Digiscoping for butterflies

When the discussion turns to digiscoping (taking pictures through the eyepiece of a spotting scope with a small digital camera), most people think in terms of great bird pics. After all, it was an adventurous birder who got digiscoping started and great bird pics remain the holy grail of most digiscopers. In the great "let's see what happens" spirit of digiscoping, though, many of us have expanded our horizons to include other subjects and even to experiment with other optical instruments, including telescopes, microscopes, binoculars and monoculars.

For example, one of my favorite subjects, after birds, are butterflies. Now it might seem silly to use a spotting scope on an insect that allows such a close approach. In fact, most avid butterfly watchers look for a binocular with a close focus of 5 feet or less. Hey, this is a close in game with a binocular. Trying to photograph butterflies, though, is a bit tougher. Once in a while, you can get close enough with a standard digital camera to fill the frame, but getting that close typically spooks the butterfly and upsetting the subject to get a good pic violates my personal code for responsible wildlife photography. A spotting scope allows me to keep my distance and that makes for a more relaxed subject and a more natural pose.

As with a binocular, a spotting scope with a good close focus is a big plus for butterfly digiscoping. My Kowa 663 spotting scope has a close focus of about 18 feet, according to Kowa, though mine does a foot or two better with the 20x TSE-21WD wide angle eyepiece I typically use for digiscoping.

Next time you are out in the field, digiscoping for birds, keep an eye on the local wildflowers and butterflies. You may get some great shots to add to your collection.