I shot these this afternoon in our apartment.
All are using my D50, 18-55mm lens (I got a closer focus with that than with my 50mm prime lens), f8, 1/125, ISO 200.
Oh, and unless you are willing to send me a free macro lens, please don't suggest one. There is no way I can afford one at this time, or at any time in the foreseeable future. But, if you've got one you're ready to part with, I"ll gladly send my address of course *grin*
Okay - joking aside. I know the focus is off on these. I was holding the camera in hand, while my 4-yr old was trying to bump me away to play with the bug (not allowed, as that would end with the demise of the poor creature - instead it was released outside).
Not sure if this is what you were asking. Just reacting to your statement about the free macro lens. Cheap ways to get good macro photos, without buying a macro lens: 1) extenders. come in different sizes. 50mm of extension will give you about a 1:1 macro ratio (just like the macro lenses). I bought a set of Kenko ones for my canon for $150 (or less). 2) mount your 50mm lens backwards! I know this sounds crazy, but you can make a mount from a body cap and a macro adapter ring. PM me if you want more info. this is the cheapest way to get macro, but takes some handywork to craft the adapter. Also, you lose any control of aperture, etc. 3) mount your 50mm lens backward onto a longer focal length one. This is also very inexpensive (as long as you have another lens to mount too). This can give higher magnification ratios than 1:1. Extreme close-ups.
A picture is worth a 1000 words...
\
ps. you can put the ladybug in a freezer beforehand, and just pull it out in front of them later, and show them how you set up your tripod, lighting , etc. That should get their attention...
Get a tripod, it will make the world of difference.
Mike
Have a tripod.
I don't know that it would have helped while following a live bug around though.
And having to get very close to it to get a good focus.
Would it ?
True but I did not realise they were live and running around did I!
If you put them in the fridge rather than the freezer this will slow their metabolism down, make them dopey and they should stay still long enough for you to get your photos.
Shooting macros is best done from a tripod. This is due to the shallow dof and with a tripod you have much more control and better chance of a steady camera. Using a remote shutter release would help even more.
If you want to go to the extreme you could even use mirror lockup to avoid any shake caused by the mirror slap.
If the above suggestions are not an option then using a faster shutter speed could help. Though adjustments to the ISO, aperture are the amount of light on the bug would have to be made to compensate.
Are these 100% of the original shot or are the a very tight crop from the original?
Tight crop from original.
That's most of the problem then. Think of it this way... You have a 6 megapix camera but the main subject of the shot it only utilizing 1/5th of that. You crop it tight and have, in essence, taken a shot that equals 1.2ish megapix. Macro lenses work by allowing you to fill the frame with the small subject thus using the full 6 megapix, increasing resolution and all that other mumbo jumbo. :) That's an over simplified hypothesis of what I think is going on, but, hopefully I got my point across. Extension tubes or macro filters on your 50mm would be a cheap alternative to a macro lens and should yield better results than what you're trying here.
That's most of the problem then. Think of it this way... You have a 6 megapix camera but the main subject of the shot it only utilizing 1/5th of that. You crop it tight and have, in essence, taken a shot that equals 1.2ish megapix. Macro lenses work by allowing you to fill the frame with the small subject thus using the full 6 megapix, increasing resolution and all that other mumbo jumbo. :) That's an over simplified hypothesis of what I think is going on, but, hopefully I got my point across. Extension tubes or macro filters on your 50mm would be a cheap alternative to a macro lens and should yield better results than what you're trying here.
As brownsm posted, try reversing the 50mm lens on the 18-55. you can do this with a very inexpensive "macro coupler". Both of these lenses have a 52mm filter thread, so you would need a 52mmm-52mm coupler. They are under $10.
Now, once you've got the 50mm reversed on the 18-55, set the 18-55 to the long end (55mm) and test your focus. You'll need to get quite close, and there will only be a narrow range in which you can achieve focus. Yoiu will retain aperture control of the 18-55, so you'll still have control of DoF. Your DoF at these high magnifications will be very narrow, even at very small aperture.
The above is the least expensive way to get high magnification for insect (and other) macros. The second-least expensive is the Canon 250D. This is a high-quality two-element "diopter" and runs about $70. Still cheaper than extension tubes, and a good bet for macro on the cheap.
This thread is just another example of how helpful DPC can be. Thanks, everyone! I'm gonna keep on my watched list for whenever I finally get an SLR. :)
I shot these this afternoon in our apartment .... using my D50, 18-55mm lens (I got a closer focus with that than with my 50mm prime lens), f8, 1/125, ISO 200.
... joking aside. I know the focus is off on these. I was holding the camera in hand, while my 4-yr old was trying to bump me away to play with the bug (not allowed, as that would end with the demise of the poor creature - instead it was released outside).
Here is my take...
Given the camera settings listed on the images I would say that using a tripod and/or shortening exposure times is not the issue.
The images have that 'oversharpened but not really sharp' look often seen on DPC submissions. This is usually either caused by equipment, oversharpening and/or over cropping the image.
I suggest that it might be a combination of one or more of these issues. My suspicion is that you are trying to achieve a 'macro' result from a non-macro lense and compounding it with either a small crop or post processsing sharpening... probably both.
50mm prime reversed in front of Sigma 70-300. No cropping. Why don't you get one of those? Only around $190, great range and a 1:2 macro. Much better than dropping $70 on a diopter.
Try brighter lighting so you can go higher on the f-stop and the speed. When you're working macro, it's really hard to get ALL of the picture in focus. The higher you can go with the f-stop, the clearer everything in the picture is going to be.
50mm prime reversed in front of Sigma 70-300. No cropping. Why don't you get one of those? Only around $190, great range and a 1:2 macro. Much better than dropping $70 on a diopter.
I agree with Steve. I don't think your shots are OOF. They are oversharp and I think you are merely running into the limitations of the lens and sensor (ie. how much you need to crop).
This was taken with a non-macro lens and you can see that even with L-glass, the quality is limited due to the required crop to get a decent size. (and this isn't even close to as extreme a crop as yours).
I am actually on the look out for a reversing ring to mount my Nikon 50mm to my D200, they are just a bit tricky to find down here though... I had to make the one for my Sony out of two Cokin P filter adapter rings.
