At 23:57 4/7/02, Tim Chakravorty wrote:
Were you using a flash when you were taking hand held macro shots ? If
not, you will be amazed at what a flash can do to picture sharpness when
doing handheld macro. Just make sure you are using an aperture small
enough so there is no secondary exposure from ambient light. If your
objective is to use natural light only, then its different of course. In
that case wind is another problem and you will have no choice but to use a
flash.
-Tim
The use of on-camera flash for "nature" macros is obvious in the
photograph. It creates a harsh, very direct frontal lighting "look" to
them. I've been working on methods for very diffused off-camera lighting
without much success outdoors. Still experimenting with it, but have not
found a method yet that has a natural look to it; use of flash remains a
method of absolute last resort.
To mitigate wind, I've used sticks, twigs, branches, and moved parts of
nearby plants or trees to immobilize the subject plant. As a last resort
with one that is swaying predictably, I've set up the framing at the apex
of its motion and then timed shutter release when it's at the apex. This
works to about 1/15th second if the camera is on tripod, but often requires
3-4 exposures to ensure one of them has the exact timing.
-- John
< This message was delivered via the Olympus Mailing List >
< For questions, mailto:owner-olympus@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx >
< Web Page: http://Zuiko.sls.bc.ca/swright/olympuslist.html >
|