Canon 100mm L IS Macro lens

Hi All,

I recently started taking macro shots with my Canon 100mm L IS Macro lens but immediately ran into an issue.

I have attached a couple of sample picture and you can see the obvious problem with the picture. the whole object is not in focus.

now my question is that is it Me or the lens? I mean am i not taking the shot correctly or my lens is screwed up?

also Is the DOF really non existent at macro level?

Thanks

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8064/8...3ff156_c_d.jpg

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8482/8...25607a_c_d.jpg

As you start talking about macro distances, you need to shoot with a much narrower aperture (probably f/16-32) to get enough depth of field to keep the entire car in focus.

Here's a recent macro shot I did:

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8444/8...fb73c99a_z.jpg
Transformers Cuff Links by budrowilson, on Flickr

Even using f/18, the background is quite blurry even though it's only about 2-3 inches from the cufflinks.

Check out this resource:

http://www.dofmaster.com/dofjs.html

Plug in your variables (camera, focal length, aperture, subject distance) and it will tell you the depth of field of focus for your setup. Then adjust the variables to see how you can keep the entire car in focus.

Also, when plugging in the numbers, keep in mind the distance to subject is from a spot near the back of the DSLR where the sensor lives, not from the end of the lens, or the lens mount. This spot will be marked with a circle with a line through it (like this) At macro distances, these distinctions are important.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Sean Setters

Check out this resource:

http://www.dofmaster.com/dofjs.html

Plug in your variables (camera, focal length, aperture, subject distance) and it will tell you the depth of field of focus for your setup. Then adjust the variables to see how you can keep the entire car in focus.

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Wow the image looks amazing... didn't realize so much goes into taking a good Marco shot.

Thanks for the help.

I will try retaking the shots with this new information.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by DavidEccleston

Also, when plugging in the numbers, keep in mind the distance to subject is from a spot near the back of the DSLR where the sensor lives, not from the end of the lens, or the lens mount. This spot will be marked with a circle with a line through it (like this) At macro distances, these distinctions are important.

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thanks for that. I would have missed that completely.

Your shot was at f/2.8 (wide open and therefore the minimum DOF at a given distance). To give this some perspective... using the DOF calculator (see Sean's link) and assuming a shooting distance of 12 inches, then the DOF is only 0.03 inches.

To gain DOF, you need to do one of three things:

1. Decrease your apeture
2. Move farther away from the subject
3. Reduce the focal length (different lens or zoom out)

Agree with the above - your 'problem' is that you need more DoF.

In addition to Pat's list, look into something called focus stacking. Software called Helicon Focus merges the region of best focus from a series of shots. Best done with a macro rail, since changing the focus of a macro lens at 1:1 or near actually changes magnification, too.

If you've ever wondered what a lens like the TS-E 90mm f/2.8 is for...shots like yours. The tilt function allows you to get a deep DoF without stopping down so far that diffraction starts to soften the image. The TS-E 90mm is a great lens for product/jewelry photography - anything pretty small but three dimensional where you want to show the whole object in focus.

The DOF is extremely narrow. There are a few ways to overcome this, one is the smaller apertures. At a certain point you start to have a bit of distortion when going with smaller apertures and you loose a bit of the super fine detail that you may or may not be looking for. Over f/13 to f/16 you will start to see a bit of this.

Another way is focus stacking. It is a program where you take a series of pictures of an object, like your car. The program combines the focused areas to give you a single shot of the whole object in focus. Photoshop has this option if you have it.

Thank you all for the help.

Firstly I tried the focus stacking : really hard to do while holding camera in hard (at least for me it was)

Tried with a tripod It works very good.

but I wanted to do it though the camera as sometimes it may not be possible to take multiple shots.

so tried with F number starting from F16 onwards.

It works perfectly in bright sunlight but indoors...not so much.

so I have bought a YongNuo MR-58 Ring flash (bargain for $45 compared to Canon's offering)

given below are a few sots I took Outdoors. Again Thanks a lot for the help guys. Really appreciate it.


http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8347/8...19e9f0_z_d.jpg
http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8208/8...5dd8a1_z_d.jpg
http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8489/8...d1ba30_z_d.jpg
http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8487/8...924845_z_d.jpg

Those are some hot wheels you've got there. ;) Looking good.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by DSLR_Newbie

Thank you all for the help.

Firstly I tried the focus stacking : really hard to do while holding camera in hard (at least for me it was)

Tried with a tripod It works very good.

but I wanted to do it though the camera as sometimes it may not be possible to take multiple shots.

so tried with F number starting from F16 onwards.

It works perfectly in bright sunlight but indoors...not so much.

so I have bought a YongNuo MR-58 Ring flash (bargain for $45 compared to Canon's offering)

given below are a few sots I took Outdoors. Again Thanks a lot for the help guys. Really appreciate it.

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Looks like you are getting the hang of it.

Focus stacking hand held would be hard. If you have a really fast camera like the 1D IV or 1D X you could do a burst shot as you gradually get closer and farther away. But you end up with many throw aways.

The best way is with a rail, with a very fine sliding control, mounted on a tripod.

Edit; you do not neccesarly need a ring flash. Any flash with a remote cable can suffice on a budget and sometimes would be preferred. A ring flash will tend to flatten your picture, where if you get light in from the sides it can add depth.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by DavidEccleston

Those are some hot wheels you've got there. ;) Looking good.

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Thanks. :)

Quote:

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Originally Posted by HDNitehawk

Looks like you are getting the hang of it.

Focus stacking hand held would be hard. If you have a really fast camera like the 1D IV or 1D X you could do a burst shot as you gradually get closer and farther away. But you end up with many throw aways.

The best way is with a rail, with a very fine sliding control, mounted on a tripod.

Edit; you do not neccesarly need a ring flash. Any flash with a remote cable can suffice on a budget and sometimes would be preferred. A ring flash will tend to flatten your picture, where if you get light in from the sides it can add depth.

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I currently own a 60D so its no where near the 1 series also I agree there will be a lot of throw aways.

I would probably stay clear of the rail system for now and give the flash a go.

I have a Yongnuo RF-602 Flash Trigger and a Yongnuo YN-460II Flash unit which gives me off camera flash capabilities. I will give that a go.

Thanks