Tips for shooting stacked macros?

joglejogle Registered Users Posts: 422 Major grins
edited August 26, 2009 in Holy Macro
Hi All,

I've just picked up a Canon MP-E 65mm Macro, I've already got a 100mm macro with tubes and have used it extensively.

I've also recently learned about http://zerenesystems.com/stacker/ and while trying it's 3d feature out, I must say my first results are a bit awful.

I shot 51 frames of a small Sweet William flower at about 3.5:1 and there's many artifacts.
622720679_AP8ed-O.jpg

So I've got some questions for the macro ninjas here,

What kind of aperture range do you typically use? I shot at a couple of clicks down from wide open, around f4, as I thought it was better to have many thin DOF photos. But is it better to have deeper DOF and more overlap between your photos?

I've got a focusing rail, is it better to use that and move the camera in or is it better to use the focusing ring when shooting the stack?

Any other stack shooting tips you'd like to share?
jamesOgle photography
[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]"The single most important component of a camera is the twelve inches behind it." -A.Adams[/FONT]

Comments

  • Lord VetinariLord Vetinari Registered Users Posts: 15,901 Major grins
    edited August 23, 2009
    Hi - stereo is actually not bad :) - never tried the 3-D thing in zerene.

    Not sure what artifacts you are getting, but if it is OOF banding then you missed some slices. I would shoot around F6.3 to F7.1 at 3.5:1 mag.
    If the artifacts are duplications then there is too much lateral/rotational movement between the shots and you may be better off using a macrorail but obviously you need one with very fine movement control.
    Brian v.
    Brian V.
    http://www.flickr.com/photos/lordv/
    http://www.lordv.smugmug.com/
  • bretbret Registered Users Posts: 61 Big grins
    edited August 24, 2009
    jogle wrote:

    I've also recently learned about http://zerenesystems.com/stacker/ and while trying it's 3d feature out, I must say my first results are a bit awful.

    I love your 3-D Stereogram.
    I've shot a lot of conventional 3-D pics, but have never tried it with macro.
    How far do you move the camera between shots?
  • Lord VetinariLord Vetinari Registered Users Posts: 15,901 Major grins
    edited August 25, 2009
    bret wrote:
    I love your 3-D Stereogram.
    I've shot a lot of conventional 3-D pics, but have never tried it with macro.
    How far do you move the camera between shots?

    Bret- think this may be an artificial stereo created by the stacking software. For 2 shot cha-cha style stereos the movement for macro is similar for normal stereos- about 1/30th of the nearest subject distance. Tends to work out from about 5mm to a couple of cms for most macro type shots.
    Brian v.
    Brian V.
    http://www.flickr.com/photos/lordv/
    http://www.lordv.smugmug.com/
  • joglejogle Registered Users Posts: 422 Major grins
    edited August 25, 2009
    Yeah it's not shot from 2 positions at all. It's created by taking the dozens of layers that go into a stacked macro and shifting each layer ever so slightly horizontally as it's stacked ontop of the one before it, so that you create the effect of 2 viewpoints

    http://zerenesystems.com/stacker/docs/SyntheticStereo.php
    jamesOgle photography
    [FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]"The single most important component of a camera is the twelve inches behind it." -A.Adams[/FONT]
  • bretbret Registered Users Posts: 61 Big grins
    edited August 26, 2009
    jogle wrote:
    Yeah it's not shot from 2 positions at all. It's created by taking the dozens of layers that go into a stacked macro and shifting each layer ever so slightly horizontally as it's stacked ontop of the one before it, so that you create the effect of 2 viewpoints

    http://zerenesystems.com/stacker/docs/SyntheticStereo.php

    It worked well in your example. I'll have to check out that software.
    Thanks.

    -bret
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