Anyone given any thought-

[offshore]

As above-

I have been looking at a range of these units.

Now I fully realise that some of the very cheap ones are just dinky toys, but it appears to me that something in the $100-$200 price range, may be a worthwhile investment, not only for use in repairs, but also for some VERY close up pics.

I understand that once the lens is moved say 6"-8" away from the subject (to give room to work on the movement) the magnification drops dramatically (8" gives only 10X), as against 200X with the lens almost touching.

Anyone had any experience with these things?

And what do the photographers in our midst have to say about the photos they produce?

I do use a stereo microscope almost daily for my work on watches, (basically on quartz circuits), so another option is to buy a camera which can be mounted on my microscope. So I am also interested in anyones take on this option?

Offshore

[wombat247]

I have one of the $200 or so version of what you're talking about. Viewing a watch movement through a sapphire back is enlightening. I haven't taken any pics though although they're certainly doable with high quality results (I don't remember the actual resolution). I guess I don't have much interest in these types of pics or I would have posted them somewhere but my point is that at that price point, you certainly could use the output for pics and even movies if you so desired.