How to make a microscope from a webcam with your own hands?

It turns out that each of us can make a real microscope from a webcam with our own hands. This does not require special knowledge, just a few items that can be found in any home. At the same time, we will not spoil the webcam, it will be able to work the same way as it did before. So, we need:

USB webcam;
Scotch;
scissors;
a stand (a rod mounted vertically on the base), capable of working as a tripod;
a subject table on which we will lay out the objects of our future research;
backlight. any light source of sufficient brightness, even a mobile phone flashlight can be used.

So, let’s begin! The first step is to turn the camera itself into a microscope. To do this, simply unscrew its lens and insert it back, but with the other side. The result is an amazing magnification effect. It is good if the camera for the microscope is at least a megapixel one. You can take less, but the magnification factor, respectively, will also be less.

The next step is a tripod. The more stable it is, the easier it will be to set up the microscope from your webcam. It is better to choose a rigid rod for it, which must be fixed at the edge of the base of a sufficient size, with a side of about 20 centimeters.

On a tripod, at a height of about 10 cm, we make a stage the size of a pack of cigarettes. In its center, you need to make a hole for illumination from below. For a table, thick cardboard is suitable, which can be easily fixed on a tripod using an L-shaped corner and tape. The corner can be taken ready-made or cut from a thin tin, such as a can.

Don’t Buy A Webcam. Do This Instead.

It remains to mount on a tripod, in fact, the microscope itself from the webcam. Please note that the lens should be free to approach the object by only a few mm, so if the shape of the front of the housing does not allow this, then it must be removed. The webcam microscope is attached by analogy to a stage, but not to the tripod itself, but to a ballpoint pen or something similar. And after that we fix the handle on the tripod so that it is possible to move it up or down a couple of centimeters to adjust the focus. Can be fixed with thin copper wire.

Our webcam microscope is almost ready. Now it is imperative to highlight the stage from below. If you haven’t found anything suitable, use a small mirror. Arrange it under the table at an angle so that it throws the bunny from the light source onto the stage. The light source can be a table lamp or flashlight.

Now you need to focus the camera. Plug it in. Place a sheet of paper with printed text on the stage and adjust the sharpness by moving the webcam on our makeshift sled. You now know the approximate focal length of the lens. This is the new application that our webcam has received. The microscope is ready to work.

How To Operate A Webcam

Of course, the design is imperfect, and it was made in a hurry. If you get carried away, you will surely come up with an option that is much more perfect than this. Good luck with your experiments!