Todays Macro shots.

[Ironwood]

Been a while since I put a macro lens on the camera, so I thought I would see if the rain we had this morning would liven up the insects. It has been very quite here lately, I have been putting it down to our very dry spring.

There were a few Spiders about at least.

A friendly Jumper....





And a couple of wary Lynx's....

[MarkB1]

Nice shots. Catch-light is harsh in the eyes, could probably do with better diffusion - it's a matter of taste.

[Ironwood]

Thanks Mark.
Yes, reflections in the eyes always seem to be a problem. Do you think the shots need better diffusion overall, or just to reduce the reflection in the eyes?

[MarkB1]

Thanks Mark.
Yes, reflections in the eyes always seem to be a problem. Do you think the shots need better diffusion overall, or just to reduce the reflection in the eyes?

Using better diffusion/lighting to reduce the impact of the catch-light in the eyes would necessarily reduce any harsh highlights in the frame. But it's only an issue on surfaces reflective enough unless the higher contrast also affects.

The idea that I eventually came to about lighting, combining principles over time, is to get the light source as close as possible to the subject so the diffusion surface is small and manageable but still appropriate size - http://strobist.blogspot.com.au/2007...ent-light.html I do that using a snoot, a plastic cone lined with plastic foil - which also has the effect of reducing the flash pulse duration for sharper images - flash is the effective SS at settings that exclude ambient light. Paper towel is often used as the diffusing material.

You can also see my older setup half way down my second sig link page - should give you the idea - first sig link is to my latest stuff using a new setup. My new setup is a work in progress and hasn't been posted anywhere yet - I'll get around to it soon.

[Ironwood]

OK thanks, I hadn't seen that page you linked there, but it seems I have seen your site " beingmark.com " , somebody put a link in a thread in another forum I am a member of. After looking at it again I have realised it is your work.
I made an addition to the snoot/diffusser setup that I currently use with my 105mm lens and Yongnou flash after reading your site and seeing the photos, you will recognise the piece of foam held on with a rubber band in these photos .







Yes, its a crude looking rig, but it is a prototype that I knocked up with a piece of reflective plastic that was a car windscreen shade, the diffuser is a piece of 10mm thick packing foam.

I have had mixed results using this lens with different setups since I bought it, I seem to be getting my best results so far using this setup.
I think I still get better images using my old Nikon 55mm macro lens with the cameras onboard flash and a piece of packing foam on the end of the lens.
In this thread I posted some shots using the 55mm as described above - http://www.ausph.com/forum/photoholi...jumping-spider

[Alan]

Some great close-ups there and interesting to see your set up too. I tried to make something similar out of cardboard some time ago. Nowhere near as flash as yours, but it seemed to briefly do the job.

Decided to leave this sort of photography to the patient experts. Bird photography is already frustrating enough.

Cheers

[Ironwood]

Cheers Caralan. I do nearly all of my photography within my backyard, usually with a .5 to 1 hour window when I get home after work. I find the birds and the insects can be equally frustrating at times, but both can be very rewarding on a good day.

[MarkB1]

OK thanks, I hadn't seen that page you linked there, but it seems I have seen your site " beingmark.com " , somebody put a link in a thread in another forum I am a member of. After looking at it again I have realised it is your work.
I made an addition to the snoot/diffusser setup that I currently use with my 105mm lens and Yongnou flash after reading your site and seeing the photos, you will recognise the piece of foam held on with a rubber band in these photos .

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Yes, its a crude looking rig, but it is a prototype that I knocked up with a piece of reflective plastic that was a car windscreen shade, the diffuser is a piece of 10mm thick packing foam.

I have had mixed results using this lens with different setups since I bought it, I seem to be getting my best results so far using this setup.
I think I still get better images using my old Nikon 55mm macro lens with the cameras onboard flash and a piece of packing foam on the end of the lens.
In this thread I posted some shots using the 55mm as described above - http://www.ausph.com/forum/photoholi...jumping-spider

Looks like a good garden for bugs, and birds. Those other spider shots do look to have better diffusion, at least better shaped lighting surface, as seen in the eyes. The way to keep the flash pulse short is to only put the light where you want it, putting it anywhere else (as well) will require a longer pulse and consequently brighter highlights. I find different lighting setups work better for different camera/lens setups, it's a work in progress no matter how good it gets.

Occasionally there's a laurel you can rest on, only to find it's really holly and has spikes. :-)

[Ironwood]

OK, thanks Mark. You have given me food for thought.
Maybe my snoot/diffuser fans out too much, I will try a smaller diameter one to try and direct the light into a more concentrated area .
With this current set-up I am using the flash on +1/3 power and a shutter speed of 1/240 or 1/320 to give me about the right exposure.
If I could reduce the flash power and also reduce the time the shutter is open.....