Basics of Macro
Photography
Getting Started with Close Up
Photography
Lot of Opportunities
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Flowers
Bugs
Product Photography
Etc.
What We Want to Acheive
• Maximum Clarity
• A Portion of Image
• All of an Image
Examples
Equipment
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Tripod
External Release
Diopter - External Lens - Much like a Filter
Teleconverters
Extention Tubes
Macro Lens - 1:1 or Better Ratio
Focusing Rails
Stacking Software
Lighting
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Natural Light
External Flash
Ring Flash
Remote Flashes
Tents
What does Equipment Do?
• It Depends on What You What You
Want to Do
• Start With a Good Tripod
• Then Get a Good Macro Lens
• Everything Else is Secondary
Tripods
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Essential
Buy a Good One - At least $300
No ball heads for Macro work
No Between the Tripod Legs Support
Diopter
• Usually fits or Front of Lens like a Filter
• Cheapest way to extend Lens
• Not the Best but works well.
Extention Tubes
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Also magnify subject
Like Teleconverter but no glass
Less Loss, Cheaper
Can be Stacked
Teleconverter
• Usually extends lens from 1.4 to 2 X
• The good side is extending lens
• The down side is limiting light.
Macro Lens
• 1:1 or Better is Best
• Tokina is good bet on quality & Price
about $400 at F2.8 about 400mm but
you can find cheaper lenses.
• Usually is Fixed lens but some
telephotos work pretty good.
External Release
• You don’t want to move the camera
• Radio, UV or Cable
• Worth every penny!
Focusing Rail
• Really Important When Using Stacking
Software.
• Great Aid in getting great Depth of Field
• Moves in and out with precision
• Changes focus without touching lens.
Stacking Software
• Change Focus via Focusing Rail and Stack
Multiple Images
• Software combines images for greater DOF
• Zerene - Reasonable Price - 30 day free trial,
Fully functionable
• Helicon - More Robust, harder to use, more
expensive
• Some Freeware, Usually not the greatest
quality.
Examples of Stacking SW 1
< Before - Note the
lack of DOF
After - Note
improved DOF >
Examples of Stacking SW 2
< Before - Note the
lack of DOF
After - Note
improved DOF >
Examples of Stacking SW 3
Before - Note the lack of DOF
Examples of Stacking SW 4
After - Note the expanded DOF