Re: R8 & Spotting Scope

["Roy C. Zartarian" <royzart@connix.com>]

On Sat, 16 Aug 1997, Richard Clompus wrote:

> Has anyone used an R Leica with the photo adapter and the Leica Spotting
> Scopes?  Don't quote me but I think the scope has the effect of about a
> ?500mm f10 lens.   Since I already have the spotting scope and the R
> camera, it would be nice to use them as a team.  

Despite the propaganda out of Solms, one is not restricted to the R series
of SLRs with the Televid. I've got the APO-Televid with the camera adapter
onto which I hang through a T mount a Nikon body, generally an FM2
because it's the lightest I have. I've found a motor drive a useful
accessory so that I can concentrate on framing and focus without the
distraction of the manual wind on.

The combination gives you an 800 mm f/10.6 lens.  I've used the setup to
get birds at the feeders during the winter and on early spring trips to a
shoreline state park.  The optics, to my eye, are fantastic in terms of
color rendition and sharpness. OTOH, depth of field at shorter distances
(e.g. a junco on the ground 30 feet away) is razor thin.  So expect a
number of out-of-focus shots.  Exposure settings can be made only changing
the exposure time so you may find yourself shooting at 1/15th or 1/8th of
a second in some lighting conditions even with ISO 400 film. Without
appropriate carrying gear, the rig (tripod, scope, camera body sticking
out at an odd angle if you've the angled scope) is a bit cumbersome to lug
(no pun intended) around. I have since added the Outpack scope pack
(dist'd by Saunders here in the U.S.) to my collection of bags and found
it very useful for carrying the scope and tripod on the back for birding
trips.

Unfortunately the camera body adapter has a threaded mounted rather than
the bayonet type of the eyepieces. Switching from an eyepiece to the
camera adapter requires a bit of finesse to get the threads properly
aligned.  I've found it best to remove the adapter from the camera body,
mount the adapter (generally on the third try), then attach the camera
body.

The hood of the scope is threaded for a 77mm diameter filter. Perhaps
someone in the group is indeed using a filter UVa filter and can tell us
whether the additional glass at the front of the hood has any positive or
negative effect on the image seen.  While the filter would protect the
front element from, say, wind blown sand, I would think that its location
poses the possibility of flare.    


Written by:	Roy C. Zartarian	| Prophets are not without honor
		25 Stuart Street	| except in their own country
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		http://www.connix.com/~royzart