I also have need a camera stand that functions like Alex's but I don't have the same spare parts that he does. Can anyone suggest a product that would sit on top of the Orthoplan (so a relatively small base) and have adjustment knobs. I can't spend over $1k for a fancy copy stand, but I'd like to get suggestions for something to hold my Canon 6D.
Thanks
Bill
Leitz Orthoplan - bringing it back to life
Moderators: rjlittlefield, ChrisR, Chris S., Pau
Re: Leitz Orthoplan - bringing it back to life
Hi Bill
I have to admit to having a fairly substantial collection of adapter rings and old camera parts. Here's what I've come up with. Pau mentioned that you can use a standard 50mm lens focused to infinity placed as close as possible to an eyepiece mounted in the photo tube. This is what I've done. My current setup has my camera resting directly on the photo tube with the eyepiece about 2mm away from the front element of my Nikon AF-S 50mm f/1.8 G lens. I'm able to get full frame coverage.
My next challenge is figuring out microscopy in general!
Best of luck with your setup. Please post what you come up with.
I have to admit to having a fairly substantial collection of adapter rings and old camera parts. Here's what I've come up with. Pau mentioned that you can use a standard 50mm lens focused to infinity placed as close as possible to an eyepiece mounted in the photo tube. This is what I've done. My current setup has my camera resting directly on the photo tube with the eyepiece about 2mm away from the front element of my Nikon AF-S 50mm f/1.8 G lens. I'm able to get full frame coverage.
My next challenge is figuring out microscopy in general!
Best of luck with your setup. Please post what you come up with.
- mounted with Arca Swiss rail to counteract offset load due to Z9 having a heavy vertical grip
- from bottom to top:
- 30 mm photo tube (Leitz 543633)
- ring with Nikon lens mount (didn't find a part number on it). Luckily this fits very snugly onto the photo tube
- Periplan GW 8x M eyepiece
- Nikon BR3 ring with "body mount". I can click this directly to the lens mount below it
- 3 stepping rings that are what I had on hand to get the BR3 mated to the 58mm threads on the 50mm lens. I might find a 58mm - 52mm step down ring later which would take th place of all 3 rings.
- 50mm lens
- FTZ II
Re: Leitz Orthoplan - bringing it back to life
Hi Alex,
Very nice setup! Especially that you can get the whole field with your 50mm lens. I have a Canon 6D and a 50mm f1.4 lens that does not allow me to get close enough to the eyepiece to get the whole field of view. If you've not seen it yet, you can read about my trials and tribulations here:
viewtopic.php?f=15&t=45778
So I'm torn between buying a 40mm pancake lens and hoping that that will allow me a whole field of view doing it as you are, or doing something different like direct projection. The KAVAR does provide a reduced field of view (check the link above) but the main issue with the KAVAR is that the distance between the reducing lens in the KAVAR unit and the sensor screen on my camera is about 105mm (even when I take off the adapter ring and hand-hold the camera above the KAVAR threaded ring) while Leitz literature says it should be 83.3mm. (http://www.science-info.net/docs/leitz/ ... -15-64.pdf). I started to take apart the KAVAR top unit but saw that the reducing lens is built into that piece. So my only real option would be to cut the top piece off the KAVAR or get another camera that had a flange to sensor distance of about 20mm (my Canon flange to sensor is 44mm). I would like to point out that Pau had already pointed out this potential issue a couple years ago. I should have done my homework....
viewtopic.php?p=278481#p278481
My early attempts to do the "direct projection" imaging a la Charlie Krebs by "lifting" the 10X eyepiece in the phototube a couple mm(and KAVAR removed), and then having that image project onto the sensor screen of my Canon 6D have given REALLY nice sharp images in a couple cases, clearly better than those of the KAVAR and they show a larger field of view than the KAVAR. The problem with this is that I don't have a good way to hold the camera above the eyepiece at the best focused distance, and I don't have a bellows or other method to keep stray light out. So I have to invest in those things or invest in a 40mm pancake lens.
Bill
Very nice setup! Especially that you can get the whole field with your 50mm lens. I have a Canon 6D and a 50mm f1.4 lens that does not allow me to get close enough to the eyepiece to get the whole field of view. If you've not seen it yet, you can read about my trials and tribulations here:
viewtopic.php?f=15&t=45778
So I'm torn between buying a 40mm pancake lens and hoping that that will allow me a whole field of view doing it as you are, or doing something different like direct projection. The KAVAR does provide a reduced field of view (check the link above) but the main issue with the KAVAR is that the distance between the reducing lens in the KAVAR unit and the sensor screen on my camera is about 105mm (even when I take off the adapter ring and hand-hold the camera above the KAVAR threaded ring) while Leitz literature says it should be 83.3mm. (http://www.science-info.net/docs/leitz/ ... -15-64.pdf). I started to take apart the KAVAR top unit but saw that the reducing lens is built into that piece. So my only real option would be to cut the top piece off the KAVAR or get another camera that had a flange to sensor distance of about 20mm (my Canon flange to sensor is 44mm). I would like to point out that Pau had already pointed out this potential issue a couple years ago. I should have done my homework....
viewtopic.php?p=278481#p278481
My early attempts to do the "direct projection" imaging a la Charlie Krebs by "lifting" the 10X eyepiece in the phototube a couple mm(and KAVAR removed), and then having that image project onto the sensor screen of my Canon 6D have given REALLY nice sharp images in a couple cases, clearly better than those of the KAVAR and they show a larger field of view than the KAVAR. The problem with this is that I don't have a good way to hold the camera above the eyepiece at the best focused distance, and I don't have a bellows or other method to keep stray light out. So I have to invest in those things or invest in a 40mm pancake lens.
Bill
Re: Leitz Orthoplan - bringing it back to life
Alex, nice setup! good ideas and a touch of serendipity with the Nikon adapters make a good solution.
Bill, please revisit my last post at your thread viewtopic.php?p=287625#p287625
I don't recommend the 40mm with your eyepieces but (only with the GW 10X) a thinner 50mm lens like the Olympus Zuiko MC 50mm 1.8 I used to use viewtopic.php?p=99265#p99265 or the Alex's Nikon 50mm 1.8, both are adaptable to the Canon, also other 50/1.8 like Pentax or the Canon likely would be convenient.
I have some Leitz Plan Apo and PL fluotar objectives (160 TL corrected) and tested with the Pentax 40mm over the Periplan GF 10X red dot (18mm FN) delivering 1.6X they show some corner degradation in the Canon APSC sensor.
Bill, please revisit my last post at your thread viewtopic.php?p=287625#p287625
I don't recommend the 40mm with your eyepieces but (only with the GW 10X) a thinner 50mm lens like the Olympus Zuiko MC 50mm 1.8 I used to use viewtopic.php?p=99265#p99265 or the Alex's Nikon 50mm 1.8, both are adaptable to the Canon, also other 50/1.8 like Pentax or the Canon likely would be convenient.
I have some Leitz Plan Apo and PL fluotar objectives (160 TL corrected) and tested with the Pentax 40mm over the Periplan GF 10X red dot (18mm FN) delivering 1.6X they show some corner degradation in the Canon APSC sensor.
Pau