![]() You can easily find instructions for DIY on-camera flash snoots - and although it may look rather janky, the difference in results is clear. This isn’t to say an on-camera flash can’t be made to reach in front of a lens. One challenge here is, that a macro lens usually ends up very close to a subject and the end of a macro lens often eclipses all of the light. However, without the stability of a tripod you’ll need to use considerably fast shutter speeds - which require even more light and likely means you’ll be adding light and/or using higher ISOs. You can recompose your composition as quickly as you can move your camera in your hands - ideal for following flighted insects around your backyard or through the forest undergrowth. What I would consider the first basic shooting style of macro photography is handheld shooting and this is the most flexible option. There are two basic means of delivering this necessary light, and they essentially divide macro photography into two distinct shooting styles. Additionally, the increased distance between you and a subject also decreases the likelihood of your shadow entering the frame.īecause depth of field is so small when focusing on subjects close to the focal plane - macro photography is heavily reliant on small apertures to produce a large depth of field, and that requires a whole lot of light. A longer working distance can rather helpful when photographing skittish insects or potentially dangerous subjects. You may now be questioning: If longer focal lengths produce a smaller depth of field, why don’t macro lenses use wider focal lengths? Well, macro lenses with long focal lengths move the minimum focusing distance further from the camera while maintaining a 1:1 magnification ratio - this gives you a greater working distance from a subject. Second, depth of field is larger when the subject is a considerable distance from your camera’s focal plane and is smaller when the subject is near or at the minimum focusing distance. First, long focal lengths inherently have a smaller depth of field than wide focal lengths. There are two factors contributing to this depth of field dilemma. Without question, the biggest challenge you’ll face while capturing macro photos is not having a large enough depth of field - especially when working with higher magnifications when the depth of field essentially becomes a tiny sliver. Whereas, a large aperture, which is a small f-stop, produces a small depth of field and less of the frame is in focus. ![]() A small aperture, that’s a larger f-stop, creates a large depth of field and gives you more in focus, but demands more light. Basically, imagine depth of field as a three dimensional box with everything inside being in focus and the size of the box is primarily controlled by a lens’ aperture… plus a few other variables that I’ll touch on in a moment. Depth of field is the distance between the nearest and the furthest points of an image where objects appear acceptably in focus. Because it’s something I'll be talking about quite a bit throughout this video - it’s worth reviewing quickly. The last important piece of terminology is depth of field and hopefully you’re already somewhat familiar with depth of field. With a 4:1 ratio the frog no longer fits on the sensor and at 5:1 the projected frog nearly fills the frame. At 3:1 the frog’s projection stretches 36 millimetres - the entire width of the sensor. With a 2:1 ratio, the frog starts growing and is projected on the sensor at 24 millimetres. And at 1:1 the projection becomes lifesize - it’s at this lifesize 1:1 ratio that true macro photography begins. ![]() At 1:2 the frog’s projection reaches 6 millimetres. At 1:3 the frog is projected at a width of 4 millimetres. At a magnification ratio of 1:5 the frog is projected on the sensor with a width of roughly 2.6 millimetres. For example, suppose you’re photographing a pacific chorus frog that measures 12 by 10 millimetres and you’re using a full frame sensor that’s 36 by 24 millimetres. The best way I can explain magnification ratio is that it's the ratio between a subject’s actual size and the size that said subject is projected on your camera’s sensor. The magnification of a lens is expressed as a ratio. The first and probably most important is magnification. To begin, it’s important to understand a few key pieces of terminology related to all photography, that have even more significance with macro work. ![]()
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