Digital Close-up Photography
Close-up photography reveals a
fascinating world right beneath your
feet. You can literally find
thousands of subjects from tiny
insects to beautiful flowers in one
small area. The best part is that
you can find these subjects
anywhere, even right outside of your
front door. The opportunities are
endless. In close-up photography any
subject such as insects, tree bark,
leaves, dew, or pebbles become
fantastic subjects for those willing
to explore new possibilities. The
beauty of close-up photography is
that it shows the viewer a world
unseen before. The rain drop
magnified twice its own size or
portrait of a butterfly is a whole
new world to most
people. With a single camera, a lens
with close-up capability, and a
solid tripod you can capture all the
beauty close-up photography has to
offer.
Equipment
In order to get close to the
subject, you need some sort of
extension on your lens. Macro lenses
are normal lenses that have built-in
extension which allows them to focus
all by themselves. Macro lenses can
focus to half or full life-size.
Life-size refers to the relationship
between the area that you are
photographing and the size of the
film format or CCD chip. You do not
need a macro lens to get into
close-up photography. You can use
inexpensive extension tubes, which
are hollow, fixed length accessories
that fit between your camera and
your lens. You can use any lens with
extension tubes for close-up
photography. Extension tubes come in
set of three tubes. You can use them
singly or in combination. To get to
half life-size, add an extension
approximately half the length of the
lens you are using. With a 50mm lens
a 25mm of extension is needed. To
get to life-size, add 50mm of
extension. You can easily figure out
how much extension you need for any
focal length lens by using a simple
formula: Magnification= Extension/ focal
length.
Above: Extension tubes
If
you have a 100mm lens or a zoom lens
that covers 100mm focal length, you
need 50mm of extension to get to
half life-size or 100mm of extension
to get to life-size. You can use any
lens regardless of the type of focal
length for close-up photography with
extension tubes. Telephoto lenses in
100mm to 200mm range are best. They
provide good working distance
between the camera and the subject.
Zooms are great alternatives to
macro lenses when used with
extension tubes. You can quickly
obtain the desired magnification and
then bring the subject into focus by
zooming in and out. The focusing
color has no effect. The zoom color
works as a rack-and-pinion device by
moving the lens elements in and out
to bring the subject into focus.
Digital photography has one
advantage over film in close-up
photography. If you cannot get close
enough to the subject, you can
always enlarge the image later in
your photo editing program. Get as
close as possible and then crop the
image the you want. Although it is
best to get the shot in the field,
cropping the image in your computer
is a good alternative if you're
equipment do not allow you to get in
close range.
File Format
I suggest shooting in Raw format if
you'll be doing a lot of
manipulating in
the computer, for instance, to crop the image. Raw
is an unprocessed file as opposed to
JPEG which is processed inside the
camera. RAW file is processed in
your computer and allows much more
flexibility for manipulation. Since
you are more likely to make mistakes
at high magnification's, raw file
gives you more freedom to
correct the image. Raw file is
like a piece of negative film.
negatives have a wide range of tones
than positive films which are
already processed. Negative films
can be corrected and manipulated far
easier than positive films. A JPEG
file is like a positive film that
has already been processed.
Light
Overcast days provide the best light
for close-up of photography. The
clouds act as a giant reflector.
This provides, even diffused light
that brings out the color in the
subject. Avoid doing close-ups in
bright light if possible. Bright
light causes shadows and washes out
colors. You can use a reflector for
controlling shadows by positioning
it an angle that diffuses the light.
Set your white balance setting to
overcast or cloudy to Bolden the
colors, unless you are using
raw file. Raw files have not had
white balance set. They are tagged
with whatever the camera's setting
was, but the actual data
has not been changed. This allows
you to set any color temperature and
white balance later with no image
degradation. You can also experiment
with other white balance settings in
JPEG format to see different
effect.
Flash
I
am not a great fan of macro flashes.
These are the units that attach to
the front of the lens and are used
for close-up photography. These
units have up to four light bulbs
which can be used singly or in
combination. However, I feel that
these units create a harsh unnatural
light. I prefer a normal flash on
flash bracket. Flash can be
positioned at several different
angles to light up the subject.
Flash is a good alternative to
available lights, especially for
moving subjects such as insects.
With a fast shutter speed of 1/ 250
sec, you can freeze these tiny
subjects.
Above:
Macro Flash
Finding And Photographing Your Subject
Finding your subject requires slow approach and keen eyes. most insects hide beneath rocks or leaves. Once you find your subject, look through the camera without attaching it to the tripod. Do not use autofocus, but manually focus the lens on the subject. Once you find the best position and magnification, attach your camera to your tripod. You will need a cable release for releasing the shutter. This will avoid any movement that can cause unsharp images. If your camera has mirror lock-up, use it to further reduce vibration caused by the mirror slamming against the camera. For moving insects, working with a tripod can be very difficult if not impossible. In this case, remove the camera from the tripod and use a flash to hand hold the camera and photograph the subject. For non-moving subjects such as flowers or leaves, always use a tripod and cable releas for maximum sharpness. Depth-of- field is very shallow at high magnification. This requires you to use a small aperture of f-16 or smaller. Even at very small apertures, there is no guarantee of sharp images. This is why the set up of the shot is very critical. First, choose the part of the subject that is most important to the composition. If you are photographing insects for instance, focus on the eyes. For flowers and leaves you might want to as focus on the center. Use your tripod and line up the camera so the film plane is parallel to the main part of the subject . Most of time you'll be working close to the ground and lying on your chest. Since the subject is very small, only a few inches can result in the subject's main point of interest being out of focus. If you're using a macro lens, first obtain the desired magnification. Then move the camera back-and-forth until subject comes into sharp focus. If you choose a zoom lens, turn the zoom ring to focus once you have found the desired magnification. Keep in mind when working with macro lenses, turning the focus ring actually changes the magnification. To focus the image, you must move the whole camera forward or back to bring the subject into focus. If you plan on doing a lot of close-up photography, purchasing a rack-and-pinion device will make your job much easier. Once you take your shot, check the image on the LCD panel for its sharpness and exposure. Odds are that you need to take several shots at different exposure settings and focusing points to get the best result.
Digital Nature Photography
Close-up
Perfect companion to Digital Nature Photography. Some 59.3 million digital cameras will be sold this year—and most come fully equipped with close-up features that let users get up close and personal with all the wonders of nature, from birds and trees to flowers and insects to underwater plants and fish. But few buyers know how to get the most from these exciting features. Digital Nature Photography Close-up lets everyone—from amateurs on up—harness this new macro power to create truly breathtaking nature photography. The author offers advice on purchasing and using all manner of special macro equipment, i.e., lenses, extension tubes, teleconverters, microscopes, etc. In this logical follow-up to his best-selling Digital Nature Photography, author Jon Cox uses dozens of full-color examples and clear explanations to illustrate exactly how he got that shot—and how other photographers can, too. From basic techniques, to action shots, aquarium and underwater photography, even shooting through a microscope, Digital Nature Photography Close-up is the perfect guide to exploring the fascinating world of nature.
Canon EF-S 60mm
f/2.8 Compact Macro AutoFocus Lens
A thoroughly modern design that's optimized for select Canon EOS digital SLRs. Its angle of view is equivalent to a 96mm lens on a 35mm camera, with a floating optical system that can focus down to full life-size (1:1) magnification.
Nikon 105mm f/2.8D
AF Micro
A legend among lenses, the close-focusing 105mm f/2.8D AF* Micro-Nikkor enables exquisite images, rich in detail. Its 105mm focal length (versus its 60mm brother) has the benefit of adding extra working distance that can accommodate a variety of lighting techniques. In fact, its Close-Range Correction System allows focusing from as far as 12 inches while still yielding a 1:1 reproduction ratio! The lens' 105mm focal length and razor sharp optics also make it an excellent choice as a portrait lens.