LowTech solution to a High Tech Problem

Last update 2012-07-24

Being on vacation, I got some spare time. I started thinking. Normally I don't but, seeing that I have some spare time... I bought a camera (Fujifilm HS30 EXR) to get a little more zoom and a little more light sensitivity. It seemed the right choice when looking at the specs. Well, specs aren't everything. There are many things in my new camera the specs don't explain. I won't delve into that, it's too complicated to even try.

I had a specific problem I needed to solve. The zoom capability was meant to enhance my photographing the birds in their flight. The bloody birds fly very fast! It was impossible to find them on the LCD viewer and place them in the center of the picture so the camera could focus and then press the trigger to get the camera to take the picture. When I was finished doing that the birds had migrated to southern Europe for the winter.

So I fixed it.

Have a look at my low tech solution (steel wire aiming device). The first picture shows the aiming device. When you see your target, you 1) first align the aming device by aligning the two tips to the same height (| |) and then so they look as one (|) , and then 2) follow your target keeping your alignment at all times and 3) pressing the trigger button when the target is targeted.
See the following three pictures illustrating the alignment, you'll get the idea...

 Now I just had to calibrate my sight against a stable object and when things appearing juuust above the steel wire endpoints, pressuring the trigger should result in an image with the object in the middle.

When done I tried some bird shooting.
Like this:

Bathing, getting wet.

OK, done. Flapping wings to get dry.

And awaaay I go!

Success! This made me search for a red dot sight that would be my high tech solution to the same problem! Nothing like testing ones theories before action!
Bragging about this in another blog post, naturally.