{"id":943,"date":"2008-09-22T23:38:34","date_gmt":"2008-09-22T14:38:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/2008-09-22\/943"},"modified":"2008-09-22T23:38:34","modified_gmt":"2008-09-22T14:38:34","slug":"memory-lane-my-first-macro-attempts","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/2008-09-22\/943","title":{"rendered":"Memory Lane: My First Macro Attempts"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n
<\/a>\nNikon D200 + reversed Sigma 30mm f\/1.4 — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>160 sec, f<\/span>\/16, ISO 640 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nIt's a Closeup<\/span> of a Pencil<\/span> Tip<\/span>\nget my point?\n<\/div>\n\n

I got a lot of fun camera toys on my Summer 2007 trip to my folks' place\nin Ohio (tripod<\/a>, monopod<\/a>, GPS unit<\/a>, Katz Eye<\/a>, high-resolution tablet<\/a>),\nbut the first thing I played<\/span> with was a $5 item that allowed me to mount my\nSigma 30mm f\/1.4<\/a> on the\ncamera backwards, thereby yielding an unwieldy but powerful (yet cheap)\nmacro setup.<\/p>\n\n

I later wrote about the basics of reverse-lens macro\nphotography<\/a>, including the challenges, but when I first<\/span> got the adapter\nring that allowed me to give it a try<\/span> myself, I didn't<\/span> have much more than\nthe raw enthusiasm of wanting to try it; I wasn't<\/span> yet weighted down by the\nreality of how difficult it can be.<\/p>\n\n

The enthusiasm and some basic instruction came from having seen Mark Dijstelberge's blog<\/a> and postings on\nDigital Photography\nReview<\/a>. His results<\/span> are amazing<\/i>.<\/p>\n\n

The results of my first try were less so.<\/p>\n\n

Mark mostly takes pictures of bugs. I don't<\/span> like bugs – they give\nme the creeps – but Mark turns them into works of art. I wanted<\/span> to try.<\/p>\n\n\n

<\/a>\nNikon D200 + reversed Sigma 30mm f\/1.4 — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>250 sec, f<\/span>\/16, ISO 640 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nTiny Bug With Translucent Shell<\/span>\nsitting on a baseball cap\n<\/div>\n\n

As I eventually wrote on the reverse-lens basics<\/a> post,\nthere are some major challenges: getting enough light on the subject to\nfocus and make an image, controlling the lens aperture, placing the\nultra-thin depth of field where you want it, and getting close enough\n(within an inch!) to the subject to allow a shot<\/span> without them flying away\nor stinging you.<\/p>\n\n

I rigged up something to get light from the on-camera flash around the\nedge of the lens to in front of it, using coat-hanger wire, tape, tin foil,\nand wax paper. It was comical<\/span>. It was even<\/span> more comical to see me try to\nuse it, all the while using one finger on the front of the lens to control\nthe aperture. “Awkward” doesn't even being to describe it.<\/p>\n\n

I went and tried to photograph some bugs, and didn't have very good\nresults. I found<\/span> the pencil to be an easier subject.<\/p>\n\n

<\/a>\nNikon D200 + reversed Sigma 30mm f\/1.4 — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>30 sec, f<\/span>\/16, ISO 640 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nBall-Point Pen<\/span>\n<\/div>\n\n

After the summer, when I got back to Kyoto, I posted<\/span> a few<\/span> macro shots\n(a “What am I?”<\/a> macro\nquiz, some pesky burrs<\/a>,\nand Stupid Macro\nTricks<\/a>), but having run across these photos yesterday in my Lightroom\nlibrary, I thought<\/span> I'd share some from my first macro attempt, poor quality\nand all.<\/p>\n\n

WARNING: BUGS BUGS BUGS BUGS<\/b>          If you don't want to see bugs, stop here.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n

<\/a>\nNikon D200 + reversed Sigma 30mm f\/1.4 — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>60 sec, ISO 800 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nTiny, Delicate Plants<\/span>\n( this is a buffer shot before the bugs )\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n\n
<\/a>\nNikon D200 + reversed Sigma 30mm f\/1.4 — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>250 sec, ISO 800 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nDead Bug<\/span>\nThrough a Car<\/span> Windshield<\/b>\nFor my first subject, it was easier if they didn't move so much\n<\/div>\n\n

Hey, I warned<\/span> you there'd be bugs.<\/p>\n\n

<\/a>\nNikon D200 + reversed Sigma 30mm f\/1.4 — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>250 sec, ISO 800 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nBashful Fly<\/span>\n<\/div>\n\n
<\/a>\nNikon D200 + reversed Sigma 30mm f\/1.4 — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>250 sec, ISO 800 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nWrithing Wasp<\/span>\nescaping from a spider web\n<\/div>\n\n
<\/a>\nNikon D200 + reversed Sigma 30mm f\/1.4 — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>250 sec, ISO 800 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nDunno. Colorful.<\/span>\n<\/div>\n\n
<\/a>\nNikon D200 + reversed Sigma 30mm f\/1.4 — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>250 sec, ISO 800 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nDunno. Less Colorful.<\/span>\n<\/div>\n\n
<\/a>\nNikon D200 + reversed Sigma 30mm f\/1.4 — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>250 sec, ISO 800 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nLess-Bashful Fly<\/span>\n<\/div>\n\n
<\/a>\nNikon D200 + reversed Sigma 30mm f\/1.4 — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>250 sec, ISO 800 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nLunch<\/span>\nOne of the waxworms that we feed the birds<\/a>\n<\/div>\n\n
<\/a>\nNikon D200 + reversed Sigma 30mm f\/1.4 — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>250 sec, f<\/span>\/16, ISO 640 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\n“Arrgh, My Eyes, It's So Bright<\/span>!”<\/span>\n<\/div>\n\n

More than a year later, I still<\/span> don't have a real<\/span> macro lens. The\nreverse-lens bit is too much trouble to go through very often, but\nespecially that first time, it was fun trying.<\/p>\n\n\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I got a lot of fun camera toys on my Summer 2007 trip to my folks' place in Ohio (tripod, monopod, GPS unit, Katz Eye, high-resolution tablet), but the first thing I played with was a $5 item that allowed me to mount my Sigma 30mm f\/1.4 on the camera backwards, thereby yielding an unwieldy but powerful (yet cheap) macro setup.<\/p>

I later wrote about the basics of reverse-lens macro photography, including the challenges, but when I first got the adapter ring that allowed me to give it a try myself, I didn't have much more than the raw enthusiasm [...]","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/943"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=943"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/943\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=943"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=943"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=943"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}