My Macro System

A forum to ask questions, post setups, and generally discuss anything having to do with photomacrography and photomicroscopy.

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lonepal
Posts: 322
Joined: Sat Jan 28, 2017 12:26 pm
Location: Turkey

My Macro System

Post by lonepal »

Hi all;

Greetings from Turkey!

My macro rig system finally finished.
I wanted to share it's specifications with you.
All system is placed onto a solid wooden table.
Controller and wires are placed/taped on the table.

Specifications;

1-) Motion sytem ;

Double motion sytems with a combined modified Wemacro rail and a Newport 436 linear stage.
Both have 400 stepper motors.
Both are controlled by Wemacro controller unit.
Just change the plug and use the one preferred.

Wemacro rail has min 0.5um step size;
Newport 436 with AJS-100-2 has min 0.125um step size.

Also DM-13 differential micrometer is used to manually move the rail for precise framing.
It's step size is 0.5um/div on fine side and 10um/div on coarse side;

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2-) Anti Vibration ;

Reduced the vibration issues by NBR blocks which are placed between the marble plate and the wooden table.
Also placed many sticky rubber pads placed between the marble plate and wooden main mount plate.
There are also sticky rubber pads under the legs od the solid wooden table.

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100X100X20 NBR Block

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Sticky Rubber Pad
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3-) Specimen Holder ;

Own designed specimen holder with a solid ballhead, a XY linear stage and some plates/clamps.
It is mounted to wooden main mount plate.
Precise UP/DOWN/LEFT/RIGHT specimen movement.
Easy to adjust the position according to the lens with a solid ballhead.
I use another mount system for Lomo RMS lenses so the height needs to be adjusted when I change the mount system.

Mitutoyo Lens Mount

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RMS Lens Mount

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Specimen Holder

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4-) Flexible Clamps;

Flexible diffuzer/reflector holder clamps;
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5-) Mount Block ;

Easy mount block with 1/4-20 threaded holes for placing any extra equipment etc.

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5-) Lighting system;

2XIKEA Jansjö LED Lamps/Diffused with polystrene (?) foam.
LED lamps are attached to marble plate with their solid clamps.

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6-) Lenses ;

Mitutoyo M Plan APO 10X/0.28
Mitutoyo M Plan APO 20X/0.42
Lomo 3.7/0.11
Lomo 3.5/0.10
Raynox DCR 150/250 as tube lenses.

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Thanks for reading.
If you have any advices or you want to ask questions please do not hesitate.
Last edited by lonepal on Mon Jun 26, 2017 7:45 am, edited 2 times in total.
Regards.
Omer

Lou Jost
Posts: 5944
Joined: Fri Sep 04, 2015 7:03 am
Location: Ecuador
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Post by Lou Jost »

Beautiful system! My only observation would be that the diffusion system seems like it would eat lots of light. Might it be better to shine the lights to reflect off the inside walls of the diffuser instead of being forced to be transmitted through the diffuser? Also it could be rounded or cylindrical rather than rectagular? Or use transmitted light through a thinner, more translucent diffuser (perhaps in layers with space between them)?

lonepal
Posts: 322
Joined: Sat Jan 28, 2017 12:26 pm
Location: Turkey

Post by lonepal »

Hi Lou.
Thanks for the comment.
I am happy with my diffuzer for now but I plan to update it soon.
It do not eats lots of light as you tought, it is very transparent and diffuses the light good.
Bytheway because the Jansjö leds are not dimmable I have no lost.
Just adjusting the illumination by moving the Jansjö leds back and forth.
I know the cylindrical or a round diffuzer would be better for homogeneous illumination.
I ordered a Yongnuo YN24EX flash and I will decide the diffuzer when I use the flash for a while.
Regards.
Omer

ray_parkhurst
Posts: 3415
Joined: Sat Nov 20, 2010 10:40 am
Location: Santa Clara, CA, USA
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Post by ray_parkhurst »

Very nice system.

Seems 400 step motors are the norm now for NEMA17, and becoming commonly available for NEMA14 as well. This is helping to improve basic stepsize control. Does anyone have info on how well the 400 step motors do for microstepping vs 200 step?

When viewed live at 100%, how stable is your system? I've found a big variation between my systems and it seems to correlate well with the sharpness of the final images. In my vertical rig I found that the biggest culprit was the bottom adjustment rail of my bellows. Both Canon and Pentax showed the same issue. I ended up removing the bottom rail adjuster from my Pentax and directly bolting the rail to the stand. Turns out when you remove the rack gear from the rail, it exposes two pre-drilled holes that are ready to tap for 1/4" screw. They are even strategically-placed to allow coarse movement of the rail. I have given up dynamic up/down focusing, but I use the automated rail for that purpose. My system now shows no visible movements at 200% after a very short (~100msec) post-bump recovery period.

lonepal
Posts: 322
Joined: Sat Jan 28, 2017 12:26 pm
Location: Turkey

Post by lonepal »

Hi Ray!
Thanks for the comment.

Working on this project for over 6 months and did lots of modifications on my setup.
Now I can easily make stacks at 3X-25X magnifications without issues.
System is very stable but of course more improvings can be made.
May be I will make more modifications and get a better system with time.

I believe I made the best system according to my budget and opportunities but of course I am open for any advices to improve my system.

Bytheway I know that 400 steppers has better accuracy than 200s.
I think more microstep capability=more accuracy.
I red it somewhere but I could not remember now.
Regards.
Omer

ray_parkhurst
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Joined: Sat Nov 20, 2010 10:40 am
Location: Santa Clara, CA, USA
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Post by ray_parkhurst »

My comment about movement is geared more toward your use of continuous lighting. I also use continuous lighting, so any movement during the long-ish exposure time causes blurring. If you go to flash, and can greatly reduce the exposure time, it will help mitigate the blurriness caused by any residual vibrations.

Dakman
Posts: 3
Joined: Sat Jun 17, 2017 11:19 pm

Post by Dakman »

Just where are these vibrations coming from ?

austrokiwi1
Posts: 350
Joined: Sun Sep 14, 2014 10:53 am

Post by austrokiwi1 »

Dakman wrote:Just where are these vibrations coming from ?
A variety of external sources can produce annoying vibrations, cars or trucks on the road. A freezer or fridge compressor. Washing machine etc. Just walking near the rig can produce vibrations. I have my rig mounted on a 29 kg slab of granite which in turn sits on sorbothane feet. The table that lot sits on actually sits on concrete pavers( covered in felt to protect the floor).
Still learning,
Cameras' Sony A7rII, OLympus OMD-EM10II
Macro lenses: Printing nikkor 105mm, Sony FE 90mm F2.8 Macro G, Schneider Kreuznach Makro Iris 50mm , 2.8, Schnieder Kreuznach APO Componon HM 40mm F2.8 , Mamiya 645 120mm F4 Macro ( used with mirex tilt shift adapter), Olympus 135mm 4.5 bellows lens, Oly 80mm bellows lens, Olympus 60mm F2.8

ray_parkhurst
Posts: 3415
Joined: Sat Nov 20, 2010 10:40 am
Location: Santa Clara, CA, USA
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Post by ray_parkhurst »

Dakman wrote:Just where are these vibrations coming from ?
As AK says there are many sources. I find that the "residual" vibrations in my systems are often from air movement. They are most prevalent when a fan or hvac system is on. Tight mechanical coupling between camera and subject mostly eliminates this effect, though some level of movement always seems to be present. I would presume it has an effect at small amplitudes similar to diffraction by spreading energy from each pixel to surrounding pixels depending on amplitude and duration/frequency vs the shutter or flash speed.

Lou Jost
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Location: Ecuador
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Post by Lou Jost »

Luckily my volcano is quiet lately, but even wind gusts shake my house, and cars and trucks and buses are very bad.

I have been thinking that tightly-sealed bags of viscous liquids would be great isolators, especially if they could go between multiple layers of granite, with each layer having a different viscosity to prevent resonances. Breast implants, bags of honey, bags of oil, bags of vaseline, gels, etc...

ray_parkhurst
Posts: 3415
Joined: Sat Nov 20, 2010 10:40 am
Location: Santa Clara, CA, USA
Contact:

Post by ray_parkhurst »

Lou Jost wrote:Luckily my volcano is quiet lately, but even wind gusts shake my house, and cars and trucks and buses are very bad.

I have been thinking that tightly-sealed bags of viscous liquids would be great isolators, especially if they could go between multiple layers of granite, with each layer having a different viscosity to prevent resonances. Breast implants, bags of honey, bags of oil, bags of vaseline, gels, etc...
I am spoiled by having a house on a concrete slab, and my vertical systems on a heavy oak desk on padded carpet above the slab. The only obvious external forces that cause problems are bumping the desk, etc. That said, I still noticed a fair amount of residual vibration until I got the camera better-coupled to the subject , Now even mousing on the desk is barely noticeable. It seems this tight coupling is the key.

Lou Jost
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Location: Ecuador
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Post by Lou Jost »

My house is on a concrete slab too. It didn't help.

austrokiwi1
Posts: 350
Joined: Sun Sep 14, 2014 10:53 am

Post by austrokiwi1 »

Lou Jost wrote:My house is on a concrete slab too. It didn't help.
OUr whole house is made of perminant materials( both stories) and it sits on a reinforced concrete keller( basement) It also doesn't help ( actually I think it transmits some of the more annoying vibrations.
Last edited by austrokiwi1 on Fri Jun 30, 2017 2:48 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Still learning,
Cameras' Sony A7rII, OLympus OMD-EM10II
Macro lenses: Printing nikkor 105mm, Sony FE 90mm F2.8 Macro G, Schneider Kreuznach Makro Iris 50mm , 2.8, Schnieder Kreuznach APO Componon HM 40mm F2.8 , Mamiya 645 120mm F4 Macro ( used with mirex tilt shift adapter), Olympus 135mm 4.5 bellows lens, Oly 80mm bellows lens, Olympus 60mm F2.8

Lou Jost
Posts: 5944
Joined: Fri Sep 04, 2015 7:03 am
Location: Ecuador
Contact:

Post by Lou Jost »

In my case, shooting specimens in alcohol, even a perfectly rigid connection between the subject and camera doesn't help. Vibrations make waves in the liquid. I think coins are much friendlier subjects!

ray_parkhurst
Posts: 3415
Joined: Sat Nov 20, 2010 10:40 am
Location: Santa Clara, CA, USA
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Post by ray_parkhurst »

Lou Jost wrote:My house is on a concrete slab too. It didn't help.
I suppose what's under the slab will be more important. You have a volcano that is probably constantly rumbling. I have the San Andreas fault, which does rumble occasionally, but has never done so while I was shooting a stack.

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