Today we're looking at some macro photography I did of an atypical Phidippus audax or more commonly known as a Jumping Spider.
Found this little guy outside on my deck last night. I don't mind spiders, but my wife insist that they bite her in the middle of the night. so this guy got lucky and I was one that found him and not her.
Anyhow, this guy was only about 3/8" of inch long. I decided that this would be a good opportunity to try out my macro lens.
The settings for my camera were 260mm Macro f/5.6@1/180 ISO200. The sun was setting and I had some good lighting left.
Lesson #1-Use a tripod. It was very difficult to hand hold my camera at the correct distance to get everything in focus. Using a tripod would have made this slightly easier. The only problem would have been the lack of cooperation from the subject.
Lesson #2-Use you manual focus. I attempted to have the camera focus for me, but in macro mode it had trouble focusing. i ended up just using the manual focus.
Lesson #3-Check your f stop. I used f/5.6 to give myself some leeway with my light. This also allowed me to hand hold the camera. I needed to use a little bit higher f stop. I forgot that when you use a macro lens you have to use a slower f stop to get a good depth of field. I'm going to have to do some test and figure out what my exact distance is in macro mode with different f stops.
All in all I like working with the little guys. It's a challenge and they make some go photos when you do it correctly.
06 May 2008
01 May 2008
Moon Shots
Shooting pictures of the moon is surprisingly easy, but can still be frustrating at times.
You will need a lens with a really good focal length. For my pictures of the moon I use a 70-300 zoom at 300mm and then add a 2x tele-converter on it. The tele-converter does reduce my light by about 2 stops, but since the visible portion of the moon is lit by the sun the amount of light you are receiving is actually a lot. I set the f-stop to f/8, the ISO at 200 and zoom in as close as I can get with my lens which is approximately a 600mm focal length. This results in the moon taking up about 25-33% of my image. Depending on the amount of light the exposure times vary from 1/10th of a second up to 5 seconds. I don't recommend shooting the moon for over 2 seconds though because of the movement in both the earth and the moon. shot a couple of test shots and see what time works best.
Also you will want to set your camera to manual focus if possible. Most cameras have a hard time focusing with low light. This also the reason to have a high zoom lens so you can actually tell that you pictures are in focus.
If your camera has it, use you mirror lock up setting. This will help prevent movement of your camera when it actually snaps the picture. Another item that will help reduce camera shake is a remote shutter release.
You will also need a very sturdy tripod to work with. I recommend a tripod as opposed to other means of steadying you camera for several reasons. #1 is a tripod is easier to pan and tilt than a bean bag or other fixed object. The moon moves in a surprisingly short amount of time and it is a pain in the derriere to constantly be moving a bean bag around. #2 is a tripod leaves your hands free to do anything else you need to do and you don't have to worry about someone knocking your camera around when you turn your back. When using your tripod do not forget to take any anti-shake controls off. If you leave them on you risk having the camera think it needs to stabilize the image when it doesn't need to.
Other items that are useful to have when you are out at night are:
Flashlight (preferably a red light one)-my camera does not have the option of having a backlight to see the camera settings by and it is a pain to have to look through the eyepiece every time I want to change my shutter speed.
Appropriate clothing for the weather-you may think this means bringing a jacket during the cold months, but even during the summer the nights can get rather chilly. Gloves are also a very good idea because if your hands don't work because of the cold you won't be able to operate your camera efficiently.
Snacks & drinks-if you are planning to be out for a long period of time you will want to bring something to snack on and maybe a thermos of your favorite beverage.
Cell phone-Just in case something happens (car breaks down, bear attack, etc.). Also, whether you own a cell phone or not it is always a good idea to let someone know where you are going and what time you are planning on getting back. always expect the unexpected.
All the kit you need to keep your camera going (batteries, spare film/memory cards, etc.)-you don't have to bring your entire kit with you, but it really sucks if you're getting some great photos and your batteries run out. Before you go out make sure all of your batteries are charged.
Hopefully soon I will be able to get a decent 500mm lens that I will use with my tele-converter and get some really close pictures of the moon's surface.
You will need a lens with a really good focal length. For my pictures of the moon I use a 70-300 zoom at 300mm and then add a 2x tele-converter on it. The tele-converter does reduce my light by about 2 stops, but since the visible portion of the moon is lit by the sun the amount of light you are receiving is actually a lot. I set the f-stop to f/8, the ISO at 200 and zoom in as close as I can get with my lens which is approximately a 600mm focal length. This results in the moon taking up about 25-33% of my image. Depending on the amount of light the exposure times vary from 1/10th of a second up to 5 seconds. I don't recommend shooting the moon for over 2 seconds though because of the movement in both the earth and the moon. shot a couple of test shots and see what time works best.
Also you will want to set your camera to manual focus if possible. Most cameras have a hard time focusing with low light. This also the reason to have a high zoom lens so you can actually tell that you pictures are in focus.
If your camera has it, use you mirror lock up setting. This will help prevent movement of your camera when it actually snaps the picture. Another item that will help reduce camera shake is a remote shutter release.
You will also need a very sturdy tripod to work with. I recommend a tripod as opposed to other means of steadying you camera for several reasons. #1 is a tripod is easier to pan and tilt than a bean bag or other fixed object. The moon moves in a surprisingly short amount of time and it is a pain in the derriere to constantly be moving a bean bag around. #2 is a tripod leaves your hands free to do anything else you need to do and you don't have to worry about someone knocking your camera around when you turn your back. When using your tripod do not forget to take any anti-shake controls off. If you leave them on you risk having the camera think it needs to stabilize the image when it doesn't need to.
Other items that are useful to have when you are out at night are:
Flashlight (preferably a red light one)-my camera does not have the option of having a backlight to see the camera settings by and it is a pain to have to look through the eyepiece every time I want to change my shutter speed.
Appropriate clothing for the weather-you may think this means bringing a jacket during the cold months, but even during the summer the nights can get rather chilly. Gloves are also a very good idea because if your hands don't work because of the cold you won't be able to operate your camera efficiently.
Snacks & drinks-if you are planning to be out for a long period of time you will want to bring something to snack on and maybe a thermos of your favorite beverage.
Cell phone-Just in case something happens (car breaks down, bear attack, etc.). Also, whether you own a cell phone or not it is always a good idea to let someone know where you are going and what time you are planning on getting back. always expect the unexpected.
All the kit you need to keep your camera going (batteries, spare film/memory cards, etc.)-you don't have to bring your entire kit with you, but it really sucks if you're getting some great photos and your batteries run out. Before you go out make sure all of your batteries are charged.
Hopefully soon I will be able to get a decent 500mm lens that I will use with my tele-converter and get some really close pictures of the moon's surface.
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