On the ground with the Gryphon, the Hikmicro thermal viewer ..

HIKMICRO | After the static presentation we give a brief account of how this valuable Hikmicro device behaves on the hunting ground with a visit to the Bonicelli Estate in Ceresole d'Alba.

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November 13, 2022

HIKMICRO | An observation at the table is the right starting point to begin to understand the prerogatives and possibilities of such an innovative electronic device as a thermal viewer. After this initial understanding, however, a field test is required to check whether we have understood the functions of the device well and if we are able to implement them: in fact we are not always able to fully probe the electronic equipment, but in the present case there is The familiarity with these solutions of Roby, the expert photographer we accompany us, was of considerable help. The climate and the timetable were of help so, in one of the rare rainy days and with little visibility we went in the late afternoon to the Tenuta Bonicelli in Ceresole d'Alba (CN) where the manager, his friend Lorenzo Verra ( 328 962 3945), had arranged for an escort to probe the ground in advance.

A first search with binoculars in an area of wood with tall trees and bushes yielded a couple of specimens of fallow deer, female and small: it should be noted that these subjects are of rather light hair, perfectly camouflaged with the gray of the brambles and of plants of small consistency. At this point we pass from the binoculars to the thermal viewer and immediately other three specimens of the same species are highlighted, not far from the first, but more covered by the low vegetation that also conceals the verticality of the legs, usually an element that detaches from the background and leads to the vision of the whole subject.

The different viewing options

The Gryphon has four view options that can be activated with a special button that are added to the focus through the rubberized eyepiece ring and to the zoom: each of these changes the background and contrast with marked colors or, where preferable, with shaded shades of gray or black and white tones.

If necessary, the various opportunities are quickly passed, keeping the subject framed so as to immediately highlight the optimal solution of the moment. Colored crosses also appear on the screen that focus the gaze precisely on the element that is emitting heat, the source then detected by the instrument to provide the viewer with the rapid acquisition of the presence of hot-blooded subjects.

We put the binoculars back into use and, despite knowing where the three subjects discovered with the viewer are placed, we continue to have considerable difficulties in detecting them, a clear indication of how useful the electronic device can be. The light falls rapidly, the haze of binoculars increases, but the Gryphon allows you to follow the movements of the entire group that has formed in the meantime and that meanders among the shrubs and brambles: it is truly incredible how nothing escapes the thermal eye of this interesting product from Hikmicro.

The cost is not exactly low, but it is known that quality optoelectronic devices have a high price, even if this example of high-level Chinese manufacturing still maintains considerable competition on the market.