macro photagraphy honey bees
Apr 8, 2018 09:13:38 #
Hi all, I am Steve Gibson and am doing a project involving close-ups of honey bees on nectar and pollen sources. I have a sony cypershot dsc rx 100. For various reason this high end point and shoot is the most appropriate for me and also the situation does not allow using the display to make sure the bee is in the focus areas. The subject is in constant motion also. I estimate taking at least 30 shots before getting a pic I am proud of. One is displayed. Any help advice will be appreciated! steve
Apr 8, 2018 09:34:10 #
Hi Steve, Welcome to UHH!
I’m not totally clear on not being able to see for focus but you might try pre focusing on an area and only shooting when a bee is in the right spot.
Also, this forum section might interest you: http://www.uglyhedgehog.com/s-102-1.html
Good luck, hope to see some results.
I’m not totally clear on not being able to see for focus but you might try pre focusing on an area and only shooting when a bee is in the right spot.
Also, this forum section might interest you: http://www.uglyhedgehog.com/s-102-1.html
Good luck, hope to see some results.
Apr 9, 2018 00:04:48 #
Steve Gibson wrote:
Hi all, I am Steve Gibson and am doing a project ... (show quote)
I'm not familiar with that camera. Does it have focus points that you can choose and place on the subject? Something clearly not achieved in your example, I understand your frustration. What are your options for tailoring the focusing in your camera?
Apr 9, 2018 06:43:43 #
Apr 9, 2018 07:18:12 #
Apr 9, 2018 08:41:40 #
Apr 9, 2018 09:42:46 #
Apr 9, 2018 10:33:37 #
Thanks for prefocus idea, I have thought of setting manual focus to appropriate distance but prefocusing will be easier. Looking forward to trying it out.
Apr 9, 2018 11:33:11 #
Apr 9, 2018 11:40:52 #
Apr 9, 2018 13:19:07 #
The cypershot dsc rx 100 has multi, center and flexible spot auto focus options as well as tracking focus. I use the multi. I want the photo to include the whole bee and all to be in focus. Wondering about using flash with various f11 to get me more depth of field. Wide focus range is desirable if I want to blow up a segment of photo to show how for example the bee places pollen in pollen basket as shown in photos bellow. TKS
Apr 9, 2018 14:32:37 #
In April of 2017 Sony came out with some free software that lets you tether the camera to a computer and see the image on the computer screen while controlling the various functions directly from the computer. That allows you to set out your camera and controls it very conveniently from some distance away. In that way, the little critter is not intimidated by your hulking presence approaching. I sometimes use that technique shooting birds. They quickly become habituated to the presence of hte camera but never seem to accept my presence as anything other than a threat, so I just retreat to the inside my house and wait for the picture to appear on my computer then snap the shutter.
Apr 9, 2018 16:22:37 #
I downloaded the software but have not tried it yet. Many of the pics I take are away from home and to compose the shots I follow the bee till it lands and then quickly place the camera about a foot or about 4 inches away. So what I really need is to figure out the optimum settings for best chance at getting the entire bee in focus as well as reducing blur due to bee in motion. What do you think about trying a high ISO to reduce shutter time?
Apr 9, 2018 18:05:02 #
Welcome to UHH Steve, glad you joined us. The forum is made up of many sections, street, critique, sports, etc. One of the sections is macro photography. Click on the "Home" feature at the top of the page. Go down to the bottom of the page and you will see "All Sections". Click on "All Sections" and you will see Macro. Subscribe to the sections that interest you.
Have fun, learn and enjoy the forum.
Don
Have fun, learn and enjoy the forum.
Don
Apr 9, 2018 19:06:34 #
I've read a bunch of stuff on the internet that implies digital noise is absolutely terrible, but I would rather have a picture with some grain than a similar picture with too narrow a Depth of field so that only a small portion of the bee is in focus or is totally blurred by camera motion. I suggest that you do some experimenting at various ISO's to see how your equipment responds to high ISO. My camera goes to ISO 3200 before "grain" (noise) becomes objectionable on an 11 x 14. Your's probably has a similar ISO response. I think that you will find that the practical good aspects of high ISO outweigh the downside of some added noise.
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