Digiscoping photography by Anders Hammergart
 
Anders Hammergart is from Denmark but travels to such countries as Greece, Spain and Sweden to birdwatch and digiscope.

Digiscoping makes use of a birdwatchers telescope by using it as a powerful lens through which a digital camera can take photographs. The telescope is normally mounted on a tripod and the camera can simply be held and focussed on the telescope eyepiece image to take a photograph.
For better and more consistant results an adaptor is used to attach the camera to the telescope and hold it steady.

This can be the most cost effective route to digital wildlife photography if you already have a suitable telescope and tripod, as you might be able to use a simple inexpensive camera. Digiscoping makes it possible to take photographs which could not otherwise be obtained except by very expensive heavy lenses.

This type of photography is limited by having to use a tripod.


Anders photographs feature on our bird species pages and Roys Diary September 2006
 

From Anders: My digiscoping equipment consists of three things: My camera, a Canon IXUS 500, an adapter made of a friend of mine, and my telescope, a Leica APO televid 77mm.

The adapter is made to fit the ocular. In the opposite end of the adapter the camera fits in here. What I do when I take pictures is as follows: After finding the bird(s) I focus through the telescope, I put on the adapter and check through this that the bird is still there, put the camera down in the adapter and shoot. I often make quite many shots to make sure, that at least one or two pictures are all right.

 

The advantages is that I can't shoot birds from a distance up to may be 100 meters and still get a descent photo, at least as a documentation.

The disadvantages is that I can’t shoot flying birds and if the bird I have focused on are moving just a little bit the photo won't be sharp.

I send you some photos of the adapter. Anyone should feel free to copy it.

 

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