The Gangster! - My First Macro Shots!

[davewebleyphotography]

Hi All,

My Sigma 50mm f2.8 Macro turned up this morning. I spent a few hours making a DIY light box (in a very Blue Peter style!)

Here are my first efforts, I realise I have so much to learn but its been fun so far, any advice on Macro photography would be fantastic.

All pictures were taken using the following kit:

Canon 60D
Sigma 50mm f2.8 DG MAcro
Gorilla Pod SLR Zoom
DIY Light Box (made for about £15)!





Dave

[dan123]

Saw them on your FAcebook, Not all to bad for a first attempt,

Although they dont look as sharp as they could be, maybe apply a bit in photoshop, And if you wanted the other figure in Focus then you would need to use a smaller apperature, Looking forward to some good shots now then,

Dan

[davewebleyphotography]

Originally Posted by dan123

Saw them on your FAcebook, Not all to bad for a first attempt,

Although they dont look as sharp as they could be, maybe apply a bit in photoshop, And if you wanted the other figure in Focus then you would need to use a smaller apperature, Looking forward to some good shots now then,

Dan

Cheers Dan,

The sharpness was the only thing I was not that happy with. Any tips on improving that in Macro? I process my RAW files through Aperture 3 and increased the sharpness there before exporting to JPEG.

I have a feeling that I need to get my head round this sort of photography before I can expect sharp images!

Dave

[Markulous]

Originally Posted by davewebleyphotography

I have a feeling that I need to get my head round this sort of photography before I can expect sharp images!

You really don't need to do anything different just because it's a macro - I treat all my shots exactly the same whether they be macros @ 1-5x lifesize (with MPE 65mm) or telephoto @ 700mm (with 500mm + 1.4x TC). The most important sharpening is the one you should do as the last of all action, just before Save For Web (or saving to print). You can do RAW pre-sharpening but it's not often needed, IMHO

[markgozz]

One of the biggest problem with macro work is camera shake , you really need to take every precaution you can to avoid it .

If you have a mirror lock on your camera then use it to stop the action of the mirror flipping up and causing the camera to vibrate , I don't know to much about Canons but Nikon have an exposure delay setting which does this by delaying the shutter opening by a second or two after the mirror has flipped .( Some times I have noticed that this is not long enough if you haven't a solid enough tripod , the Gorilla Pod may have more bounce to it ) .

A remote shutter release is another necessity because your hand will make the camera shake like mad , the cameras self timer is just as good as long as you set it for 5 to 10 seconds to give enough time for any shake to slow and stop .

Finally don't breath .

Good luck

Mark

[Dorsetman]

All i would say it keep that camera still. If you have a tripod, use it for Macro.

Otherwise i think these are great fun shots!!!