Re: Stereo microscope photography

[fj834@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx (Dr. George A. Themelis)]

>Is it possible to use a Realist type
>camera to take pictures through the microscope? 

I do not have any experience *yet* but after reading the appropriate
chapter in the "Realist Manual" I realize that it is not as simple as it
sounds.  You could just point the camera and snap a picture, but if you want
to do the job right you have to worry about the following:

1. The eyepieces are not parallel but diverge.  To take care of this you
need a set of prisms to go between each eyepiece and the camera lens. 
This is discussed in great detail in the book.

2. Exposure.  Good luck!  The book says that there in no gain in
closing down the aperture.  Something like f5.6 might be OK.  Don't forget
color balance if you are shooting color slide film.

3. Supporting the camera.  Not a trivial job.  You should see some of the
setups shown in the book...

4. Focusing.  First you need to focus the microscope.  One trick I learned
from the book is that you should always use the *same* eye to focus
each eyepiece.  To focus the camera you set it at infinity and use a ground
glass and adjust the microsope focusing until the image is sharp.  Here is
another trick:  The book recommends that you use an identical camera with
open back and ground glass to do the focusing and then switch to the loaded
camera.  Simple, right? ;)

It appears that using and SLR might be a blessing.  Back then they had no
option.  With an SLR and taking one picture at a time (rules out anything
that moves) you don't have to worry about #1.  The camera has a lightmeter
for #2 and you can see the image and focus properly #4.  You only need to
worry about how to support the camera and connect it to the microscope.  It
seems to me that it is a good idea to attach one eyepiece to the lens and
then use the same eyepiece to take each picture.  I'll let you know what I
find when I actually try and do it instead of thinking about it! -- George


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