*OFFICIAL* general photography conversation thread

[dcstep]

Originally Posted by rodi

bronica made some extension tubes, but i remember reading about some limitations, as well as the final affected aperture. does it alter anything besides focus distance? i really like this method, though. cheap and quick and small, we'll see what happens whenever i decide to shoot into the sun.

Depending on the length of the tube, you lose some light, like an f-stop for a 25mm tube on a 35mm camera. With your MF cameras, I don't know the light loss, but you could probably find out in one of the MF forums over at some place like photo.net.

I find my ETs easier to use with my longer lenses. On my 500mm, cutting the minimum focus distance from 12-ft to 8-ft is huge and then I add my TC, which has no impact on MFD, and I've got a bee filling the viewfinder at 8-ft. I use it a lot with my 70-200mm also. I'm shooting at around f/8 when all that stuff is piled on an f/4 lens.

I saw some amazing macros taken with a 65mm macro lens, two ET and flash. The guy specialized in macros and had a complex lighting scheme, but the results were stunning.

I've got both ETs and diopetor lenses and like them both. ETs are a cheap solution on dslr, but perhaps not so much for MF.

Dave

[Chewy734]

Originally Posted by dcstep

I saw some amazing macros taken with a 65mm macro lens, two ET and flash. The guy specialized in macros and had a complex lighting scheme, but the results were stunning.

Got a link, Dave?

[dcstep]

Originally Posted by Chewy734

Got a link, Dave?

This isn't the guy I was thinking of, but this guy gets equally amazing results using a reversed enlarger lens:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/jingles...7623492127788/

I'll try to find the guy using Canon's 65mm macro lens, combined with ETs and a special lighting setup.

Dave

[rodi]

Originally Posted by dcstep

Depending on the length of the tube, you lose some light, like an f-stop for a 25mm tube on a 35mm camera. With your MF cameras, I don't know the light loss, but you could probably find out in one of the MF forums over at some place like photo.net.

I find my ETs easier to use with my longer lenses. On my 500mm, cutting the minimum focus distance from 12-ft to 8-ft is huge and then I add my TC, which has no impact on MFD, and I've got a bee filling the viewfinder at 8-ft. I use it a lot with my 70-200mm also. I'm shooting at around f/8 when all that stuff is piled on an f/4 lens.

I saw some amazing macros taken with a 65mm macro lens, two ET and flash. The guy specialized in macros and had a complex lighting scheme, but the results were stunning.

I've got both ETs and diopetor lenses and like them both. ETs are a cheap solution on dslr, but perhaps not so much for MF.

Dave

the Bronica 18mm extension tube needs 1.7 to 1.8 times the light for an equal exposure on the 80 and 150mm lenses, respectively. :\
sounds like a lot of light loss. but i don't plan on doing any macro - just closer portraits.
so my set as +1, +2 and +4 diopters. the +2 diopter converts the 80mm's .8m minimum distance into a staggering .26m. the depth of field goes out the window, and with the wider frame of the 6x6 format, things get really intimate.

[The1]

Originally Posted by MaximusJ

But my extension tubes make the DOF freaking thin.

I'm pretty sure they're all the same, but there's something I must do wrong when using them. As soon as I use a 20mm combination or more with my 50mm, my lens almost have to touch the freaking bug before getting slightly in focus. And I say slightly because the DOF is about a "half-an-hairline" thin.

the longer you make the extension tube, the closer you have to be. if you stick the smallest one on with the 50mm, it will be likely the most usable.

if you put too large of an extension tube, you can actually make it so you have to actually touch the object to the lens just to get the focus point.

[The1]

Originally Posted by rodi

the Bronica 18mm extension tube needs 1.7 to 1.8 times the light for an equal exposure on the 80 and 150mm lenses, respectively. :\
sounds like a lot of light loss. but i don't plan on doing any macro - just closer portraits.

your ETs don't have lenses in them do they? I haven't experienced a loss of light.

and yes, with my longer lensees, if I use the small extension tubes, I can bring the subject slightly closer without turning the shots into macros.

[dcstep]

Originally Posted by The1

your ETs don't have lenses in them do they? I haven't experienced a loss of light.

I'm pretty sure you do. The f-stop won't change, but try a manual setting with and without the ET and notice the EV reading. I think you'll see the EV drop. It's not the optics, but the distance of the rear element from the sensor.

[Weebl]

Originally Posted by dcstep

This isn't the guy I was thinking of, but this guy gets equally amazing results using a reversed enlarger lens:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/jingles...7623492127788/


Dave

I have a old Zeiss enlarger/copy lens..... gives me an idea. Thanks.

[MaximusJ]

Originally Posted by The1

the longer you make the extension tube, the closer you have to be. if you stick the smallest one on with the 50mm, it will be likely the most usable.

if you put too large of an extension tube, you can actually make it so you have to actually touch the object to the lens just to get the focus point.

Yep that's exactly what im experiencing. I should try on longer lenses.

Also; i should try with my 105mm.

[UdubBadger]

Canon guys: talk to me about AF lens microadjustments

had a buddy borrow my 16-35 and he said it was back focusing on him all week. Should I be doing microadjustments on all my lenses?

How is it done?

[gary88]

Only one of my lenses has been perfect out of the box, all others saw some benefit from MA.

[M_Six]

I've read some good things about Reikan Focal software. I'm thinking of trying this out myself. I have noticed a couple of my lenses seem to miss the focus point by just a bit. Maybe some MA will help.

Having said that, keep in mind that it is camera specific. A lens that front focuses on one camera may be fine on another.

[Weebl]

Originally Posted by UdubBadger

Canon guys: talk to me about AF lens microadjustments

had a buddy borrow my 16-35 and he said it was back focusing on him all week. Should I be doing microadjustments on all my lenses?

How is it done?

When Chewy comes by to party with you, focus on his nose tip at wide open aperture. That will tell you if your lens front/back focuses. Try it at a longer distance, like when you take pictures of the school kids from your creeper van.
This will give you an overall picture of the focusing compensation that you need. My 40D front focuses like anything with any lens on it. I cannot adjust this and would have to send it to Canon to possibly fix it.
Next. and it will tell you how to MA your camera.
What Mark said about the MA, it is specific to the camera and not the lens.

at least this is my understanding of how it works.

[Chewy734]

Originally Posted by UdubBadger

Canon guys: talk to me about AF lens microadjustments

Here you go, you pasty white bastard

AF micro-adjustment for Canon EOS DSLRs

[Chewy734]

out of curiosity, do most of you guys shoot with back button AF?

[dcstep]

Originally Posted by Chewy734

out of curiosity, do most of you guys shoot with back button AF?

Not me. I use the back button to lock AF, since I use single-point AF a lot. I either move the AF point or focus on the eye and then hit the lock.

Dave

[SS32]

edit: Wrong thread, ignore this

[M_Six]

Well, since he said to ignore it, I guess I will.

[gary88]

Originally Posted by Chewy734

out of curiosity, do most of you guys shoot with back button AF?

One of the first things I enabled on my camera

[rodi]

Originally Posted by Chewy734

out of curiosity, do most of you guys shoot with back button AF?

i use the af-on button strictly to engage auto-focus. my shutter serves one purpose: releasing the shutter.

[MaximusJ]

Originally Posted by Chewy734

out of curiosity, do most of you guys shoot with back button AF?

Yep, The half a second you lose on focusing while hitting the shutter can be the half second that makes me miss the perfect timing. I know I could set it as shutter release priority, but I'm really comfortable that way.

Personal taste I guess. I wouldnt go back to shutter-focus.

[dcstep]

Originally Posted by MaximusJ

Yep, The half a second you lose on focusing while hitting the shutter can be the half second that makes me miss the perfect timing. I know I could set it as shutter release priority, but I'm really comfortable that way.

Personal taste I guess. I wouldnt go back to shutter-focus.

What are you talking about, man?

The AF time is the same no matter which button you push.

It's really only a personal preference issue, at least with Canon's prosumer bodies.

I shot around 2,000 shots last weekend with my 7D and can't remember waiting on the AF because of which button I was pushing. When I switched from a subject 12-feet away to one 50-yards away, I had to wait, but that wasn't due to the button pushed.

No waiting allowed:


Stay away, this is my perch! No, it's mine!!! by dcstep, on Flickr