06.13.06
Macro Photography
Once the flowers get to blooming, it’s time to get out in the yard with the macro rig.
I have a few things which I think are essential for good close-up pictures of flowers.
1) A sturdy ballhead and camera mounting plate. I have tried a couple of combinations here. I started with a Manfrotto 488RC0, but found that the camera would easily slip around on the quick release plate, especially when using the camera vertically. Then I switched to a Markins M20 QBall, which had a much more solid Arca-Swiss dovetail type quick release system, but over time, I found that the panning knob wouldn’t completely tighten, and that the ball wouldn’t completely lock down. So when I was trying to shoot multiple exposures of the same subject matter to create high dynamic range shots, the images would not overlay like they should if you’re shooting properly. So, finally, I’m using a Really Right Stuff BH-55, and I sprung for the RRS BD2-L bracket.
A couple of advantages to this setup. One, it doesn’t creep. The ball action locks tight and the panning knob does as well. Plus, it accepts the same Arca-type dovetails as the Markins. Two, the platform is closer to the ball. This lowers the center of gravity and makes the camera less susceptible to vibration. Three, the RRS has a really cool feature — the B2Pro clamp has a spirit level built right into the platform. It’s super easy to level out the camera. Plus it makes it much easier to get the tripod legs and the head in parallel planes; this is a must for panoramas. (Note also — I have a remote shutter release plugged into the body. Helps a lot with vibration & such.)
2) A sturdy set of tripod legs. I’ve had really good luck here — I chose the Gitzo 1348 carbon fiber legs early on. These are reasonably lightweight, they collapse to a workable height (they fit easily in a garment-type suitcase for transportation on flights), and they’re impervious to rust and corrosion. I put a set of leg wraps on this rig, and I can just tighten everything up and throw it all over my shoulder without worrying about anything falling loose on me.
3) Now, here it comes down to a matter of preference. You can use a decent prime lens with a minimal working distance, you can use a specialized macro lens, you can use extension tubes to shorten up the minimum focusing distance, or you can put a close-up filter on the end of your lens. Lately, I’ve opted for the latter solution. I bought a 77mm Canon 500D close-up filter (yes, it even works on a Nikkor lens), and I use it on my Nikon 70-200mm f2.8 AF-S VR lens. So now I have a 70-200mm f2.8 AF-S VR macro to use. It’s a little on the heavy/bulky side for a screw-on filter, but it’s lighter and takes less space than a dedicated 200mm macro lens. Plus, you can use it on a mid-range zoom with a 77mm filter size, and it works just as well. It changes the minimum focus distance from feet to inches, and it allows for some spectacular close-ups.
Here’s a few samples from the backyard this evening:
Using a narrow aperture to widen the plane of focus, you can capture a whole lot of detail and get really close at the same time. The focus isn’t quite what I’d thought it might be, but if you’ve ever used the 70-200mm, you know what a performer it is. Up close, though, isn’t possible without the 500D.
Plus, one thing I like about this combination is that it lets you get really close up, capture scads of detail, and change zoom levels really fast.
Here it is at 95mm zoom.
Now, just twiddle the zoom ring and render a different look in the same plane of space.
Here it is at 116mm.
That’s it for now. Hope some of this information is helpful.
(Oh, perhaps you’re wondering how I took pictures of my camera rigging. I’ll save that for another post when I’ll yammer on about Lensbabies 2.0 selective focus lens.)