p.2 #1 · Mitakon Creator 85mm f/2.8 1-5X Super Macro
Dalantech wrote:
IMHO eliminating shadows is not optimal. We gauge depth by the shadows and what's in and out of focus. That's why evenly lit focus stacked images look flat.
I was talking about eliminating shadows caused by the camera and off camera lighting.
p.2 #2 · Mitakon Creator 85mm f/2.8 1-5X Super Macro
Dalantech wrote:
The working distance with the MP-E 65mm drops as the mag goes up. Working distance and magnification are marked on the lens...
Is this perhaps one of those instances where Canon's numbers can be misleading? Perhaps the difference of measuring to the lens front element VS the to camera sensor.
The lens extension of the 65mm is considerable. So much so that I set my camera at the front of the focusing rail for 1X and move the camera further away as the mag moves to 5X. I have not measured from the front of the lens but the camera is definitely further away at 5X.
p.2 #3 · Mitakon Creator 85mm f/2.8 1-5X Super Macro
snowblind-2 wrote:
The lens extension of the 65mm is considerable. So much so that I set my camera at the front of the focusing rail for 1X and move the camera further away as the mag moves to 5X. I have not measured from the front of the lens but the camera is definitely further away at 5X.
That may well be the case. Most of us shoot hand-held and I am certainly not aware of camera distance, only of working distance.
p.2 #4 · Mitakon Creator 85mm f/2.8 1-5X Super Macro
snowblind-2 wrote:
Is this perhaps one of those instances where Canon's numbers can be misleading? Perhaps the difference of measuring to the lens front element VS the to camera sensor
You're confusing sensor to subject distance and working distance. The working distance is measured from the front of the lens to the subject. So the working distance drops as the mag goes up.
p.2 #5 · Mitakon Creator 85mm f/2.8 1-5X Super Macro
e6filmuser wrote:
That may well be the case. Most of us shoot hand-held and I am certainly not aware of camera distance, only of working distance.
Harold
Yes. Hand-held is perhaps simpler in that way while also being more difficult in other ways. In the studio beyond 1X it is often easier to move the subject backwards than to disturb the camera.
p.2 #6 · Mitakon Creator 85mm f/2.8 1-5X Super Macro
Dalantech wrote:
You're confusing sensor to subject distance and working distance. The working distance is measured from the front of the lens to the subject. So the working distance drops as the mag goes up.
You are correct. I was talking about MFD.
Working distance equals MFD minus the length of the lens but with lenses (like the 65mm) that extend the barrel MORE than they reduce WD, the MFD goes UP as the WD goes down.
If you only shoot handheld or don't vary magnification much then the WD might be more important. For setting up a tripod I find the MFD to be a much more useful gauge.
p.2 #8 · Mitakon Creator 85mm f/2.8 1-5X Super Macro
snowblind-2 wrote:
If you only shoot handheld or don't vary magnification much then the WD might be more important. For setting up a tripod I find the MFD to be a much more useful gauge.
Matt
Working distance is also important for diffusion, since with most setups the flash/diffuser to subject distance is also dropping as the working distance drops. So diffusion gets better as the subject gets closer to the flash/diffuser.
One big mistake I see a lot of people making is camera mounting a flash, since most of the light it's producing is simply going straight out into empty space. That problem gets even worse as the working distance drops.
p.2 #9 · Mitakon Creator 85mm f/2.8 1-5X Super Macro
Dalantech wrote:
One big mistake I see a lot of people making is camera mounting a flash, since most of the light it's producing is simply going straight out into empty space..
A zoom flash set on long FL reduces the loss.
If you mean on the hot shoe, I largely agree, although before lending some kit, I was surprised on how good the lighting was, with the flash diffused but pointing straight ahead.
p.2 #10 · Mitakon Creator 85mm f/2.8 1-5X Super Macro
e6filmuser wrote:
A zoom flash set on long FL reduces the loss.
If you mean on the hot shoe, I largely agree, although before lending some kit, I was surprised on how good the lighting was, with the flash diffused but pointing straight ahead.
Harold
Yes, I meant hot shoe mounted. A lot of the light is wasted, and it's coming from top down (almost impossible to get good shadow control).
The reason why that type of light looks diffused is because the only light that's hitting the subject is the light that bouncing off of the inside of the diffuser, so it's "feathered". I get the same effect by using several layers of 1/4 stop white China silk with a flash pointed directly at what I'm shooting, and it keeps the duration of my flash to a minimum. Shorter flash duration and taking control of the motion in a scene = sharper images.
p.2 #12 · Mitakon Creator 85mm f/2.8 1-5X Super Macro
e6filmuser wrote:
aka looks natural!
Only if you're shooting at high noon
e6filmuser wrote:
I always have one light down and across and another +/- level and across.
Harold
I have mine in a key and fill configuration, with the key on an adjustable flash show so it's not hitting the subject at the same angle as the fill. I get my inspiration from studying portrait photography.
p.2 #14 · Mitakon Creator 85mm f/2.8 1-5X Super Macro
e6filmuser wrote:
For a moment, I thought you were going to say from my macro!
Harold
Don't feel bad, I don't get inspired by other macro shooters. What I'm trying to do with my photography doesn't fit well with the majority of the people in the macro discipline.
p.2 #16 · Mitakon Creator 85mm f/2.8 1-5X Super Macro
ratherSoftEdge wrote:
Do you guys mind talking more about sharpness etc? Is this lens "sharp"? And how does it compare to the Laowa (also in terms of sharpness)?
We don't mind, although this is not really an equipment forum.
At that price I would hope so.
If you are going to compare you have to test two lenses on the same camera and with the same subject at the same magnification and aperture. You need lots of sample images because you are judging the focus.
Too much has been said about how sharp various lenses are wide open. That would be important for focus stacking but not for much else. I rarely use any wider than f8, mostly f11.
I have the Laowa 25mm and have been using it for magnifications higher than 1:1 since it first became available.
Irrespective of the lens, or its quality, diffraction blur is a fact of life at small effective apertures and at high magnification. Much of it can be removed digitally.
