"Getting farther away is better because ..."

Of ocurse that woud probably tend to amplify the amplification of vibration as well and increase the intensity of your earthquakes. However it like it's necessary in some cases.

I wonder if maybe a convace lens in front of its lens would help in that respect, of course with some tradeoff in magnification. Trade it off enough and you might get to the point where you could use a mirror, which seems like it might be very advantageous.

I might have to pick me up one of those gizmos, although I am sure I will at least start with an el cheapo until the thing pulls its weight somehow.