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Do you have a microscope?

Do you have a microsope?

  • Yes

  • No

  • More than one

  • Reasonable facsimile

Results are only viewable after voting.
Muse

Muse

Lifer
I had a really cheap one as a kid, had three lenses on a swivel.

I have some super tiny insects suddenly this summer and I'd like a close up view. I have a 10x loop, but don't know how much help that would be. Occasionally, I wish I had a microscope. I looked, there's a lot out there, don't know what would be a smart buy.
 
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I think that a microscope, short of an educational tool for young people, is of little use to most of us. Of course there are occupations that require one. But I have no idea what those would cost. Amateur photographers, depending on their specialty, might benefit.

A more practical "toy" is a compact pair of binoculars. You can take them anywhere. Last night we had a clear sky, and viewing the lunar eclipse could not be easier. My compact Nikon 8x25 binoculars were perfect for this. I suppose a telescope would have been much better, but a telescope is not as handy or portable. Binoculars are also great for taking hikes in the country.

I did search on microscope amateur, and I came up with this website. You might do the same to get a better idea of what is available and where you might purchase one.

http://www.photomacrography.net/amateurmicroscopy/Articles/Worlds_Best/worlds_best.htm
 
I don't have a microscope, personally, but I have access to them. I also have access to an NMR spectrometer, for "looking" at stuff at an atomic level.
 
I think I use to have one at some point int time. Definitely not as interesting as the atomic force and electron microscopes I used in college though.
 
TheGardener said:
I think that a microscope, short of an educational tool for young people, is of little use to most of us. Of course there are occupations that require one. But I have no idea what those would cost.
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If buying a new transmitted light microscope, university students might spend $2500 or so I'm guessing. You can get used low end ones under US$1500. In contrast, a research lab might spend $50000 or more for one. A regular lab physician might need a microscope anywhere from $15000-$25000.

However, I'm talking mainly for looking at tissue glass slides (like at universities and hospitals). They aren't really the most appropriate scopes for taking pictures of 3 dimensional objects.

What struck me about the TV show CSI is they were using 5-digit $ microscopes as props. Are they getting a great deal on them from the manufacturers, as a form of advertising maybe?
 
Eug said:
What struck me about the TV show CSI is they were using 5-digit $ microscopes as props. Are they getting a great deal on them from the manufacturers, as a form of advertising maybe?
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Dumpster diving. When they start diving into cumdumpsters then the show has jumped the shark. Get out while you can.
 
Celestron makes some nice affordable scopes for hobbyists.

I have this one and I like it:
celestron_44308_handheld_digital_microscope_pro_917588.jpg
 
Eug said:
What struck me about the TV show CSI is they were using 5-digit $ microscopes as props. Are they getting a great deal on them from the manufacturers, as a form of advertising maybe?
Click to expand...
Maybe the manufacturers have some reasonable looking fakes? I'd hate to think a perfectly good confocal or whatever was being wasted like that.
 
I have a cheap one I got from a thrift shop. Forgot I had it til this thread. I haven't used it in awhile. It's well made, but nothing exceptional. looks like it's from a high school science class circa 1978.
 
Eug said:
What struck me about the TV show CSI is they were using 5-digit $ microscopes as props. Are they getting a great deal on them from the manufacturers, as a form of advertising maybe?
Click to expand...
I've noticed stuff like that from time to time. Either its some kind of product placement agreement, or they're just bare-bones, cheap glass, no accessories kinds of setups. Probably a bit of both.
 
I had a toy one as a kid, it was actually kinda neat, it worked by light reflecting so it can display what I see on a screen. I also had a small portable one that I could just stick on something (had a "shield" to get focal point right) and I could look in the eye piece. I might still have that thing somewhere actually... Now the only form of microscope I have is if I put my camera lens backwards. You can get decent zoom that way, such as this:




That's an earwig.

At some point I'd like to be able to go even deeper though. I've seen some pretty crazy pics of snow flakes, but you need to go probably like 100x more zoom than that. At that point you're probably looking at professional level microscope with camera attachement. Though apparently it can be done with two prime lenses back to back. Though an actual microscope could be fun to play with too.
 
For a lot of this stuff, you'd be better of just getting a macro lens for your camera.

For example, this is a hand held macro shot of a guy (literally) hangin' out on my window.

BigSpider2-crop.jpg


Cerpin Taxt said:
I've noticed stuff like that from time to time. Either its some kind of product placement agreement, or they're just bare-bones, cheap glass, no accessories kinds of setups. Probably a bit of both.
Click to expand...
Cheap glass maybe but definitely not bare bones IIRC. These were high end tricked out setups.

I'm just trying to figure out how product placement like this actually works. It's not as if consumers go out and buy $30000 microscopes. Maybe it's just for brand name recognition? eg. They're hoping Olympus microscope advertising on CSI translates to Olympus point-and-shoot camera sales?

It's a lot easier to understand say Apple iMac or Dell monitor product placement. Those are directly purchased by consumers.
 
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Eug said:
For example, this is a hand held macro shot of a guy (literally) hangin' out on my window.

BigSpider2-crop.jpg
Click to expand...

There was a NOPE outside of your window and you took a picture instead of dousing it with a flamethrower until not 1 molecule of NOPE was left?
 
Yes, work with them daily...but they are the fancy type.

I picked up two of these for field work, and they have worked quite well for us. Basically has all you need, and relatively cheap

http://www.amazon.com/Nikon-20x-Field-Microscope-Mini/dp/B00006JK63

Oh, and you're in Berkeley...you can always check out UC Surplus. You can just browse the warehouse and buy junk, but if not part of UC....you might be limited to their public auctions? not sure

http://property.berkeley.edu/uc-berkeley-surplus

They have all sorts of old science junk piled up out there.
 
I did growing up.

Most shops have them for inspection/QA work, or better.

If ISO Aerospace certified, inspection will have many things.

I have optivisors with several magnifications for general use at work, in general.
 
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zinfamous said:
Yes, work with them daily...but they are the fancy type.

I picked up two of these for field work, and they have worked quite well for us. Basically has all you need, and relatively cheap

http://www.amazon.com/Nikon-20x-Field-Microscope-Mini/dp/B00006JK63

Oh, and you're in Berkeley...you can always check out UC Surplus. You can just browse the warehouse and buy junk, but if not part of UC....you might be limited to their public auctions? not sure

http://property.berkeley.edu/uc-berkeley-surplus

They have all sorts of old science junk piled up out there.
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Interesting. I work (volunteer) at the campus radio station, KALX, been doing so for decades. Maybe they'd let me shop the surplus as personnel, worth asking. Thanks!

Edit: The UC Berkeley Excess & Surplus Weekly Silent Auction starts in 2 hours, 15 minutes!
Eug said:
For a lot of this stuff, you'd be better of just getting a macro lens for your camera.
Click to expand...

I'm going to look and see what I can find. I have a Pentax K-x DSLR.
 
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