[microscoper]

I think a really underrated hobby is amateur Microscopy, I don't know why its not more popular.

Looking at moss, pond water, microbes, tardigrades, paramecia, cells, plants, crystals, stuff around the house

You can get a decent microscope for like $250 and just get a smartphone mount to take high quality pictures/videos.

I feel like with astronomy/telescopes you spend a ton of money just to see a blurry blob whereas microscopes are way more bang-for-buck in terms of how much cool science stuff you can see for cheap.

[kraftverk_]

Any suggestions for a good bang for the buck microscope? I have been wanting to get one for ages

[microscoper]

I got a Swift SW380T and have been pretty impressed with it

These are some examples of the quality taken with an iPhone: https://imgur.com/a/Fvgfk7J

When I started out I got a lot of good info from the youtube channel Microbehunter

[contingencies]

I can recommend the mono 'zoom tube' industrial cameras with live USB output. Very cheap in China, often expensive when resold overseas. I think a 4k one should be $100 or less. Maybe $150 including stand, ring light, etc. USB UVC control.