My first attempt at Macro Photography....

[aphex]

Ok, be forewarned, i know absolutely nothing about what i am doing... My first non point and shoot. I got my Nikon D70 three weeks ago and have only spent 3 hours max playing with it since i've been so busy....

I think i may have used a bit too much unsharp mask, but i like the effect it gives...

http://www.aphexii.com/pics/macrosm1.jpg

 

[jlee]

:thumbsup:

 

[Zim Hosein]

Cheers aphex :beer:

 

[AMDZen]

Thats sweet, nice job

 

[loic2003]

Think you spent a bit too long prepping the shot....

 

[njmodi]

aphex - looks nice - the saturation and lighting are excellent - I would recommend you retake that shot, but use a wider aperture (i.e. a lower number, say f3.5 or something). In the current photo, the background is still a little "too defined" - so it takes away something from the main subject. With a wider aperture, you'll soften/blur the background even more, and your subject matter will stand out that much more.

here is one of mine FYI: http://pics.bbzzdd.com/users/njmodi/8637.jpg - its not perfect either - I should have found a way to compose the photo without the flower on the right side of the frame...



Edit: Taken on film with a Canon AE-1 manual SLR... scanned with no enhancements.

 

[aphex]

Originally posted by: loic2003
Think you spent a bit too long prepping the shot....

huh?

 

[loic2003]

Originally posted by: aphex

Originally posted by: loic2003
Think you spent a bit too long prepping the shot....

huh?

..... the flower is half dead. Nice shot, however.

 

[aphex]

Originally posted by: njmodi
aphex - looks nice - the saturation and lighting are excellent - I would recommend you retake that shot, but use a wider aperture (i.e. a lower number, say f3.5 or something). In the current photo, the background is still a little "too defined" - so it takes away something from the main subject. With a wider aperture, you'll soften/blur the background even more, and your subject matter will stand out that much more.

here is one of mine FYI: http://pics.bbzzdd.com/users/njmodi/8637.jpg - its not perfect either - I should have found a way to compose the photo without the flower on the right side of the frame...

That is f/3.5

I used an unsharp mask on the whole image, so it sharpened up the BG too... Lemme mask it off and just unsharp the dying flower.

 

[aphex]

Originally posted by: loic2003

Originally posted by: aphex

Originally posted by: loic2003
Think you spent a bit too long prepping the shot....

huh?

..... the flower is half dead. Nice shot, however.

hahahaha, i know.... my fiancee never waters them and im too busy/lazy

 

[biostud]

looks really weird IMHO, like something not real.

 

[rhino56]

heres my best one
http://www.cryo-laboratory.com/upload/userfiles/rhino56/Picture_1394.jpg

 

[aphex]

Originally posted by: biostud
looks really weird IMHO, like something not real.

Thats probably the unsharp mask, it cleans it up a little too much...

The colors however were not touched...

 

[Anubis]

that with the kit lens?

you use teh macro preset or just do it manually?

 

[aphex]

Originally posted by: Anubis
that with the kit lens?

you use teh macro preset or just do it manually?

Kit lens, Using Aperature-Priority mode. I tried Macro but since im learning i want more control so i can figure out what the adjustments do.

 

[Spike]

Macro's are awesome shots to play with. Of the 4,500+ pictures I have taken in the last year and a half with my Canon Powershot G3, at least 700 of them are macro's. I don't usually mess much with the settings past the basic 'macro' mode, I try to focus more on positioning.

Someday I will actually take a class so I can learn how to actually use decent camera's, then it's off to get a Rebel or something even nicer.

-spike

EDIT** not to ask a dumb and off-topic question but.... where can I get free, decent webspace to share pics? I recently (6 months ago) lost my university space so now I am looking for a way to host some of my pics. Thanks!

 

[pulse8]

One of mine.

Spike:

See sig.

 

[aphex]

Originally posted by: Spike
Macro's are awesome shots to play with. Of the 4,500+ pictures I have taken in the last year and a half with my Canon Powershot G3, at least 700 of them are macro's. I don't usually mess much with the settings past the basic 'macro' mode, I try to focus more on positioning.

Someday I will actually take a class so I can learn how to actually use decent camera's, then it's off to get a Rebel or something even nicer.

-spike

EDIT** not to ask a dumb and off-topic question but.... where can I get free, decent webspace to share pics? I recently (6 months ago) lost my university space so now I am looking for a way to host some of my pics. Thanks!

pics.bbzzdd.com

 

[aphex]

See, im so used to taking landscape shots with a Point and Shoot, im hoping i can transition to macro's

Check out the bg pics at my site, http://www.aphexii.com for the landscapes and close to 3-4k pictures in the gallery....

 

[njmodi]

the kit lens 35-70 or something right?

the other way to reduce depth of field is to use a large aperture but move back and zoom into the subject instead of being really close... this will help you soften the background... this subject is big enough that you don't have to use macro mode...

 

[shilala]

Lookin good Aphex!!!
I always try to get a real bland background for macros. Cropping the image out really helps, too. You want your eye to be drawn to the subject when the pic is all finished.
Check this photchop of your pic and see what I mean.
In that particular pic, if you slide left just a whiskerbiscuit when you're shooting it, the background gets a lot simpler and makes a nice frame for the flower.
Here's one of mine where I kept a lot of close detail to set off the flower.
This stuff is big fun, ain't it?

 

[Fritzo]

I just took an AWE-SUM macro photo:

Anyone taking macro pics can learn from this...

 

[aphex]

Originally posted by: njmodi
the kit lens 35-70 or something right?

the other way to reduce depth of field is to use a large aperture but move back and zoom into the subject instead of being really close... this will help you soften the background... this subject is big enough that you don't have to use macro mode...

Well, its 18-70, but i think since its digital it comes out more like 28-105

 

[njmodi]

Originally posted by: pulse8
One of mine.

Spike:

See sig.

Now thats a true "macro" shot - very nice.

 

[Jzero]

Originally posted by: aphex

Originally posted by: njmodi
In the current photo, the background is still a little "too defined" - so it takes away something from the main subject. With a wider aperture, you'll soften/blur the background even more, and your subject matter will stand out that much more.

I used an unsharp mask on the whole image, so it sharpened up the BG too... Lemme mask it off and just unsharp the dying flower.

The real problem isn't the F stop or the post-processing. The background contains elements (those things on the left) which are flat-out distracting, and would be distracting regardless of the amount blur you manage to induce on them.

Such objects are best cropped out. Try to find backgrounds without outstanding objects. I like the tactic of putting a drape or piece of paper behind the subject in a color that complements or accentuates the subject itself.