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 Post subject: USB magnifier/microscope
PostPosted: Wed Jan 07, 2015 2:00 pm 
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Joined: Mon Jul 16, 2012 12:42 pm
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Location: North Carolina
Greetings all,

Has anyone used one of these to photograph gemstones?

http://www.amazon.com/Plugable-Handheld-Digital-Microscope-Magnification/dp/B00AFH3IN4/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1420653492&sr=8-1&keywords=usb+microscope


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 Post subject: Re: USB magnifier/microscope
PostPosted: Wed Jan 07, 2015 2:37 pm 
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Joined: Mon Apr 02, 2012 9:31 pm
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Location: North Carolina
Yes.
Image
Rutile in quartz
Image
Chlorite in quartz
Image
Image
Two tourmalines
Obviously not something I've spent much time with yet. Regardless the results are not amazing.
And don't pay that much for one, they're very cheap on eBay.

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 Post subject: Re: USB magnifier/microscope
PostPosted: Fri Jan 09, 2015 12:26 am 
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Joined: Mon Oct 17, 2005 10:56 am
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I have a very similar one and have never been able to make it work right for me :? .

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 Post subject: Re: USB magnifier/microscope
PostPosted: Sat Jan 17, 2015 7:42 am 
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Joined: Tue May 28, 2013 9:44 pm
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Im with Barbara on this, i could never get mine to work ether. I gave it to my nieces to play with.

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 Post subject: Re: USB magnifier/microscope
PostPosted: Sat Jan 17, 2015 9:01 pm 
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I had no trouble on the software side of things. But the hardware is a bit clunky, and it's hard to adjust the focus without moving it, and given the very shallow depth of field that's a real problem.

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 Post subject: Re: USB magnifier/microscope
PostPosted: Fri Jan 23, 2015 6:54 am 
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Joined: Mon Jul 16, 2012 12:42 pm
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Location: North Carolina
Greetings,

Thank you for all the replies. The limited depth of field does concern me. The primary purpose is to photograph gemstones for "off the dop" and the marketplace. The cameras I currently have just does not do the job even with a tripod (you have seen my pictures).


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 Post subject: Re: USB magnifier/microscope
PostPosted: Fri Jan 23, 2015 10:53 am 
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This is definitely not suited for that purpose, then. The magnification is essentially non-negotiable and image quality is pretty darn low. Depth of field is also pretty darned important for faceted stones, since you have to negotiate making both the crown and pavilion look reasonably good at the same time. You'd probably do better to just invest in a real camera--even if you get an older or used model at this point you can get pretty good quality for a reasonable price.

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