# Macro Photography is simple amazing!!



## jason324 (Jun 14, 2011)

I was trying to get some bugs today of any kind and ended up finding this guy I used the Canon EF 100mm f/2.8L Macro IS USM Lens and 68mm of Kenko extension tubes. I also used a Sigma EM-140 DG Macro Ringlight for lighting assistance. Due to the incredible shallow depth of field, I had to focus stack this photo and I ended up using 4 frames total. After that I did some sharpening and cropping in Lightroom 3. 





Heres what my camera looked like all loaded up:







Canon 5D Mark II, Canon EF 100mm f/2.8 L Macro IS, Sigma EM-140 DG Macro Ringlight Flash, 68mm Kenko Extension Tubes

Macro Photography is Simple Amazing!! | JHPVideoTutorials.com

Best,
Jay


----------



## 480sparky (Jun 14, 2011)

Incredigobble!


----------



## Abdullah Hassan (Jun 14, 2011)

GORGOUS!!!... I really love it!!... wonderful!!


----------



## Raposo (Jun 14, 2011)

Amazing photo. Nice light, depth of field and focus.

Cheers


----------



## Overread (Jun 14, 2011)

Wonderful result! 
Really shows up the details very clearly on the fly!


----------



## molested_cow (Jun 14, 2011)

So the fly just stayed there?


----------



## Chlosse (Jun 14, 2011)

wow, intense! 5D Mk II i crave youuu haha
How often do you use a ringlight for your macros?


----------



## ghache (Jun 14, 2011)

jesus


----------



## tyler_h (Jun 14, 2011)

Nice setup.
Any thoughts regarding flash options; ring vs twin adjustable like the canon offering...


----------



## pedalpics (Jun 17, 2011)

Amazing.


----------



## mjbine (Jun 17, 2011)

molested_cow said:


> So the fly just stayed there?



This is what I have been wondering about when you stack focus with moving insects.  It seems to be lucky just to get a clean shot once let a lone 4 or 5 in order to stack.


----------



## PhotoTish (Jun 17, 2011)

Great result.:thumbup:


----------



## Overread (Jun 17, 2011)

Insects are cold blooded and early in the morning, in naturally shaded spots and after fast temperature drops (eg a quick rainfall event) many insects (esp larger ones like bees or dragons) will become incredibly lethargic - to the point where they not only won't move, but quite often can't move (with any great speed). At these times its ideal to do focus stacking or natural light, slower exposure macro shots since the bugs are not going anywhere.


----------



## molested_cow (Jun 17, 2011)

Overread said:


> Insects are cold blooded and early in the morning, in naturally shaded spots and after fast temperature drops (eg a quick rainfall event) many insects (esp larger ones like bees or dragons) will become incredibly lethargic - to the point where they not only won't move, but quite often can't move (with any great speed). At these times its ideal to do focus stacking or natural light, slower exposure macro shots since the bugs are not going anywhere.




So I guess there's a market demand for a "chiller" accessory for cameras?


----------



## tyler_h (Jun 17, 2011)

Haven't got to it personally but I've heard of plenty of people catching bugs and putting them in the freezer for a little while.


----------



## Overread (Jun 17, 2011)

Fridges not freezers when they are used - freezer will certainly coldsnap most bugs to their last moment 

There are some who fridge and some who don't - personally I'm one who does not, it can run the risk of killing them (and whilst we might swat flies till we are blue in the face and step on many a million of insects each day - well - when it comes to photos I draw the line kinda). You can always get up early from bed or capture and use more shaded/cool spots for a more natural cooling.


----------



## tyler_h (Jun 17, 2011)

Overread said:


> Fridges not freezers when they are used - freezer will certainly coldsnap most bugs to their last moment
> 
> There are some who fridge and some who don't - personally I'm one who does not, it can run the risk of killing them (and whilst we might swat flies till we are blue in the face and step on many a million of insects each day - well - when it comes to photos I draw the line kinda). You can always get up early from bed or capture and use more shaded/cool spots for a more natural cooling.



and a more natural setting to capture the shots in. Fridge/Freeze has the problem of them warming up too quick cause its not generally cool.


----------



## mjbine (Jun 17, 2011)

Overread said:


> Fridges not freezers when they are used - freezer will certainly coldsnap most bugs to their last moment
> 
> There are some who fridge and some who don't - personally I'm one who does not, it can run the risk of killing them (and whilst we might swat flies till we are blue in the face and step on many a million of insects each day - well - when it comes to photos I draw the line kinda). You can always get up early from bed or capture and use more shaded/cool spots for a more natural cooling.



Cool  thanks for the advice.   EARLY Morning Shade.......sounds sweet.  Thanks again for explaining.


----------



## ramblingman (Jun 22, 2011)

Can focus stacking be done with Photoshop elements 8 or is there a freeware program one could get ?


----------



## Overread (Jun 22, 2011)

CombineZP is a freeware software option you can use to stack shots:
I N D E X

Whilst Zerene Stacker and Helicon focus:
stacker [Zerene Stacker]
Helicon Focus - extended depth of field, focus stacking, 3D visualization

both offer you free trial periods but require fees for fulltime use.

Note that of the 3 no single one is superior over the other - for select stacks one might give a better result over the others, but otherwise they are all equally powerful options (most who stack photos a lot end up owning and using all 3 because of the amount of time and editing that goes into a stack before it reaches the stacking software).


----------

