First time with macro ext.

[BilliGoatsGruff (Billi)]

I bought myself a macro extension tube a couple weeks ago off Ebay and yesterday it finally arrived! I definitely have a lot to learn, but it's going to be a wild adventure!

[Regulus (Trevor)]

I have been looking forward to these Billi, and there are some good results there.
So much fun in just 25mm of ext tube. Looking forward to more in the future.
Check ur focus Billi, DOF is so important, and some cameras focus at the back of the DOF and others at the front. The dearer ones are pretty good at doing it in the centre.
Take a ruler and angle it away from the camera at about 45deg and focus on a particular point like the 10cm mark and use a small aperture (f18) for max. DOF. Then check the image to see if the focus point is in the middle of what's in focus, before it, or behind it. This will be essential knowledge when your dealing with macro.

Trev

[BilliGoatsGruff (Billi)]

Originally Posted by Regulus

I have been looking forward to these Billi, and there are some good results there.
So much fun in just 25mm of ext tube. Looking forward to more in the future.
Check ur focus Billi, DOF is so important, and some cameras focus at the back of the DOF and others at the front. The dearer ones are pretty good at doing it in the centre.
Take a ruler and angle it away from the camera at about 45deg and focus on a particular point like the 10cm mark and use a small aperture (f18) for max. DOF. Then check the image to see if the focus point is in the middle of what's in focus, before it, or behind it. This will be essential knowledge when your dealing with macro.

Trev

Thanks for the tip it is frustrating trying to get the focus just right. I tend to wobble lots so, sometimes, it doesn't matter if I get it right or not. I've got so much to learn still. Right now the excitement of seeing miniscule things in larger detail is enough to keep me going. Using the manual focus is something I plan to master. Taking photos isn't as simple as people think!

[astronobob (Bob)]

Beauties Billi, exciting times in the Macro world ahead - You have done well on all of them - the 1st is my favorite

[BilliGoatsGruff (Billi)]

Thank you it's certainly made me notice things that I didn't before.

[troypiggo (Troy)]

Lovely. The depth of focus is tiny at that distance, hey.

Regarding focus - lock it in at the magnification ballpark you want and move your body back and forth, instead of trying to hold steady and dial the focus in, the click away when needed. What I do for insects is move forwards until the eyes are in focus, then keep moving fwd until they just go out of focus, change direction and move slightly backwards and click.

Some tips I wrote a while ago when I was doing more macro:
http://piggo.com/2010/09/macro-photography-quick-tips/
http://piggo.com/2011/10/hunting-bugs/

[BilliGoatsGruff (Billi)]

Originally Posted by troypiggo

Lovely. The depth of focus is tiny at that distance, hey.

Regarding focus - lock it in at the magnification ballpark you want and move your body back and forth, instead of trying to hold steady and dial the focus in, the click away when needed. What I do for insects is move forwards until the eyes are in focus, then keep moving fwd until they just go out of focus, change direction and move slightly backwards and click.

Some tips I wrote a while ago when I was doing more macro:
http://piggo.com/2010/09/macro-photography-quick-tips/
http://piggo.com/2011/10/hunting-bugs/

Thanks heaps for the tips every bit of information that I can get on macro shooting is valuable. I didn't realise how precise this style of photography was.