Insert macro technique advice please!

Hi Nikonites!

While I cycled back from the shops, something on the lane caught my eye... it was a dying, I assume, dragon fly.

It's beautiful, and I would love to really use it to get the most out of my D600 with its 60MM Nikkor 2.8D Macro lens and practice my macro photography.

I don't have an off camera flash (yet). I do have a tripod & remote lead.

I'd really appreciate some feedback on what I have taken and suggestions on how to use my 'model' to its full potential with the gear I have.

Thank you.

Here are a few I have taken..

set: http://www.flickr.com/photos/dogwat/sets/72157636394040035/

Wow! Great photos. You're obviously doing something I'm not to get shots like these.

try finding a live subject. dragonflies are great but if it was alive you would be better off with a longer focal length.
my fave kit for dragonflies is either my d7000 with the sigma 150, or even better, my new d7100 with the 300 f4 af-s and tc14ii converter.

evan447 said:

try finding a live subject. dragonflies are great but if it was alive you would be better off with a longer focal length.
my fave kit for dragonflies is either my d7000 with the sigma 150, or even better, my new d7100 with the 300 f4 af-s and tc14ii converter.View attachment 55421

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Haha

So i need to find a live one and buy a new lens... Not exactly the advice I wanted!

This one was actually alive... but only just.

Cheers.

Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk HD

Not bad shots but I find the watermark to be rather distracting. It is way too large and obtrusive IMHO.

It is difficult to give advice on these.
You seem to have mastered the macro technique; the pictures are a good subject and sharp.

It is difficult to estimate the options you had. What misses for me is composition (picture seems limited to subject not placed correctly in the picture), background (like contrasting colours) and light (there is an even light over these).
Mostly it is luck, but having some other elements that structure the picture, position, having a complementing background and having some shadow can change the picture completely.

Looking at evan447, I might still miss the light play, but I find the other elements stronger than in your pictures.

STM said:

Not bad shots but I find the watermark to be rather distracting. It is way too large and obtrusive IMHO.

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I agree, I just reinstalled LR and the watermark is not right for these images.

Vincent said:

It is difficult to give advice on these.
You seem to have mastered the macro technique, the pictures are a good subject and sharp.

It is difficult to estimate the options you had. What misses for me is composition (picture seems limited to subject not placed correctly in the picture), background (like contrasting colours) and light (there is an even light over these).
Mostly it is luck, but having some other elements that structure the picture, position, having a complementing background and having some shadow can change the picture completely.

Looking at evan447, I might still miss the light play, but I find the other elements stronger than in your pictures.

Click to expand...

It was the composition I was really struggling with. Getting real close shots and managing the depth of view & composition is a real challenge.. one I'd love advice on.

I'll play around with different positions & backgrounds and such tomorrow.. but i feel like I'm just going be trial and error.. i don't seem to have any rules that i'm following... just pot luck. Any ideas along these lines?

Vincent said:

It is difficult to give advise on these. You seem to have mastered the macro technique, the pictures are a good subject and sharp. It is difficult to estimate the options you had, what misses for me is composition (picture seems limited to subject not placed correctly in the picture), background (like contracting colours) and light (there is an even light over these). Mostly it is luck, but having some other elements that structure the picture, position, having a complementing background and having some shadow can change the picture completely. Looking at evan447, I might still miss the light play, but I find the other elements stronger then in your pictures.

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Macro isn't really about composition; it's about getting in close and getting details. You can't really set up a composition with insects; you have to take them in their natural setting. Macro is all about subject and not background.

WeeHector said:

Macro isn't really about composition; it's about getting in close and getting details. You can't really set up a composition with insects; you have to take them in their natural setting. Macro is all about subject and not background.

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Where this is technically correct, if you get lucky and it all works together you get more interesting pictures.
Do you know this one:

technique met opportunity leading to winner of National Geographic Photo Contest 2011

Also: I must say that it is not my thing, but you see people cooling insects down so they can have them calm in a prepared interior setting, even adding drops on the insect to have something different (or not anymore).

@Watoh we all seem to agree here, keep shooting with your technique and when lucky you will get something exceptional. If the animal is dead you can compose, but otherwise leave them free. To be clear everyone is struggeling with composition it comes with experience and luck.

Of course composition plays a key role in good macro. Getting in close and capturing good detail are important but perspective and setting/background make the difference between a simple close-up versus a good macro image.

Your shots are good but I like #2 best because of the face-on angle of the shot. My first rule of macro is "don't shoot down on the bug/flower/etc". Whenever possible get down to their level. Put the viewer into your subject's world. You can't achieve that without composition.

Leafhopper on the edge of a leaf


Of course rules are made to be broken. Sometimes shooting down on a critter is useful to take advantage of contrast or pattern opportunities.



My second rule of macro is to use "spot focus" and always focus on the eyes (or at least the head if you can't find the eyes). This is where mastering DOF comes in. The orientation of the subject to your line of sight plays a key role in determining what stop to use (or whether to focus stack - an entire subject in itself). I generally shoot at f/16 but even at that I know I can't get the entire length of a dragon (for example) in sharp focus if he is oriented radially to my view. So my goal is to get sharp focus on the eyes.



The next biggest challenge in macro is lighting. I don't use a flash for bug shots. It generally annoys the bugs. So if lighting isn't ideal I have to catch the critter only if or when it isn't moving (i.e. crawling, flying, or windy conditions). Otherwise I'll just be wasting electrons. Of course, direct sun is your friend so that's generally where I look for bugs. Why waste time in shaded areas?

And, of course, it goes without saying that a tripod is a MUST for macro. Everything in macro is magnified, including vibration and motion. There are some who can shoot hand-held but I'm not in that caliber of shooter.

BTW... did I mention that composition is important?

Over-the-shoulder

Oh, and Vincent mentioned "luck".

Yep... luck is VERY important in macro. Being in the right place at the right time is key. But with so many bugs all around us every day (if we just take the time to notice) this isn't very hard to do.

But I will say that with a 60mm lens you will need to be a bit luckier than I would with my Sigma 150. Many critters will get uncomfortable at the range you will need to be at in order to get a very close shot. Even at 150mm I find dragons can be quite camera shy. Luck and stalking skills will need to compensate for the lack of reach.

One tip I've noticed that applies to both animals and bugs that are hyper-aware of you (such as flies and dragons). Don't make direct eye contact when approaching. Approach slowly at an angle and look away. This often works much better than a direct frontal assault.

Vincent said:

If the animal is dead you can compose, but otherwise leave them free. To be clear everyone is struggeling with composition it comes with experience and luck.

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Essentially, if the animal is DE-COMPOSING, then you can RE-COMPOSE!

Also, the definition of luck is...

The fortuitous manipulation of chance.

Thanks for everyone's feedback.. it all goes to help me and i'm sure others.