Forums
New posts
Search forums
What's new
New posts
New media
New media comments
New profile posts
Latest activity
Media
New media
New comments
Search media
Members
Current visitors
New profile posts
Search profile posts
Log in
Register
What's new
Search
Search
Search titles only
By:
New posts
Search forums
Menu
Log in
Register
Install the app
Install
Forums
Learning
Photography Q&A
Closeups with D3400 - having great difficulty !!
JavaScript is disabled. For a better experience, please enable JavaScript in your browser before proceeding.
You are using an out of date browser. It may not display this or other websites correctly.
You should upgrade or use an
alternative browser
.
Reply to thread
Message
<blockquote data-quote="Clovishound" data-source="post: 821109" data-attributes="member: 50197"><p>I would recommend trying the extension tubes first. The kit lens you have isn't the best candidate for use with extension tubes, but it will do the job. By going the tube route, you will have minimal money invested, to explore macro photography. With some experience under your belt, you will know better what equipment will be likely to be right for you. As a bonus, if you get a true macro lens in the future you can still use your extension tubes with it to increase magnification even more, when needed. FYI, buying used lenses from places like MPB and KEH is generally cheaper and have a better reputation. I saw a $100 difference between the Amazon link and MPB. </p><p></p><p>Keep in mind a lot of macro shooters shoot in manual focus. When you are focusing at higher magnifications, the smallest variance in distance will cause the AF to hunt. This is most pronounced when shooting handheld, and just minor swaying of your body will cause the focus point to wander around. AF systems have a very difficult time dealing with this. The system may also end up grabbing focus on portions of the scene you don't want as the point of focus. In manual focus you will have a lot of missed focus shots. Take lots of shots and weed them out later. Working on a tripod will eliminate camera movement, but not subject movement. </p><p></p><p>At some point you will likely want to try using an external flash with a diffuser. This is how I shoot the majority of my macro, and it has many advantages. A good diffusion system will give you very nice light quality. Many diffusers are very inexpensive, in fact, the diffuser I used for the pics in this post was homemade, from materials I had lying around the house.</p><p></p><p>Just for giggles, I threw my flash on my old D3400 with the 18-55mm kit lens and went out to my wildflower plot in the backyard. I shot a couple of quick images. </p><p></p><p>These are at around minimum focus. At this magnification, the AF worked OK. I am no longer used to an optical viewfinder, and so opted for the AF. </p><p></p><p>The short flash duration virtually eliminates camera and subject movement. These were shot at F16, 1/200 sec (sync speed) and ISO 100. BTW those are sweat bees, and are smaller than the normal honey bees. These have not been cropped, or run through Topaz. I did edit them in Lightroom since I shoot in RAW and they needed a little adjustment.</p><p></p><p>[ATTACH=full]406912[/ATTACH]</p><p></p><p>[ATTACH=full]406913[/ATTACH]</p><p></p><p></p><p>Compare that with a similar image taken with my Z 105 micro lens. </p><p></p><p>[ATTACH=full]406918[/ATTACH]</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Clovishound, post: 821109, member: 50197"] I would recommend trying the extension tubes first. The kit lens you have isn't the best candidate for use with extension tubes, but it will do the job. By going the tube route, you will have minimal money invested, to explore macro photography. With some experience under your belt, you will know better what equipment will be likely to be right for you. As a bonus, if you get a true macro lens in the future you can still use your extension tubes with it to increase magnification even more, when needed. FYI, buying used lenses from places like MPB and KEH is generally cheaper and have a better reputation. I saw a $100 difference between the Amazon link and MPB. Keep in mind a lot of macro shooters shoot in manual focus. When you are focusing at higher magnifications, the smallest variance in distance will cause the AF to hunt. This is most pronounced when shooting handheld, and just minor swaying of your body will cause the focus point to wander around. AF systems have a very difficult time dealing with this. The system may also end up grabbing focus on portions of the scene you don't want as the point of focus. In manual focus you will have a lot of missed focus shots. Take lots of shots and weed them out later. Working on a tripod will eliminate camera movement, but not subject movement. At some point you will likely want to try using an external flash with a diffuser. This is how I shoot the majority of my macro, and it has many advantages. A good diffusion system will give you very nice light quality. Many diffusers are very inexpensive, in fact, the diffuser I used for the pics in this post was homemade, from materials I had lying around the house. Just for giggles, I threw my flash on my old D3400 with the 18-55mm kit lens and went out to my wildflower plot in the backyard. I shot a couple of quick images. These are at around minimum focus. At this magnification, the AF worked OK. I am no longer used to an optical viewfinder, and so opted for the AF. The short flash duration virtually eliminates camera and subject movement. These were shot at F16, 1/200 sec (sync speed) and ISO 100. BTW those are sweat bees, and are smaller than the normal honey bees. These have not been cropped, or run through Topaz. I did edit them in Lightroom since I shoot in RAW and they needed a little adjustment. [ATTACH type="full"]406912[/ATTACH] [ATTACH type="full"]406913[/ATTACH] Compare that with a similar image taken with my Z 105 micro lens. [ATTACH type="full"]406918[/ATTACH] [/QUOTE]
Verification
Post reply
Forums
Learning
Photography Q&A
Closeups with D3400 - having great difficulty !!
Top
