About The Scope Detective

Microscopy is an exciting, hands-on way to engage with scientific experimentation. It’s a field of science that’s always belonged to the amateur and enthusiast.

And in the spirit of amateurs of the past like Antonie van Leeuwenhoek, this website is a gathering place for the bumbling, experimenting, inspired at-home microscopist. It’s for the parents of enthusiastic children with scientific minds. It’s for the home microscopist growing mould in a petri dish, the person wanting to upgrade their microscope to use phase contrast methods, and everyone out there looking for new ideas for microscopy activities.

Meet Chris

Hi, I’m Chris! I’m both a teacher and amateur microscopist. I am the founder of the site and run the strategic direction. You’ll find I’ve written most of the content here, and I am the face of all the YouTube videos.

This website started when my enthusiasm for microscopy ticked up a notch. I was on the hunt for a better microscope and as part of my research, I decided to write about all the microscopes I was looking at. It was a way to filter through them and make my mind up. And those were my first few blog posts.

From there, the website grew and grew. I started writing about experiments I was doing. I wrote about microscopy topics taught at schools. And, before long, this website became a meeting place for microscopists around the world.

What I Do

1. Microscopy Discussion

I discuss topics that are generally suggested to me by followers, that are hot topics on facebook forums like Amateur Microscopy and reddit forums like r/microscopy. A lot of the questions are ones suggested to me because they’re ones students are studying in biology classes. Others are ones that I’ve simply stumbled upon while working with my microscopes.

I find the best inspiration for topics is when I come across problems with my own experimentation. Topics like: how do I upgrade my camera to darkfield? How to do phase contrast microscopy? And what’s the benefit of a mechanical stage?

2. At Home Microscope Experiments

I share all my experiments – from beginner to advanced – on this website, Pinterest and my YouTube channel. I started out just like everyone else: working on beginner experiments like looking at onion skin under 200x magnification and culturing sea monkeys to watch them swim around. These are great experiments for beginners and kids.

And as my experimentation advanced, so too did the experiments I share on this website, so you’ll find something for everyone.

3. Microscope Reviews

I’ve amassed a small arsenal of microscopes, from beginner minocular models through to advanced microscopes geared for photography. Every time I buy a new microscope, I’ll take a deep dive into the category, look at every one of the top microscopes on the market, ask around on relevant forums, and finally decide on one. Then, I unbox it on my YouTube channel and write a detailed review of my experiences with the microscope on this website – I did the hard research so you don’t have to!

And unlike a lot of other “microscope websites” out there, I’m in the trenches. I buy the microscopes and I use them because I’m an actual microscopy enthusiast.

How I Do It

When you look around at microscopy websites on the web, you’ll find … a mixed bag. There are great microscopists with websites like Microbe Hunter (absolute legend!). But, there is also a lot of low quality content out there. I often wonder … does this person even own a microscope?

Rest assured, all the experiments I discuss are done by me, in my house, with my microscopes. You can even watch me doing them on my YouTube channel.

Similarly, all microscope reviews do lead to me purchasing a microscope in that category. I reviewed compound microscopes because I needed one. I reviewed trinocular microscopes because I needed one.

And to prove it, you’ll find photos of my microscopes all over this website.

You’ll even find me reviewing them and unboxing them on the YouTube channel.

How to Follow Me

I’m online – everywhere! But I’m most active here on the blog, on YouTube, and on Pinterest.

Here are all the links to my social profiles:

 

                     

 

Where this Site is Headed

I registered the domain name “Scope Detective” because I want to eventually get into telescopy as well. So, make sure you follow me on YouTube and Pinterest so you can see my telescopy experiments as they arrive. I’d love for some of my regular readers to join me on that journey and get into the world of telescopes with me.

But at least for this year, I’ll be busy building out the microscopy articles. I’ve got a lot more experiments and observations to share with you!