to skill and practice, rather than having the newest camera. BTW, sample preparation is the key; even the best camera can't fix a poor prep.

With regards to the ranking, it appears largely down to analysing the specs rather than actual testing. For example, many would consider a vibration-free EFSC as essential for direct mounting to a microscope yet the problematic Canon 60D and 70D http://www.photomacrography.net/forum/v ... hp?t=23493 rank above the reliable Canon 600D.

It's a nice reference for some the other specs but for EFSC vibrations it's better to check the tests in this forum! For sensor specs there are other testing websites.

Regards, Ichty

descall
Posts: 178
Joined: Sat Oct 01, 2011 3:12 pm
Location: United Kingdom

Post by descall »

Thanks for the replies so far, much appreciated :-)
I appreciate the essential ingredients of lighting, mounting, etc. I guess the list made me think whether, everything else being precisely equal, can another camera do SIGNIFICANTLY better than my basic Canon 700D for BF, DF and DIC images of wet mounts? My rudimentary understanding is this APSC camera, with good EFCS, could not be significantly improved upon, when it comes to image quality? So I hadn't thought further about other possible cameras, until I was pointed towards the above list, in which my camera doesn't appear to feature at all. Do I need to think any further about alternative cameras, or would time be better spent? Thanks very much for any further comments.

Pau
Site Admin
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Joined: Wed Jan 20, 2010 8:57 am
Location: Valencia, Spain

Post by Pau »

IMO in some cases some cameras can improve it, when you need
- less noise at high ISO
- higher dynamic range
- LV without mechanical shutter
- better video
or when the microscope adaptation is more convenient for a given sensor size

I would like to own a Sony A9 for all these features, but because its price I'll remain with my Canon 7D
http://www.photomacrography.net/forum/v ... p?p=215525
Pau

concon
Posts: 87
Joined: Thu Jun 01, 2017 6:21 am

Post by concon »

As Pau said, those were the things I was looking for when I made my quick jump from the a6000 to the a7rii.

I looked for a camera that had:

-Amazing DR

-Ability to go to a low ISO to eliminate a bit more noise (50)

***Ability for me to blast through a few hundred shots with a ~1s settle time and not hit a buffer as the subject I was shooting at the time melted.

harisA
Posts: 513
Joined: Sun Jul 03, 2011 9:31 am
Location: Greece

Post by harisA »

Hello Des.
To me the best camera is the one that suits best to the rest of your setup.

To be more specific:
1)If you are not using flash then you definitely need an efcs camera or you must somehow mount the camera without contact with the trino head.,
2)No microscope objective (with the exception of mitutoyos) can cover a full frame sensor.So if you use an FF camera you have to buy additional optics to expand the image to cover FF sensor.
3)Low power apo objectives (4x,10x) requiring dense sensors (small pixel dimensions) to capture all the information.I f you are going to work with high magnifications (over 40x) then pixel number and density is not an issue.

You can take beautiful images with any camera providing that you know the limitations of the other parts of your setup.So let us know the other pieces of your setup so we can suggest a camera that suits better.
"Jacek" a forum member captures amazing images using point and shoot cameras.

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