Spotting scope + camera arm?

[JackKnifeJake]

Just picked up my spotting scope for late summer glassing of crop fields, I was thinking of using a camera arm to do some observation sits up in a tree for an elevated position. Has anybody done this? what were your results? id like to know before committing on a camera arm.....thanks

[Lockdown]

Haven't done it but that's a great idea! Kinda makes me not want to sell my camera arm now... Hmm...

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[JackKnifeJake]

yeeeea man I was kicking that idea around, or finding a monopod with a camera head and to some how clamp it to the tree stand platform so it would come up between your legs.....

[Lockdown]

I was thinking earlier this year that most of my observation situations are a LONG ways from bedding. Spotting scope would be the way to go, but from a tree?


IMO if you're trying to use a spotting scope on high power, even a monopod will be shaky and get very tiring... but better than nothing. Having the camera arm would even be nice if you're sitting on the ground with your back against a tree. Or even a wood fence post No messing around with a tripod on uneven ground when you need to swing left or right.

[JackKnifeJake]

I never thought about using it on a fence post....

How much weight can one of those arms hold? I got a big honkin Leupold Ventana 80 that comes in around 4 1/2 lbs

[Lockdown]

Depends on the camera arm. I have a Muddy Outfitter... I forget what it's rated for but I want to say around 8 pounds. Might be more than that...

If you don't have one yet, any arm that you buy should tell you what weight it's rated for. I'm sure the heavier the rating, the heavier the arm is to carry around. I know one thing I wouldn't want my camera arm any heavier than it is.

I like the Muddy Outfitter but it was $150 new. It adjusts horizontally and vertically to accommodate leaning trees. Some of the cheaper arms don't do that so pay attention to that. Camera arms are like many things, you get what you pay for.

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[cbigbear]

I've used my homemade mini arm & bino's for long range stand glassing several times. Setup has to be prefect, but it works well.


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