MicrobeHunter.com Microscopy Forum

I would like to see a discussion concerning what works for you when collecting and viewing pond life.

What scopes, techniques (brightfield/darkfield/phase/etc) do you use?

What magnifications are most commonly used?

What tools/techniques for sample collections and lab hardware do you use?

Concerning taking pictures/videos, what equipment/techniques do you use?

Any other sites/forums covering pond life you would recommend?

What books would you recommend on the subject?

Thanks

Nice initiative !

I will shortly describe my workflow

Collecting
with a small jar on a rope used to collect superficial material from the soil. Sometimes some plant material is also collected.

Preparing a sample
At home, preparations are made with pipettes and by occasionally using a preparation needle.

Light source
With the microscope, I use almost only bright field.

Observing
To look for organisms in the specimen, the 4x and 10x objectives are used first. If something is found the 40x.

Camera
A Moticam camera attached to the laptop is used.

Literature
Determining with the (German-language) book: Das Leben im Wassertropfen.
Search the internet.
Another very good and informative book (in German): http://www.mikrohamburg.de/Tips/PlanktonGerdSchmahl.pdf

Most of my ditch dipping is for mosquitoes, but I do occasionally bring a sample in to look at more closely.

I tend to use my AO10 with phase for most stuff, but I will sometimes use darkfield or regular brightfield.
Of all the stuff I have, I think my dipper is most interesting. It's just a typical plastic bottle cut up so that it's the bottom 1/4 or so with a 1 inch/25mm strip along the side as a tang which I tape to the pole. It's been quite handy.

Thank you for the responses…it is helpful to know what others use.

Anybody else?

Thanks

What magnifications are most frequently used?

Is 400x useful?

20x .5na is useful, sometimes 10x isn't quite enough but 40 .65 d.o.f is also more limited, when using well slides with a ring,40x working distance can limit viewing the boundaries, unless you have LWD or inverted
Rotating table is a nice thing to have.
I.R filter if you have halogen, reduces convection and boiling sensitive critters.
LED is still not my preference but each to their own.

I generally use pipettes or a Turkey Baster (giant Pipette!). I use brighfield, either an inverted microscope and petri dishes or regular stand with well slides. I start with 10X/20X to locate a subject then zoom in as needed.

Thanks for the advice.

I have have an inverted Hund scope with 4x, 10x and 20x and I am looking for a 40x LWD phase objective which is very hard to find.

Of course ‘more power’ is always wanted but I am wondering how often I would use it.

Thoughts?

Scoper wrote: ↑

Mon Mar 20, 2023 10:05 pm

Thanks for the advice.

I have have an inverted Hund scope with 4x, 10x and 20x and I am looking for a 40x LWD phase objective which is very hard to find.

Of course ‘more power’ is always wanted but I am wondering how often I would use it.

Thoughts?

Yes you would probably get enough use to make it worth having.
Maybe pick up a LWD 40x without phase if you find one.
That way you can better decide the value of adding phase if it turns up.

For pond life I have a 40x oil immersion objective and a 40x phase objective. I (almost) always use the oil for my videos. Much better clarity.

What power is your oil objective?

If you're referring to me, 40x oil.

It's a case of N/A. The reduced d.o.f is a trade off for higher resolution.
I have 50x .95 oil which is good for resolution but 40x .65 is much less fussy for anything moving in suspension.

When using oil, how are your live specimens contained?

Scoper wrote: ↑

Tue Mar 21, 2023 8:03 pm

When using oil, how are your live specimens contained?

I'm careful to not overfill. The cover glass contains the water without anything leaking. I tried cavity slides which are fine for lower power, but with 40x the depth of those slides cause too many focus issues. I'm considering a petri dish with a cover glass bottom built in but here in Thailand they're ridiculously expensive to order.

Mine is pretty simple, a field scope, a few test tubes with plugs, a couple of small bottles, a toothbrush, some pipettes, slides, a few cover slips, clean water, and a couple of small microfiber cloths. Once back home, process and photograph with a real scope. I have quite a few scopes to choose from.

-JW: