My new microscope!!!

Danny, Michael, and I (Tom) couldn't be happier and more impressed with our members and friends! It would be wonderful if we all got to know each other better. Here's a forum to post images and short autobiographies of ourselves as well as any other info you would like to post about yourself. We are looking forward to meeting you all!

Moderators: nzmacro, Ken Ramos, twebster, S. Alden

Locked
User avatar
piotr
Posts: 445
Joined: Wed Apr 28, 2004 8:44 am
Location: San Diego
Contact:

My new microscope!!!

Post by piotr »

Please let me introduce my new Zeiss Photomicroscope III (circa 1980) :) :) :)

Image

The microscope is a real pleasure to use, although I need to solve some problems (e.g. circular stage knobs are quite stiff). It is equipped with Optovar (including a Bertrand lens), a set of filters, and a built-in 35mm camera that I haven't tried yet.

Thanks to immense help from Ron Neumeyer I supplied the microscope with fiber optic illuminator that works very nice, and a very beautiful nylon cover.

So far I only have a very modest set of objectives: 25x/0.60 Zeiss Neofluar, which is excellent, and 45x/0.65 Leitz objective. Actually, the 25x objective used together with 2x Optovar setting gives results very similar to that of 45x objective.

I don't have any camera adapter yet, so I use my Sony DSC-V1 camera handheld at eyepiece. I posted a polarized light picture of Paramecium in another thread. This picture was taken using the new microscope and simple home-made polarizer, analyzer, and retardation plate.

My old trusty AO-20 will remain a backup microscope - at least until I get a phase contrast setup for the Zeiss.
Last edited by piotr on Thu Mar 31, 2005 3:55 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Piotr

User avatar
Mike
Posts: 217
Joined: Sun Dec 12, 2004 10:26 am
Location: Northeast Ohio, USA

Post by Mike »

Hello Piotr,

Congratulations on the new scope! It is a beauty and I can understand your enthusiasm and excitement.

Although I am a Leitz Orthoplan man, I think the Universal is a great instrument and certainly has 'sexier' lines than the O'plans.

I started with AO also, a pair of 110s' and have nothing but respect for their capabilities, but the big research stands with the ability to do all forms of illumination and whatever else one might decide with light microscopy take one to the next level. (Did I mention it takes the bank account down new levels?)

I'm just a wee bit envious of you; enjoy that 'new scope' feeling!

All the best,

Mike

Charles Krebs
Posts: 1200
Joined: Tue Jul 13, 2004 10:50 am
Location: Issaquah, WA USA

Post by Charles Krebs »

That is one gorgeous piece of hardware Piotr! Congratulations. It should give you years of great viewing.

User avatar
Kenv
Posts: 852
Joined: Mon May 24, 2004 6:51 pm
Location: New Zealand

Post by Kenv »

Good on yer M8t - it looks a beaut!
Kenv
Ken

User avatar
twebster
Site Admin
Posts: 1518
Joined: Mon Apr 19, 2004 10:55 pm
Location: Phoenix "Valley of the Sun", Arizona, USA

Post by twebster »

Hi ya' Piotr :D

That's just fabulous, my friend. :!: :D I must admit I am a little envious, too. That is the microscope of my dreams. I'm glad to see you got it. Now...post them images :!: :D

Best regards as always, Piotr :D
Tom Webster
Administrator

Phoenix "The Valley of the Sun", Arizona, USA

Think about this...maybe Murphy is an optimist!!!

Guest

Re: My new microscope!!!

Post by Guest »

What a beast!
Beaty is in the eye of the beholder, but I'm sure it will give you years of fruitful results. Congrats, hope you will be able (at some stage) to get it fitted with DIC?!

Rene.

User avatar
Ken Ramos
Site Admin
Posts: 4809
Joined: Tue May 04, 2004 7:58 pm
Location: Western North Carolina

Post by Ken Ramos »

That is one nice scope Piotr :o I have to be just a little envious as the rest, maybe a lot. Sure is something, man thats nice. :D
Site Admin.
Kenneth Ramos
Rutherfordton, North Carolina
Kens Microscopy
Reposts of my images within the galleries are welcome, as are constructive critical critiques.

User avatar
piotr
Posts: 445
Joined: Wed Apr 28, 2004 8:44 am
Location: San Diego
Contact:

Post by piotr »

Thank you, guys!!! :-)

The scope is very nice, and it performs very well. Image is crisp, a little bit better than the AO. I can only compare 20x/0.50 achromat and 25x/0.60 fluorite. Speaking of captured pictures - not much better than the old AO. Apparently, I haven't yet found a good way of connecting my digital Sony camera to the microscope. Here fun begins...

Nomarski DIC is my dream. And a set of planapos. Maybe in the next 10 years... For now, the damage to my bank account is something I wouldn't like talking about. :-(

But the 'new microscope' feeling is VERY rewarding! :-) :-) :-)
Piotr

cassian
Posts: 26
Joined: Fri Feb 25, 2005 1:23 pm
Location: London

Post by cassian »

Nice clean scope there Piotr! I will be watching with interest any images you produce with it as I use the same model.

Best of Luck! ..cassian

User avatar
piotr
Posts: 445
Joined: Wed Apr 28, 2004 8:44 am
Location: San Diego
Contact:

Post by piotr »

Cassian, thank you, I hope to exchange our experiences! :-)

So far, I'm using a Sony DSC-V1 camera hand-held at eyepiece. I'm getting mixed results. I will hunt for an inclined mono-tube to attach the camera to the microscope.

I almost finished a first roll of film using internal camera. I have one problem with the camera, though: the film doesn't automatically advance. I have to press "!" button between shots. It looks like a multi-exposure feature is enabled, although I checked a corresponding switch and it seems to be disabled. Many mysteries to solve!
Piotr

Locked