sippyjug104 Loc: Missouri

Thanks, Brenda. They are quite difficult for me to find for they are ever so small and they nuzzle deep into the flowers looking for pollen. Insects are the true survivors with many of them having been on earth for 400-million years or more. Entomologists estimate that there are as many as 10-quintillion (10 with thirteen zeros) insects living on earth at any given time which means that I will be quite busy if I want to photograph all of them. 🤣

sippyjug104 Loc: Missouri

Billnikon, thanks for dropping by.

sippyjug104 Loc: Missouri

Nimbushopper, thanks for the feedback.

sippyjug104 Loc: Missouri

Thanks, BigDaddy. The process starts with the depth of field that the magnified lenses provide. Enlarger lenses are designed for a "flat depth of field" that has to be sharp corner to corner for they only need to view a flat film negative. This is far different from that of a typical camera macro lens which may have several millimeters of depth when focused at 1:1.

The amount of magnification produced is related to how far the enlarger lens is extended from the sensor plane of the camera. Depending on the size of the subject and how much of it that I want to have in the view. Because the weevil was small, I could get it all in view at about 4X magnification. Once that is established the distance that the camera must move to get the closest part in focus and then the farthest part in focus determines the total distance in millimeters that the camera must travel. With that known along with how deep the depth of field is, the depth of field is divided into the distance to travel and that determines how many images will be taken for the camera to stop at each segment of the depth of field at each point along the way.

sippyjug104 Loc: Missouri

Thanks, Kpmac. I imagine that you fellows have a lot of weevils down your way..."just look'n for a home"

sippyjug104 Loc: Missouri

Thanks, Photolady2014. It's nice that you could stop by.

sippyjug104 Loc: Missouri

Thanks, Les Brown. It takes a bit of effort and it's nice to know that you enjoyed seeing it.

sippyjug104 Loc: Missouri

Thanks, Raymondh. I appreciate your feedback.

Earnest Botello Loc: Hockley, Texas

Excellent macro, Sippy.

sippyjug104 Loc: Missouri

Thanks, Earnest. It's nice to know that you enjoyed seeing it.

fantom Loc: Colorado

great

sippyjug104 Loc: Missouri

Fantom, thanks for stopping to take a look.

Blair Shaw Jr Loc: Dunnellon,Florida

Magnificent image Sippy........as always bravo !

sippyjug104 Loc: Missouri

Thanks, Blair. Feedback is what inspires me to do more.

sscnxy

Hi Sippyjug. Thanks for teaching us the technical points to do your type of impressive macro. I have 3 questions:
What type of measurement device or method do you use to measure the location of the closest focus point and then the location of the farthest focus point in order to calculate the distance between the 2 points?

How do you determine the DOF width once you have set up your lens at the end of your bellows or a focusing helicoid to achieve the target magnification?

Do you know of an inexpensive focus stacking program to stack 400 photos?

Once again, your input is much appreciated.

NY