Complete with macro photography skills

The trick of taking macro photos is to focus accurately; Because the clear focus range of macro photos is very small, only a small part of 1 inch. For example, to take macro images of bees on flowers, it is necessary to ensure that bees focus accurately and clearly; Suppose that the distance from the lens to the bee changes even if it is less than 1 cm, and the clear focus will be lost. Therefore, in the process of taking wonderful macro photos, focusing is extremely torturous.

Generally speaking, the use of autofocus in macro is quite limited. Because when you use autofocus, you move the camera, and when you re-compose, the focal length is different. Of course, the most advanced multi-focus camera flash can solve this problem.

The correct focusing method is to set the approximate magnification on the lens, close to the theme, compose the composition, and then focus.

Remember: focus roughly first, then composition, and then focus accurately. Because if you focus on the subject in the center of the picture with autofocus or focus indication or split image, the focus position will be different when you move the camera. Even if you can keep the camera/lens away from the theme (which is extremely difficult to do), the focus of the theme in the center is still different because of the triangle! Because the effect of hand shaking in shooting macro scenes is much more obvious than the general situation, in addition to the "amplified" vibration, it will also affect the front and rear focus; On the other hand, the aperture should be narrowed to get a large depth of field; Therefore, if shooting still life, tripod is the best way to fix the camera.

It is relatively difficult to photograph moving things such as insects. If used carefully, a tripod is still feasible. But if you want to use the handheld, you need to pay attention to the shutter used at that time and take more film to increase the chances of success. Of course, high-speed film helps to improve the shutter speed.

When shooting outdoors, even if you use a tripod, you should still pay attention to the wind. Many shooting subjects are easily blown away by the wind. At this time, in addition to waiting, you can also use objects to block the wind. Some movie friends used to bring black cards and umbrellas for this purpose.

2. Use the best lens you can afford.

In the final analysis, photography is just an object imaged on film. Under static conditions, the quality of the lens is the decisive factor of the optical path. A good lens can show more details in a unit area, and the edge imaging quality is not much different from the center, and there is no obvious dispersion. Macro lens is the best choice for shooting macro, and all brands of macro lenses have very high imaging quality without exception. If there are special requirements for the straightness of the image field, the macro lens is the only choice.

It must be pointed out that the importance of lens to imaging is beyond doubt, and many friends in the forum are also keen to discuss the imaging differences of various lenses, but not most of them really play the lens in their hands. To compare the quality of different lenses, or even challenge others with a lens, at least use your own lens. Do a simple arithmetic (it may be too simple to delve into). If the actual quality of lens A is 5 and the actual quality of lens B is 4, then the user of A plays with 70% image quality, while the user of B plays with 95% more attentively, and finally B wins. So this comparison can't really explain the problem. The purpose of this analogy is to show that the lenses in the hands of many of our friends are actually good enough, but there is still a lot of room for improvement in technology. Spending more patience to study technology is probably easier to succeed than updating equipment.

Step 3 Use a stable tripod

Macro photography generally requires a relatively slow speed. Take the familiar 16 sunshine rule as an example, which is suitable for the case of infinite focus on sunny days. For macro photography, when the lens is focused at a short distance, the lens extension tube will lose some light, so this rule should be modified to "sunshine 1 1 rule". That is to say, when shooting near objects with full illumination, the speed corresponding to the aperture of f 1 1 should be 1/ISO. For 100 degree film, the speed of1125 should be used in the above cases. But in most cases, in order to get even and detailed photos, we should try to avoid strong direct sunlight when shooting macro, and the shooting time is mostly early morning and evening, and cloudy weather is the best choice. More exquisite photographers, if they have to shoot in high-angle sunlight, will deliberately use soft light boards, umbrellas and other equipment to cover them. Moreover, in many cases, in order to obtain higher magnification and special effects, some additional macro accessories will be used, such as telescopic tubes, rangefinders or amber mirrors, polarizers and so on. At this time, the speed required for normal exposure is greatly reduced. According to my experience, this speed is usually between 1/30-4 ". If you prefer to use low-sensitivity film, you will face greater challenges. I don't know how many people here are confident to shoot high-quality macro movies with 1/8 "in their hands, but I can't do it anyway. So macro photography definitely needs a tripod. I took a macro shot for a while, but now I basically don't press the shutter without a tripod.

Theoretically, the heavier the tripod, the better. For macro shooting, weight and portability must be compromised. So the heaviest tripod you can resist is your best choice. If the weight of the tripod itself is not stable enough, you can add some extra weight when using it, such as stones, camera bags and so on. But make sure that these accessories can't shake casually, otherwise it will only be counterproductive. By the way, when choosing a tripod for macro, besides the weight, whether the tripod can be easily lowered to the ground height is also an important indicator, because in many cases, the position of the main body is close to the ground height. Moreover, a tripod with a low center of gravity can effectively reduce shaking.

When using a tripod, try not to raise the center column, and it is best not to protrude the thinnest leg joints, and ensure that all moving parts are completely locked, and any loose parts will amplify the vibration. When choosing the position of the tripod, we should also try to choose a solid plane with certain friction. Everyone may realize that almost all tripods will slide when you press the tripod head down on the smooth tile floor at home. If you have to stand on soft soil in the wild, all your legs should be compacted in advance and poked as far as possible. If there are feet nails, you'd better use them. When using various pan/tilt or ball heads, try to ensure that the center of gravity of the camera and lens is on the center line of the tripod, so that the vibration on the fuselage can be absorbed by the tripod to a certain extent.

4. Use the cable to release and mirror lock.

The instantaneous action of pressing the shutter will cause a certain displacement of the fuselage. Although the influence can be reduced to some extent through training, it is difficult to eradicate it, especially if the tripod is not stable enough. If you must manually trigger the shutter, it is best to make the fuselage form a whole with the tripod and camera through some actions. For example, press the pan/tilt downward with your left hand, clamp your elbow inward, grab the handle of the fuselage with your right hand, and press the shutter with your index finger at a uniform speed and try to ensure the direction of force is vertical downward.

The vibration process when the rearview mirror rises will last for about115 seconds, so the applicable range of the rearview mirror lock is about 1/30- 1/2 seconds. Personally, I always try to use MLU function when shooting macro, even if the speed is not within the above sensitive range. For telephoto lenses (I've seen someone say it's 135mm or more), the MLU function is very helpful.

I wonder if anyone has tested the difference between electronic cable release and mechanical cable release. Anyway, I prefer to use electronic wires, because I always feel that mechanical action will produce displacement, but there is not enough evidence, maybe it is just comfort.

If the fuselage does not have mirror lock or cable release function, you can use self-timer. The fuselage part has the function of pre-lifting the mirror when taking a selfie, and the actual effect is similar to that of the mirror lock. When using selfie, don't set the selfie time too short. Make sure that the camera vibration stops completely before the shutter is opened. Usually 4-5 seconds should be enough.

5. Using the reverse rotation of fine particles.

Reverse film is almost the only choice for professional nature photographers, and its gorgeous color and delicate texture have incomparable advantages over negative film. Friends who use reverse films for the first time will always "drop their stools".

Through the lens that is gathering close-up objects, you will find that as the lens is farther away from the fuselage, the focus distance is getting closer and closer. Many zoom lenses have a close-up function, which can emit an extended lens within the normal range.

Macro lens has the function of polar coordinate expansion of focus range, so it is used for high-definition macro close-up photography. Other close-up techniques include adding a telescopic tube or leather cavity between the fuselage and the lens. The lighting of macro photography may be difficult, because the camera, lens and tripod are too close to the subject, which may cast unnecessary shadows on the subject. This problem can be partially solved by using a lens with a length of 100 mm longer than the standard lens of 50 mm on a 35 mm camera. Ring flash can provide the most controllable lighting for close-up objects.

Because of the large aperture shooting, the blue flowers are separated from the background. In order to shoot the plane and the depth of the scene, precise focusing should be strict.

When shooting at a very close distance, even if the subject moves extremely, the image will be very blurred. Here, in order to avoid the swaying of the flowers in the picture layout, a reflector made of white cardboard was erected on one side as a wind wall, and a metal ratio was used to make the flower stems more stable.

In order to take close-ups of small objects, such as butterflies, insects, coins or jewels, you usually need to put the camera lens very close to the subject. This may be because the camera is too close to the lens, and it is difficult for the subject to get enough needed light. 100 mm macro lens can make lighting easier, because it enables you to shoot away from the subject.

If you want to get excellent image quality in macro photography, macro lens is the only choice. Macro lens is specially designed for macro photography. When designing the optical lens group of macro lens, it is different from the conventional lens. As mentioned above, the shooting distance of conventional lenses is considered according to the focal length of dozens or even more times. The shooting distance of macro lens is much closer, and the nearest shooting distance is only several times the focal length. More importantly, it is necessary to correct all kinds of aberrations when shooting at close range. In particular, spherical aberration and distortion must be strictly corrected to ensure that plane objects, such as photos and drawings, can be truly restored. Macro lenses of 35 mm cameras produced by various manufacturers generally have three specifications: 50mm (including 55 mm and 60 mm); 100mm (including 90 and105 mm); 180mm (including 200mm), and the magnification can reach1:1. The longer the focal length of the macro lens, the farther the recent shooting distance. Therefore, the long focal length macro lens is more suitable for shooting difficult-to-access objects such as insects. In addition to macro photography, the above macro lens can be used as a conventional lens with excellent imaging. In addition, Canon and Minolta each have a special macro lens, which can only be used for macro photography. If the magnification exceeds1:1,the image on the film will be larger than the original one. Canon MP-E65MM F2.8 1-5x macro photo, the magnification of this lens can reach 5 ∶1; The Minolta af macro zoom is 3x- 1xf 1.7-2.8, and the maximum magnification of this lens reaches 3∶ 1. 120 SLR cameras also have corresponding macro lenses. For example, in Hasselblad's supporting lens, Zeiss Makro-Planna CF 120 and Zeiss Makro-Planna CF 135 are two macro lenses, and the latter, together with a close-up leather cavity, can reach the magnification of1:1.

In addition, major camera manufacturers also have special macro flash for macro photography. The flash index of macro flash is relatively small, which is only suitable for close shooting. The automatic function of special flash can also be realized in macro flash. In addition, the macro flash is set in front of the lens, which can create a shadowless shooting effect. Canon has a macro ring flash MR- 14EX and a macro double-lamp flash mt-14ex; Minolta has a macro double-lamp flash T-2400 and a macro ring flash R-1200; Nikon has a macro ring flash SB-29; Hasselblad also has a set of macro double-lamp flash.

There is also a close-up attachment, which is a close-up ring. A close-up ring is installed between the lens and the fuselage, which is equivalent to extending the image distance of the lens, thus obtaining a larger magnification. Close-up collar accessories usually consist of several collars with different lengths, such as 12 mm, 25 mm, etc. , can be used alone or in combination.