6o mm macro

what is the best setting to keep a macro shot from blurring, I have been using F 11 with 60 sec, the picture is exposed ok but not fine detal enough, i think i am keeping it still enough.

Thanks

i would suggest 1/125 of a second as a good place to start.

For darker backgrounds go up to 1/250 and for lighter ones 1/60 and slower.

1/125 is a good place to start for an average scene

Also, the depth of field will be too narrow at f11 and thus hard to get the critical focus where you want; if you are doing real macro close to 1:1 you should make the aperture of f16 or smaller (unless you want the blue back ground and the narrow DOF).

Thanks Mike, is there any advantage as far as picture quailty 1/60 versus 1/125 or 1/250

that makes sense, thanks Rocha, I am in malaysia right now diving sipadan, mabul, I have 4 days left, wanted to get the best pictures.

Thanks

Larry

Also, the depth of field will be too narrow at f11 and thus hard to get the critical focus where you want; if you are doing real macro close to 1:1 you should make the aperture of f16 or smaller (unless you want the blue back ground and the narrow DOF).

When shooting macro, ambient light is almost a non-factor in the exposure. (at least for mostly green water Monterey; for clear blue water, ambient light would/could be a factor depending on depth and sunlight angle)

My recipe:

-shutter = 1/250th (sync speed of D200; you can always set it slower for creative affects)

-aperture = f/22 (or f/16 for dark/light asorbing subject)

-rear curtain flash sync (minimizes motion blur due to ambient light. Ghost trails behind direction of travel. I don't know if my ss-200s and D200 actually allow rear curtain sync to work as expected.)

-strobe diffused at half power (I'm hauling around two Ikelite ss-200 because my ss-50s don't have adjustable power manual settings)

You can use the camera's blue or green histogram to get an idea of how the background exposure is being affected by shutter speed then dial it in. (Berkely White tip #1001) Used mostly for wide angle but could be used for creative macro shots.

I am shooting a D80, I am not sure if I can choose rear curtain Flash sync, and i am trying to figure out how to use blue and green histogram, as far as strobes I am using 2 D 125 strobes, also when shooting macro what is the best strobe placement on the subject, i have been shooting TTL on the strobes and the camera set to manual.

Thanks

Larry

When shooting macro, ambient light is almost a non-factor in the exposure. (at least for mostly green water Monterey; for clear blue water, ambient light would/could be a factor depending on depth and sunlight angle)

 

My recipe:

-shutter = 1/250th (sync speed of D200; you can always set it slower for creative affects)

-aperture = f/22 (or f/16 for dark/light asorbing subject)

-rear curtain flash sync (minimizes motion blur due to ambient light. Ghost trails behind direction of travel. I don't know if my ss-200s and D200 actually allow rear curtain sync to work as expected.)

-strobe diffused at half power (I'm hauling around two Ikelite ss-200 because my ss-50s don't have adjustable power manual settings)

 

You can use the camera's blue or green histogram to get an idea of how the background exposure is being affected by shutter speed then dial it in. (Berkely White tip #1001) Used mostly for wide angle but could be used for creative macro shots.

I am shooting a D80, I am not sure if I can choose rear curtain Flash sync, and i am trying to figure out how to use blue and green histogram, as far as strobes I am using 2 D 125 strobes, also when shooting macro what is the best strobe placement on the subject, i have been shooting TTL on the strobes and the camera set to manual.

To set rear curtain sync, hold down "flash" button (next to "D200" marking on left front side of body) _and_ spin the back command dial.

Using histograms, Red = foreground (illuminated by strobes)

-The general rule is try to make sure it has data across the entire width and tapers off just before it get to either end.

-if it's shifted right (large hump of data at right side, not tapered off as it reaches right edge), the image is over exposed (whites/highlights get burnt to pure white)

-if it's shifted left, the image is under exposed (blacks/shadows block up and lose detail; go to pure black)

You can try this out on land with any lens attached.

-set camera to manual

-f/8, 1/60, no flash

-(optional, set the camera up on a tripod)

-look at exposure meter in view finder

-adjust shutter speed so image correctly exposed

-take a photo

-Now, don't move camera from current scene, adjust shutter speed so it reads "-1" (underexposed), and take another photo

-Repeat, once more for "+1" (overexposure)

Look at the histograms for each shot. (pay attention to how they are shifted left or right)

Compare them to each other.

Strobe positioning:

-many possibilities: http://kelpfish.net/strobe.html

-to keep it simple: strobes pointing straight ahead, tuck them in tight to macro port, one on left, the other on right (use edge lighting so you don't illuminated the water between the lens and the subject. This gets rid of most of the backscatter when done correctly.)

When shooting macro, ambient light is almost a non-factor in the exposure. (at least for mostly green water Monterey; for clear blue water, ambient light would/could be a factor depending on depth and sunlight angle)

 

My recipe:

-shutter = 1/250th (sync speed of D200; you can always set it slower for creative affects)

-aperture = f/22 (or f/16 for dark/light asorbing subject)

-rear curtain flash sync (minimizes motion blur due to ambient light. Ghost trails behind direction of travel. I don't know if my ss-200s and D200 actually allow rear curtain sync to work as expected.)

-strobe diffused at half power (I'm hauling around two Ikelite ss-200 because my ss-50s don't have adjustable power manual settings)

 

You can use the camera's blue or green histogram to get an idea of how the background exposure is being affected by shutter speed then dial it in. (Berkely White tip #1001) Used mostly for wide angle but could be used for creative macro shots.

Nice tips Chris thanks. Hadn't thought about rear curtain sync.

I'd add that histogram use is really important. I find that in darker water shots that the D80's LCD on normal is making the shots look way too light. I finally held the camera up against the shots on my monitor and dialed in down -2 to get it to look about like what was actually being shot. I find that with the viewfinder against my mask I can just see the histogram out of the corer of my left eye as I shoot to check.

Jack