Our tank's biology up close

jason2459 said:
ATS_Sample_with_new_AccuScope_EXC-350-0037 by Jason, on Flickr

ATS_Sample_with_new_AccuScope_EXC-350-0047 by Jason, on Flickr

ATS_Sample_with_new_AccuScope_EXC-350-0050 by Jason, on Flickr

ATS_Sample_with_new_AccuScope_EXC-350-0051 by Jason, on Flickr

Those are some GREAT pics with your new scope!!! The clarity and resolution is phenomenal! I know you'll enjoy playing with your new toy...and we'll all enjoy seeing the pics! Thanks for sharing!

jason2459 · Jul 23, 2017

Scubabeth said:
Those are some GREAT pics with your new scope!!! The clarity and resolution is phenomenal! I know you'll enjoy playing with your new toy...and we'll all enjoy seeing the pics! Thanks for sharing!

Thanks, I'm hoping the software improves. I'll be emailing them with my experience with it so far. What I can see through the eye pieces is actually even clearer, crisper, and much brighter it's amazing. Before I could get better images and video then what I could see through the eyepieces through software manipulation. Now I didn't have to manipulate anything and I could still get a better view through the eyepieces.

Though I do have to comment I'm not so much a fan of the Siedentopf head. I probably just have to get used to it compared to the slide in and out adjustment for the omax.

jason2459 · Jul 23, 2017

VIDEO

edit: oh yeah, if you have a good connection crank these up to 1080p!! Previous video could only do 720p.

I have to start with this one. I'm not sure exactly what it is. Moves much faster then the baby bristle worms I've seen before but resembles them all the same. I did not see any bristles though.

Previous video of a tiny bristle worm

Maybe this is them even younger?

Either way this sucker can move AND I caught it eating and swallowing some food here at the beginning. I followed it for a very long time hoping to catch it doing it again. I had to stop as I was getting very motion sick. lol

As it was going along I caught another one even smaller.

jason2459 · Jul 23, 2017

jason2459 · Jul 23, 2017

jason2459 · Jul 23, 2017

jason2459 · Jul 23, 2017

jason2459 · Jul 23, 2017

Brew12 · Jul 23, 2017

pfft.. I'm not impressed.

Ok, I lied... these new videos are amazing!

jason2459 · Jul 23, 2017

Brew12 said:
pfft.. I'm not impressed.

Ok, I lied... these new videos are amazing!

Thanks, I hope to get them even better. The software wasn't pulling the frames per second that the camera could support for one and then it kept flaring at me which was annoying. It happens in a couple of the videos above. and I think a couple of the pictures above if you see any pink dots it's from the software. Towards the end I was getting used to the dual light controls on the microscope which helped tremendously in just he image quality over all.

The pictures I'm taking at full resolution at 5440x3648 and the Videos I'm trying to get the highest frame rate possible bringing it down to it's lowest resolution at 1824x1216 which is still higher then the previous 5MP omax camera I had at mid-resolution just to get somewhat respectable FPS. The camera at 1824x1216 is supposed to hit up to 60FPS. The software wasn't coming close it. I think it averaged around 10-20fps and peaks of around 30ish fps. The omax 5MP I had capturing videos at 1280x960 and was supposed to support at that resolution up to 18fps which it normally was around 10ish fps.

Which was still better then omax camera was I guess but I paid a good amount for this new Sony sensor and I want to come close to hitting it's full potential. I'd like to see it maintain over 30fps even at the highest magnifications and exposures which is hard for the sensors to keep up from what I've read so 20-30fps would be understandable.

The vignetting bothers me too. It's not much just the corners but it still irks me it's there. I'd also like to get a slightly wider field of view so I'll probably order that .67x C-mount tomorrow from microscopecentral.com and see how it works. I'm going to ask them first what kind of return policy they have in case it just sucks and makes everything worse.

jason2459 · Jul 28, 2017

Played around again tonight with another sample from my ATS.

I got the .67x C-Mount in and I think I like it better. FOV of a bit better and the vignetting is reduced to almost nothing. There is a very slight amount in the corners still and mainly seen at the 4x/10x objectives. 10x less so. 4x definitely so. But I rarely ever use the 4x. I'm thinking of replacing the 4x with a 20x. So, it would be 10x, 20x, 40x, 60x, and 100x on the nosepiece. I like the focusing on the .67x c-mount better then the one on the 1x as well. The 1x mount was an Allen wrench and had to manually very carefully adjust up and down. Which at least it had that to focus the camera to the eyepieces. The .67x mount has a focusing ring you twist back and forth and easier to fine tune the focus to the eye pieces.

The slightly wider FOV also seemed to allow more light in which allowed me to reduce the exposure which in effect helped increase the frame rate which was a nice added bonus. I also played around a bit more with the irises and switching to camera only allowed a ton of light to the camera. Super awesome the Exc-350 allows light to be split between eyepieces and camera or camera only. Every little bit of playing around helped and was able to keep the frame rates up closer to around 30fps which was awesome. So, happy there now and will keep trying things to help.

The latest version of ToupView though still is a bit buggy. Auto exposure sucks now, even just the slightest bit of over exposure flairs pink, and still had a couple crashes. I still need to email them. Otherwise though it's full of a lot of new features I really have got to dive into. One of them is not a new feature and that is to get the measurements added to the pictures. I just need to take the time to do it.

I also played around with some darkfield stops. Not so impressed with it. I did find the software has a feature for darkfield correction which actually helped a good bit but still wasn't to impressed. I got a bit better with it and maybe I just need more practice to get better but I preferred the brightfield to it but could be just me too.

Then finally I found an ID to something I've seen several times in the past. It turns out this something is poop. I was able to capture a copepod eating, digesting, and pooping.

Pictures and videos will be uploading here soon.

But overall

I'm extremely happy with the new microscope and more then I though I would be and look forward to more additions to it like phase contrast and 20x lens
getting happier with the camera and capture software but wish there was 0 vignetting
disappointed the new software is a bit buggy and hope they fix it
not so impressed with the darkfield but could be me and need more practice

jason2459 · Jul 28, 2017

jason2459 said:

I love positive ID's

taricha;25162595 said:
Dorvilleidae worm! Very cool.
http://chucksaddiction.thefishestate.net/hitchworms.html

I still wonder then if the smaller ones I just recently captured are the same as that bigger one (Dorvilleidae worm) or something different as they are slightly different shape in the rear and I saw no bristles but doesn't mean they weren't there.