My first steps, I need obviously help.

Just bought that first macro lens? Post here to get helpful feedback and answers to any questions you might have.

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All Ex
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My first steps, I need obviously help.

Post by All Ex »

Have a nice day my friends, it's been a while now that I am trying to get my first macro shots. The problem is that during the first time of the winter people bring me small individuals of insects which are taking me a lot of effort to take some serious ones.

No matter how I'm trying to retouch them in Photoshop and in Lightroom.. Unfortunately I end up with results like that :

Image
or that :

Image

These are both images of a small cockroach, in fact from the place where the little head should be. The most successful one is from a little arachnoid which fell under my foot, and after a lot of searching I managed to find its head and take a photo of it.

I use a D800 with an 28-200 zoom as a tube lens and Nikon 10x objective. I light my specimens with a ring flash, directly over my object, in a small construction I made and I defuse the light with a with baking paper.

One of my problems is that when an a small spider is killed in a killing jar with acetone that I use, it becomes a small ball from which you can't have a decent pose.

Any suggestions of what can I do with the small spider which is waiting in my refrigerator?

What is the cause of the blur in my images? This roach is shot with a step size of 0.0290cm , in a shutter speed of .33 sec with an aperture of 5.6. in 44 stacks the first one and 63 the second one.

Thank you,

Alex.
All--Ex
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ChrisR
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Post by ChrisR »

I Alex - well things can only get better :)
A 28-200 isn't ideal, but I've tried something similar, and it's not that bad.

So is it movement or a focus/optics problem?

Is the flash a real flash, or an LED continuous light?
0.33 seconds - why not use 1/200th or whatever the camera can sync (real) flash at?
Is this at about 200mm?

This doesn't look like movement, though.

Does the image look sharp, through the lens?

I'm wondering if there's something wrong with the objective. I have one or two which are damaged, but they don't give results like this.


Mounting insects - yes it's difficult!
The small wiggly lines are dirt on your sensor, by the way.

All Ex
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Post by All Ex »

Tomorrow I`ll deal with the cleaning of my sensor, today I did a stack of 92 frames that was obviously shacked, my flash has an adjustment (which today I found out) which flashes with the shutter, but I don't believe it is synchronizing using something like TTL, the lens is adjusted in focal length of 200 mm and focusing in the infinity.

I already had in my plans to get one 200 mm zoom lens with more quality (I just don't have the money yet).

I use ControlMyNikon and the image on my 39 inch TV isn't that bad as it is on the photos.

And now the tricky one: How can I tell if it is responsibility of the objective? I bought it from eBay in 7/3/15 new, as they say, is there a reliable way to decide the quality of the thing?

For the time I`m starting to think ways to increase the stability of my work to exclude any shake of my system. [The blur though I saw today (shake blur) was indeed a different kind of tomorrow`s one].

Anyway thank you for sharing your sight with me.
All--Ex
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fergus
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Post by fergus »

One question - which objective exactly are you using?

In regards to the 200mm lens - I picked up a mint, literally perfect brand-new condition, 200mm f4 Q Nikkor for under US $70 on ebay. Something like that might be ideal for your 200mm tube lens.

As I understand it, infinite objectives use the centre 'good' part of the lens anyway, so the lens itself may not be your issue.

But I am also a rank beginner, others will no doubt chime in.

Best wishes...
Fergus

All Ex
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Post by All Ex »

Dear Fergus,

I`m using the Nikon CFI Plan achromat 10X/0.25 infinity corrected objective which is made in China.

About the 200 mm lens, which I intend to use as a tube lens, I am waiting first of all my country to come out of the capital controls, which forbid us to purchase anything from another country, and till then I will find something interesting.

To avoid any movement of my insect I am thinking to replace that carton construction:

Image

with a Plexiglas one , for precision on the movement of my insect I`m thinking something like that:
http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_from=R4 ... _sacat=0/]

My best wishes on achieving your goals,

Alex.

:smt039
All--Ex
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ChrisR
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Post by ChrisR »

Curious!

Try a SINGLE shot, with Manual focus, set on both camera AND lens.

Try without ControlMyNikon

Is the shutter speed short enough to exclude ambient light?
Try 1/200th.

Let the Stackshot delay before the shutter.

Camera set to maximum pixels, manual exposure,
... ummm :?

All Ex
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Post by All Ex »

Sorry but I don't have the ring flash near me (don't forget that I live on a bed), my lens do not have a switch or something for manual focus simply I set the camera on manual focus and the lens focuses manually, I always use manual exposure, with the maximum pixels do you mean the RAW form ?

I don't understand the use of the Stackshot. You mean simply to press the shutter button on the controller, can I set the delay through my laptop?

In about 1 hour and a half I will have the flash (my assistant will come) I`ll have everything ready and I`ll do as you will tell me.

Waiting !
All--Ex
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All Ex
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Post by All Ex »

I adjusted the camera in manual focus, I shoot in RAW type insuring that all the range of pixels will be available, I fixed the shutter speed on Stackshot, adjusted the delay in 2 seconds (I didn't understood why I did that) and I took a single shot with my ring flash on the proper adjustments, all the above with the aid of my laptop and ZS. The shutter speed was adjusted on 1/200. After I took the shot with the shutter button of ZS a very dim light appeared on the back screen of my camera.

With regards,

Alex.
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JH
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Post by JH »

This looks troublesome.

Did you get a flash picture with at least some sharp areas? If not, there could be something wrong with the microscope lens. I once had problems with a microscope lens that had a dried and almost invisible film of something (perhaps microscope oil) on the front lens. After cleaning, everything worked as intended.

Regards Jörgen

All Ex
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Post by All Ex »

What do you think about that:

Image

It is actually my very first attempt with f11 and focus step of 0.056 mm.
:smt017
All--Ex
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Chris S.
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Post by Chris S. »

Alex, a different Chris here.

Your most recent photo shows obvious vignetting, which is probably the result of stopping your zoom lens down to f/11. I'd suggest opening the iris up until vignetting disappears, but no more.

Nothing in that image is sharp, is it? Interestingly, not even the reflection of your ring light is sharp, suggesting that the problem is not due (or entirely due) to ambient light.

As ChrisR asked, can you tell us what brand and model your ring light is?

--Chris S.

All Ex
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Post by All Ex »

I don't intent to shoot again at f/11.

My ring flash is an Aputure Halo HC100

I must confess that no diffusion was applied and it was not having the proper settings.

With my best wishes,

Alex.
All--Ex
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Chris S.
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Post by Chris S. »

All Ex wrote:My ring flash is an Aputure Halo HC100.
Alex, this is probably your biggest problem, and the reason that ChrisR asked if you were using an LED ringlight or a "real flash."

Your Halo HC100 is an LED ringlight and is marketed as having both continuous and "flash" lighting modes. Indeed, in my brief look just now at the specifications and a user review, I see that it has a "flash" setting. The likely problem is that this "flash" setting is probably much, much longer in duration than true flash units such as those made by Canon, Nikon, Yongnuo, etc.

The flash duration on my Nikon SB-800 units ranges from 1/1050 second (at full power) to 1/41,600 second (at 1/128 power). I didn't see any duration specifications for your LED unit, but it's almost certainly far slower. The user review I watched mentioned this, but did not quantify it. At a user forum I briefly checked, the manufacturer seemed to dodge the question--I suspect that these numbers, if disclosed, would be poor.

Why does this matter so much? At 10x, vibration of your camera and subject is a huge problem--likely the single biggest challenge in macro photography. Vibration causes exactly the sort of blur you are seeing in your images. Using true flash in a darkened room is like a magic wand for eliminating vibration, because the flash duration becomes your effective shutter speed. A flash duration of, say, 1/20,000 second is marvelous for freezing a moving subject or camera.

Your LED "flash" is probably, sad to say, more like continuous light, which is much more difficult to work with for studio macro. To shoot 10x with continuous light, you need a very sturdy setup, and a vibration-free platform on which to put it.

So I'd suggest you get a "true" flash--the Yonguo units are well-regarded and very low priced. Then take some macro pictures with this flash, and share the results. There is an excellent chance that the improvement in sharpness will be huge.

Cheers! :D

--Chris S.

All Ex
Posts: 261
Joined: Mon Jul 20, 2015 3:54 am
Location: Greece Thessaloniki

Post by All Ex »

Thanks Chris, your comments are of great help.

It took me too long to find out that the SB800 I bought on eBay was damaged and I cannot send it back.

Next time I`ll use my Yongnuo.

Simultaneously I`m saving to buy a quality 200mm zoom.

My best wishes for all of you.
All--Ex
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Chris S.
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Post by Chris S. »

All Ex wrote:It took me too long to find out that the SB800 I bought on eBay was damaged and I cannot send it back.
Ouch!

I once dropped to the floor a Nikon SB-800 flash, after which it would not turn on. With a bit of Google searching, I found a repair provider that looked good: United Camera. I emailed them with a description of my problem. They diagnosed the fix (mainboard replacement) and quoted $132. I paid the money and sent them the flash. They repaired and returned it very quickly. It worked as new, and has continued to do so ever since. So your SB-800 might be fixable, for much less than Nikon would charge for the repair.
Next time I`ll use my Yongnuo.
I didn't recall that you already have a Yongnuo flash. Great!--you can implement this change right away. Am looking forward to seeing your first images with this "real flash" and your 10x objective. Here's hoping that they look much sharper. :D
Simultaneously I`m saving to buy a quality 200mm zoom.
You do mean "quality 200mm prime," right? For this purpose, a prime (single focal length) lens may be better--and certainly cheaper--than a zoom.

Cheers,

--Chris S.

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