Can I mount a DSLR with a reversed enlarger lens to a stereo microscope eyepiece, or do I need a microscope camera adapter?
Asked 6/6/2019
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I want to photograph insects for taxonomy using a stereo/dissection microscope. I currently use a phone camera aimed into the eyepiece, and I’d like to upgrade to a Nikon D3300. I already have an El-Nikkor 50mm f/2.8N and was considering this setup:
Nikon F mount reverse adapter → step rings → El-Nikkor 50mm lens, with the camera aimed into the microscope eyepiece.
Will this arrangement work for shooting through the microscope, and does the enlarger lens need to be reversed in this application? Also, if I instead mounted a microscope objective directly to the DSLR for macro, would that give similar magnification to using the camera on the microscope?
Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
Photography Stack Exchange contributor
7y ago
2 Answers
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Consider using a microscope-camera adapter. You can search your favorite auction site for "microscope camera nikon adapter".
I just wanted to double check my reducing set-up before I went ahead and bought everything... I will be setting up the camera so that its lens points down into the eyepiece of a dissection microscope...
The setup you describe will not work.
It should not be necessary to reverse the lens when using it to view through a microscope. That you were able to use your phone camera supports this.
If you wish to use the reversed lens without a microscope, you need a step-up ring. The up/down is with respect to how it is mounted on the lens, not the reversal adapter. A single 40.5-52 step-up ring is available. Search your favorite auction site.
Would I get just as much magnification using a microscope objective lens attached to my DSLR itself, or would I get more through... my camera being adapted to a microscope?
The objective is designed to be used with a microscope. To attach it to a camera without a microscope, you'd have to replace the microscope with something else to hold the objective an appropriate distance from the camera.
The article you mention (Using Microscope Objectives For Beginners) appears to replace the microscope with a tube or telephoto lens. The microscope would be better because you already have it, it's weight would prevent vibration, and it has a built-in light source. I'd expect about the same level of magnification either way.
Using the microscope objective with some sort of adapter might be reasonable if you need "extreme" magnification in the field. I have not used those adapters before, so do not know how well they would work. Although each adapter is not very expensive, the costs would add up with the trial and error that would likely be required.
Since you already have the El-Nikkor lens and microscope, you might as well order a reversal ring + step-up adapter as well as a microscope adapter to try both options to see what works best for you. The rings and adapters are all fairly inexpensive.
Originally by user75526. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
user75526
7y ago
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Generated from our catalog & community — verify before relying on it.
For shooting through a stereo microscope eyepiece, your proposed reversed-lens setup is not the right approach. When imaging through a microscope, it generally should not be necessary to reverse the lens; the fact that a phone camera works through the eyepiece is a good clue.
The practical solution is to use a microscope-to-camera adapter made for your microscope/camera combination rather than stacking reverse adapters and step rings onto an enlarger lens.
If you want to use the El-Nikkor by itself for macro photography without the microscope, then reversing it can make sense. In that case, use the correct ring direction: you’d want a step-up ring to go from the lens filter thread to the larger adapter size.
As for magnification, a microscope objective mounted directly on a DSLR is a different setup from afocal photography through a microscope eyepiece, so magnification is not directly comparable without the full optical details of each system. The main takeaway from the answers is: for photographing through the microscope, use a proper microscope camera adapter rather than a reversed enlarger lens.
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