MicrobeHunter.com Microscopy Forum

Hi, I read in the Olympus manual and also in the Zeiss cleaning manual that you should *never* clean internal optics yourself, but let an authorized service center do the cleaning. Does any one here have any experience or knowledge from this and what would be the reason? Is it so that the coating is...

Do you really mean "telescope" as in looking at things far away or do you mean "microscope" as in looking at tiny things?

Very good comparison!

I use them as well. I think they are good

They are creepy animals... I read somewhere that 80% of all animals on earth are Nematods. Up to 1 million in a cubic meeter of moist soil...

Nice video! I agree with Gekko. My UplanFl 4x-100x are all Phase Objectives. They produce excellent images in all illumination techniques, BF, DF, DIC, and of course, phase. I have heard that the small translucent phase ring may create a slight blur in some areas, but I have never noticed any such t...

Thank you for this link! Very good information!

Thanks everyone! Yes, hope they hook, but you never know. I bought a reichert neopan in excellent condition for them to play with. Got a good deal, $30. (!)

Thanks! We hade great fun!

Very nice work! Almost like a 3D effect!

I found this article. Talks about the use of the FM-31. I agree with you 75RR. I like the FM-31 more and more. It has potential, even though I have not managed to get all the parts for it yet.

http://www.microscopy-uk.org.uk/mag/ind ... field.html

I also think DIY darkfield stop may work well with the FM-31. LED head lamps like this one: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00SWQXY1G/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1 may provide more light than mini mag lite, while weighting less (if you take it apart - I use one for my portable scope...

Amazing what a difference an objective makes! What is the power/NA of the fluorite objective? Yes, agree. The 40X fluorite has NA 0.75. Remember thought that it is not only the objective that differs. The light source, condenser is designed for high aperture. Also in that image the camera is mounte...

On the other hand, in most cases, a field microscope is used to quickly browse through the samples to see if you have anything of interest. I would say that the ability to achieve contrast would be more important to be able to see transparent objects. That is why I think the Phase-Contrast objective...

OK, here we go again. I tried oblique but had a hard time increasing resolution. I used the Klaus Kemp "test plate" and the big diatom with very fine mesh inside did not resolve. I included an image from the BX51 as a comparison which (barely) managed to resolve the criss-cross pattern. I think the ...

Here is a link to the post with the final result!

viewtopic.php?f=6&t=3627

As a "summer project" from my kids and myself we made a movie of what we found in a drop of water. I want to engage them early in this hobby! I want to thank all forum members who helped out identifying the microbes in the video in an early version of the film. The sample water came from a pond at a...

Thank you all for your valuable comments! I am impressed by your skills to identify my finds! I will post a new movie tomorrow with updated description for each clip.

Thanks for posting these! Really stunning images and also a good story. Images gets so much better when there is a story behind them! Fascinating with the Amoeba that glues sand to its body!

Ok, I'll do it over again. This time with the "test" slide and with delayed triggering. Perhaps that will improve the sharpness a bit. Also, I will try to get better white balance. I will cut a cardboard piece and see if I can get oblique illumination. There are two slots just above the condenser le...

I was asked to test my Swift FM-31 field microscope with Klaus Kemps diatom slides to show how well the 40x objective performs in terms of resolution. I have two versions of these field microscopes. One equipped with normal (4x, 10x and 40x) objectives where you use regular slides and cover glasses....

^ Thank you. I was under the impression that at least some FM-31 clones do not have condenser. It would he highly appreciated, if you can run the FM-31 with some Klaus Kemp test diatoms. Maybe Nitschia or Pleurosigma. I wonder if the 40x objective and condenser combo is really performing at NA 0.65...

I like how you shifted the focus when the other guy swimmed up to the rotifer

Just saw this video. Very fascinating and inspiring! I will try this.

Very nice images! DIC rocks.

The pocket microscope you have is a Swift FM-31, not a Omax clone, correct? Do you know if it has condenser lens under light source - how does its 40x objective perform (with a condenser lens, NA 0.65 cannot be reached)? Yes, it is a Swift FM-31. Works OK. It does have a condenser assembly, but I d...

Thank you Kurt, zzffnn and kit1980. I will update the titles accordingly! Yes, I agree with you about the location. It is much more fun if you know where to find what you are looking at. The "pond" shown is very close to our summer house. At Åland, a small island in the middle of the Baltic Sea. I l...

Hi, I am compiling a movie and would appreciate any help I can get to identify some of the creatures in the movie. I will give credit at the end of the movie for those who successfully identified the right species. (or you can be anonymous of course :)) Unfortunately, my identification skills (among...

Very nice images!

Thanks for the tip. I also have 5-6 boxes of those smaller slides. I suspect distortion gets worse since you will have double thickness glass?