MT-24EX vs R1C1

MT-24EX - R1C1 face-off / showdown! I am not here to talk about which one will give you better light or which one is more powerful. They are both powerful enough and your light depends on how you diffuse your flash. If you need ideas on diffusion, check out this post instead. I highly recommend the concave diffuser!

I am more interested in how well both systems work out in the field, and the kind of issues real life macro photographers face when they are out there!

All Nikon R1/SP90 images and measurements/info are courtesy of JW. You can also check out his thoughts on the R1 in that link!

Front view of the Mounting brackets. Note that the bottom part of the bracket for the MT-24EX (left) is trimmed off/flat but that's not the case in R1C1's mounting bracket (right).

MT-24EX mounting bracket's diamter is 9.5cm but it's trimmed by 1 cm at the bottom. The R1 mounting bracket's diameter is 11.7cm, no trimming!

Rear view of the Mounting brackets.


Mounted onto my MP-E65 macro lens on the left, and R1 onto Tamron SP90 on the right.




Top view:

It is very obvious how much bigger the R1 bracket is!

This is how much the R1 bracket protrudes beyond the lens barrel:




Again, you can see clearly here that the MT-24EX mounting bracket is trimmed at the bottom and that the bracket doesn't extend beyond (radially) the MP-E65's lens barrel, and therefore allows me to shoot from really low angle, as low as the lens would go on a flat surface! On the R1/SP90 combo, however, the bracket protrudes out (radially)  far beyond the lens barrel. Needless to say, the bracket will get in the way and prevent you from getting really low when you try to photography something on a flat surface.


I made some rough measurements in CS5. It was about 21 degrees on the MT-24EX/MP-E65 and 33 degrees on the R1/SP90.


Besides the bigger diameter of R1 mounting bracket, the thickness is an issue as well. The MT-24EX mounting bracket, once attached to the MP-E65, is about 12mm (see the image below) ahead of the front element. The R1 bracket will extends out quite a bit. You can tell from the image on the right above the "depth" (the distance from the front of the bracket to the front of the lens) was really big!


The corresponding measurement for the R1/SP90 is 35mm.

 
 The corresponding measurement for the R1 is 2.5 cm (horizontal), and 9.5cm (vertical)!


Therefore, the SR200s are not only higher but also extends out quite a lot from the front of the lens. This tends to cause shadow on the lower part of macro subjects, and also very small/thin and dim catchlight as mentioned in this post and this post.

This image was taken by JW using his SP90/R1 macro rig. Not the very small/thin catch light in the spider's eyes. With the concave diffuser he is using, bigger catch light is to be expected unless the light angle is too high.


 The catch light should be bigger, like this, when using the concave diffuser.


Photographing an arthropod (or any other macro subject) at its eye level or even lower gives a very nice perspective as opposed to photographing it from a higher angle!

Others: The R1/R1C1 is wireless though. But the MT-24EX can be configured to have the focusing light turned on by double tapping the shutter button. On the R1(SB-E200), however, you can only turn on the focusing light by manually pressing the button on the each of the two R1(SB-R200), or once, on the SU800 (for R1C1).

Okay, so you can put like eight R1 (SB-R200) on the mounting bracket and make a beauty dish out of it for fashion model shoot, but what's the point of that when it can't do the very job it's designed for properly?

Anyway, the main issue here is the over-sized R1 mounting bracket, but it shouldn't be too difficult to DIY a bracket to hold the two SB-R200 better.  You can look here for ideas.

Macro rail

I bought a budget macro rail / macro focusing rail online not too long ago and have been testing it out for the last few natural light macro/close up outings. Here's what I think.

 
Macro focusing rail attached to my tripod collar / mount ring of my  Sigma 150 F2.8, non OS, and tripod/camera mounting plate fastened to the rail. This is a budget model so the movement is not perfectly smooth. Also it moves in two ways only, namely forward, and backward. There are models which can move four ways, i.e forward, backward, left, and right.

Can you see the beautiful green and yellow Eurybrachyidae planthopper on the tree trunk?

It's really straight forward and I am sure everyone will know how ot use it as soon as he/she lays her hand on one, but I included an illustration here just in case.

I couldn't move my tripod any closer because of the tree, but thanks to the macro rail, I could still move my camera forward quite a bit more! Priceless!



This is what the setup looks like from the other side.


Working distance (inches) vs magnification for the MP-E65. Working distance refers to the distance from front of lens to subject.

 If you take a look at the Working Distance (WD, in inch) vs Magnification, you will notice that at low magnification, say 1X, you need to move the camera like 1.5 inches in order to increase the magnification from 1X to 2X. However, at higher magnification, say 4X, any slight movement will result in huge change in magnification. For example, if you move the camera just 0.1 inch closer to the subject, the magnification will increase from 4X to 5X. Yes, just 0.1 inch!

 The point is, if you normally shoot at below 1X, you probably can get away by just moving the tripod forward or backward to get the magnification and framing you want. No big deal there. But as you get to the higher magnification, it will be more difficult to do so and that's when a macro focusing rail comes in handy.

Of course, you can use it to do really deep (i.e multiple shots) focusing stacking too if you are so inclined. For this, a macro rail with smooth movement and precise positioning is highly recommended.

 

Plamp

What is a plamp? Well, a plamp is a flexible wire with clamps attached to both ends. Like this.


This one was given to me by Sunny from the Butterfly Circle forum :). If you want to check out great butterfly images or to know more about these beautiful insects, click here.

It is an extremely useful contraption that will come in handy in close-up and macro photography. Clip or tie one end to your tripod and the other to the stem of the flower you want to shoot. This will not only hold the flower/subject in place but will also greatly reduce the subject movement due to breeze. You get the idea? I am sure you can think of many other ways to put this cool gadget to use.



Thanks to the plamp, photographing this black and yellow cicada was a breeze even when it was quite windy!


The captured image:


You can buy a ready made plamp on-line, or you can DIY one. What you see above is about 2 feet long (the 6 mm diameter blue coated wire), with 2 inch clamps at both ends.



You will have to strip off about 2 cm of the polyethylene coating/insulation on both ends of the wire before you can hot glue the bare ends to the clamps. You can use cable tie too if you want to, or a combination of both. Finish it off by heat-shrink wrapping the joint areas and voila, you have got yourself a professional looking DIY Plamp.

Tripod for Macro

This post is about tripod for macro photography.

I was out looking for bugs again when I found this newly emerged cicada perching on its own exuvium, pumping fluids to its wings, waiting for its body to harden before taking its first flight! I spent the next one hour photography this cicada.

I believe I missed the emergence process by about 10 to 15 minutes. Better luck next time! The newly emerged cicada was about 5 inches from the ground, on the root of a tree. So i lowered my tripod. My cheap tripod, which cost me RM200 ( about 65 USD), could go quite low, if it wasn't for the centre column which gets in the way.

But I really wanted to get low enough so I could shoot from an angle which maximizes my DOF. A light bulb lit up in my head and I found myself a blunt, dry tree branch on the forest floor and started digging!  Ah..i forgot to include dry tree branch i used for digging in this pic. :D.



A closer look. Tripod brand name removed. I probably should start carrying a spade in my backpack. I wonder if there is a foldable spade:D. Although I managed to get quite low, it still wasn't as low as I would have liked. The next time you see holes and earth all dug up, it may not be the work of the wild boars.


And then Derrick suggested an idea - fold up the tripod and put it on the ground, like this:


Excellent. Now we could get really really low!

I can't show you the actual shot from this session yet but I have a somewhat similar shot I took back in November 26, 2007 - my first sighting of an newly emerged cicada. Same type of cicada, same park. Same "a few minutes too late" :(



You don't have to go through all this trouble though if you are willing to spend some money on the right tripod. I have seen one where the center column can be removed. Beanbag is also another idea, if you don't mind an additional 400 gram or so in your backpack.

Sigma 150 vs Sigma 180

I have been using my Sigma 150 mainly for natural light shot for more than a year now and loving it. Just a few days ago, I acquired a pre-owned Sigma 180 so I thought I might do a little bit of side by side comparison of the two. Not on the IQ though. For that you can refer to a few excellent lens review sites such as Photozone, SLR Lens and Camera Review etc. I am mainly interested in what the extra 30mm can give me!

Physically, here are the differences:

MWD: Minimum working distance (front element to subject)
Sigma 150: 7.6" (194mm)
Sigma 180: 9.4" (238mm)

Weight:
Sigma 150: 895g
Sigma 180: 965g

As you can see in this image, the Sigma 180 is quite a bit longer than the Sigma 150, but only about 70g heavier. However, as you will find out later, the extra 30mm does makes quite a lot of difference!


I didn't think the extra 30mm would create any significant difference, until one fine day when I shot one same caterpillar with  a Facebook friend of mine from Singapore. I used a 150mm whereas he, a 180mm. As you can see, the extra 30mm really rendered the background more out-of-focus, and made the subject stand out!

Both images shot with natural light and the use of a reflector.

Another comparison shot. You can see clearly that at the same magnification (the flower was similar in size in both images), the 150mm saw more of the background, or in other words, had bigger FOV (Field of View), compared to the 180mm. The dark, vertical bars were my front gate. The 150mm saw four vertical bars whereas the 180mm saw only 3 bars. The working distance was different since with the 180mm, I had to move the camera/lens/tripod a little bit further away from the subject/flower.

Check out the "truck and barn" series of images in this link for a great illustration of the same point.

You can calculate the FOV by using the calculator on this site:

So on my 40D, the FOVs would be:

150mm: 8.465° x 5.649°
180mm: 7.058° x 4.709°

The Sigma 180mm is only 70g heavier, but a couple of hundreds (USD) more expensive. However, the extra 30mm clearly buys you much better ability to isolate the subject from the background. The extra working distance is great for shooting more skittish macro/close-up subjects too!

Edit: another comparison shot. I found the same frog again. The 180mm image was shot at F10 whereas the 150mm image F8. More or less the same magnification as the frog looks about the same size in the images. The 180mm image was slightly cropped on the left. So consider the slight crop and the higher F number a handicap to the 150mm :D. Again, it's easy to see that the 180mm has a much better bokeh!


Both images shot with natural light and the use of a reflector.

All about extension tube for macro!

What is Extension Tube?

Extension Tube is a great and comparatively inexpensive way to get started in macro photography. You can match it with a nifty fifty (50mm F1.8 lens) and get more than 1:1 magnification. You can also use it with your existing 1:1 macro lens and go beyond 1:1 magnification (life size). Extension Tube is available in Canon mount, Nikon mount, Sony mount etc. If you are not sure whether you really like macro, this is a good way to test the water and to get your feet wet.

It looks like this and normally consists of 3 tubes of 12mm, 20mm and 36mm.



What lens is the Extension Tube compatible with?

It works great with macro lenses such as the Tamron 60mm, Canon 60mm, Canon 50mm F/2.5, Nikon 60mm F/2.8, Tamron SP90, Canon 100mm, Nikon 105mm, Sigma 105, and even Sigma 150mm. Kenko Extension Tubes set consists of three tubes of different lengths: 12mm, 20mm and 36mm.

How does Extension Tubes work?

Extension tubes allows a lens to focus closer than its normal set minimum focusing distance. That has the same effect as magnifying your subject i.e higher magnification. Extension Tube will enable you to convert almost any lens into a macro lens at a fraction of the cost while maintaining its original optical quality.

How many Extension Tubes should I use?

A set of Extension Tubes consists of a 12mm, 20mm and 36mm tubes. You can use either just one, or any two, or all three together to achieve different magnification. The longer the combination you use, the higher the magnification you can achieve. Extension Tube works on non macro lenses too: 50mm f/1.8, 70-200, 300mm, 400mm etc.

Any IQ degradation?

There are no optics in the Extension Tubes so there will be little or no IQ loss.

What Magnification can I achieve?

Magnification achievable when using Extension Tubes with 1:1 macro lens. Thanks to KJTeng for some of the info on magnifications here:

With Tamron SP90, Canon 100mm, Nikon 105mm - approximately 2:1 (2X life size)

With Nikon 60mm macro - approximately 2.53:1 (2.53X!!!. Add a 1.4X Teleconverter and it will be more than 3X)

With Sigma 150 - approximately 2:1 (2x life size), this is a little surprising!

because

Magnification gained = length of tubes / focal length

For example, with the nifty fifty 50mm F1.8 and full set of 68 mm of tubes

Magnification gained = 68/50 = 1.36X.

Obviously this doesn't really apply to macro lenses. Therefore the best way to find out is to shoot an mm scale ruler as explained in this post.

Only two types of tubes!

Yes, only two types, basically, if you ignore the brand names.

i. those without electrical circuitry nor mechanical coupling - you get a set for less than USD10 if you know where to look! No TTL, no AF.

ii. those with electrical circuitry and mechanical coupling -these will cost more, obviously, but I highly recommend it though. Unlike the type with no electrical circuitry and no mechanical coupling, you can still control your aperture freely, and your view finder won't be dim either because you don't have to pre-set your aperture to the usual macro setting of normally F11.

Your ETTL will still work as normal too! This is very important because it takes a lot of lighting guesswork out of the equation. I almost always shoot in ETTL mode, and use FEC to control my light.

There are many other brands other than Kenko. Google is your best friend so do your homework!

Tip:

Add a 1.4X Teleconverter for even higher magnification - roughly another 0.4X to whatever you get from the extension tubes!

Finally, if you want even higher magnification, like 3X to 5X, then you must check out DMF SuperMacro! 

Poor man's MPE65 - DMF Supermacro

There are a few ways to achieve more than 1:1 magnification. This is just one of them. I will be sharing a few other methods too soon.

If you have been drooling over the MPE65 and MT24EX, drool no more! LOL. Thanks to KJ Teng for the heads-up.

This may just be what you have been waiting for:



It's called DMF Supermacro, a reverse lens adapter with twin flash. Note: the camera body and lens are not included. There is only Canon version though. You will still need a lens. An 18-55 kit lens will work great here. With this DMF Supermacro reverse lens adapter, you will not only be able to use ETTL flash, but also to control the aperture setting. About USD 700 including EMS shipping to Malaysia.

There is a demo video but there's only Mandarin subtitle:

DMF SuperMacro TECH PART3 from frankwu on Vimeo.

DMF Supermacro site is here. It is in Mandarin but there is a "translate" button at the bottom right, at least in my Firefox browser.

DMF SuperMacro features:

Here is my attempt at the translation!

* 輕易將一般型陽春鏡頭升級為高解析超微距鏡頭!
* transform any ordinary kit lens into high resolution super macro lens!

* 具備超微距專用雙閃,可任意調整光線角度!
* equipped with macro twin flashes with adjustable angles!

* 獨家設計鏡前輔助對焦燈,取景視野明亮清晰!
* built in focusing light!

* 搭配不同焦段鏡頭可獲得1/3~10倍超顯微放大並維持高解析畫質!
* achieve from 1/3 to 10X magnification depending on the zoom ranges and focal lengths of the lenses.

* 搭配之鏡頭不需做任何修改及拆解!
* no modification required on the lens(es).

* 轉換拍攝倍率無需拆換鏡頭,直接調整即可!
* simply adjust the lens barrel to change the focal length in order to achieve different magnification!

* 輕便高效率的專利設計!台灣精密製造耐用質感優!
* Patented, light weight and durable design. Made in Taiwan!

With a Canon 18-55mm kit lens, this is what you can get:

* at 52mm, 1:1 magnification
* at 38mm, 2:1 magnification
* at 28mm, 3:1 magnification

If you wish to calculate the magnification, the best way is to shoot an mm ruler as explained in the "How to calculate magnification" post.

Sample shots on Flickr.

There is a somewhat similar product from Novoflex - EOS-RETRO, Reverse Adapter (Euro 299) for Canon EOS (yes, Canon, again. Don't they know Canon already has an MPE65?). But as you can see, it doesn't come with the twin flash like the DMF Supermacro does.



Of course you also buy just a simple, no frill reverse lens adapter like the Opteka 58mm Reverse Macro Adapter for Canon EOS EF 18-55mm . It is a simple reverse lens adapter with no electrical contact, hence no ETTL, no aperture control via the camera.

It's cheap. The downsides are, you will have to manually adjust the flash power. That can be quite a pain at different magnification. Since you have to preset the aperture to probably F11, most macro photographers' favorite aperture setting, the view finder will be very dim. Not really a big problem if you don't mind attaching a focusing light to your macro rig.

How do you know which adapter is for your lens you want to reverse? Simple. If you have a Canon 18-55mm kit lens, you know the filter size is 58mm, then what you need is a 58mm Canon mount reverse lens adapter! So on and so forth. There are reverse lens adapters for most mounts: Nikon, Canon, Sony, Pentax etc.

Please also check out "All About Extension Tubes for Macro" to find out how you can go beyond 1:1 (1X) or simply just to test the water, get your feet wet in macro photography! It is really inexpensive. As low as 10 USD to get started!

Night Macro - a secret weapon

This is another slr macro photography tip i picked up. I talked about Night Macro before and it's not really any different from day time macro. You'll definitely need a reasonably powerful flashlight/torchlight to get around, look for bugs/insects and to help in focusing. You will need help to shine the flash on the subject so you can focus and compose. However, if you have the Canon MT24EX Twin Flash or the MR14EX ring flash, you can use the built-in focusing light.

You can also try adding a focusing lamp to your macro setup to aid in focusing. That way you don't need someone to help you shine light on your macro subject. Something like this:

A small flashlight/torchlight with adjustable angle


The small flashlight/torchlight attached to the macro rig. That's a DIY Snoot Diffuser attached to a speedlight. A DIY Snoot Diffuser guide is here.

Both images above courtesy of Chee Wai.

I have just acquired another secret weapon. Here we go:

Another flashlight/torchlight???


LED light mode..that is to be expect!


Laser beam mode..cool, but probably not very useful for night macro!


Hey, UV light, now we're talking. How is this going to help? We'll see.


With the help of UV light, you'll be able to find certain insects such as scorpion easily. I don't have any images of these yet but check out this link:

http://fireflyforest.net/firefly/2006/11/13/fluorescent-scorpion-in-uv-light/

Go get yourself this cheap torchlight/flashlight so you can try out this simple slr macro photography tip. You can even use the UV light to check for counterfeit notes! :D

What's in my bag

So what's in my camera backpack when i go on a macro outing? Well, these are the stuff i normally bring for a typical macro outing. Sometimes I included a wide zoom too.

Click on the images to go to my Flickr page to view all the notes.

A cheap but sturdy tripod. The iced black coffee (kopi-o peng) is optional.


a small/medium towel


40D, MPE65 1x-5X macro lens, MT24EX Twin Flash, Sigma 150, 5DM2 (the thumbdrive, not camera), DIY Diffuser box


Lens papar, Sandisk Ultra CF Cards, Hoya CPL, A-Better-Bounce-Card etc


A few more hidden items:

Plamp


A sun hat


A 2 in 1 reflector: gold on one side and silver the other


There's a raincoat in the bag. Not shown.