Post by deliasfanatic on Sept 22, 2015 1:19:22 GMT
I've now made my first trials with macro specimen photography since I obtained the new high-resolution setup, and I'm happy to say that the trials have passed the test with great success. I'll share several of them here.
In the past, my specimen closeups have been based on single photographs, taken with a Canon macro lens using a Canon 18 MP camera. While they're good for casual web use and such, one couldn't call them perfect; in the macro range, even a "flat" subject such as butterfly wings isn't truly flat, meaning that variations in wing flatness often move above/below the range of sharp focus.
I've begun using a technique called "focus stacking" - this involves a composite of several photographs, each taken at a slight variation of focus, which together encompass the whole range of the wings' depth from the focal plane. These photos are then combined in Photoshop, which selects the sharpest part of each photo and merges them into a single, stunningly sharp result. Combining this technique with the 50 MP Canon 5DSR camera and a very high quality Zeiss 100mm macro lens, I've been able to obtain results far superior to the old method. The full-sized images that you see here can easily be printed to 40" x 32" / 100 cm x 80 cm or even larger, while keeping every scale in crisp focus. The new camera is also far more accurate in colour rendition; whereas the old model had an annoying shift toward red, the new one is virtually perfect as it comes out of the camera.
The full-sized images are too large to post online; instead, I'll show the full images reduced to 1200 pixels in length, plus smaller full-resolution clips, which illustrate a sample portion of the image at full size. Correction: despite instructions to the contrary, the hosting company (Imageshack) has downsized the images...instead of 1200 pixels, they're being saved in the 1050-1150 pixel range, i.e. slightly reduced.
I've used two of my favourite Charaxes as test subjects: Ch. superbus female and Ch. fournierae female. Both have boldly marked rectos and intricately patterned versos. The full-sized sample clips each show a small part of the lower hindwing. Upcoming tests will include photos of only a portion of each wing as it fills the frame, rather than photographing the entire specimen; individual scale detail will be far better even than results shown here!
In the past, my specimen closeups have been based on single photographs, taken with a Canon macro lens using a Canon 18 MP camera. While they're good for casual web use and such, one couldn't call them perfect; in the macro range, even a "flat" subject such as butterfly wings isn't truly flat, meaning that variations in wing flatness often move above/below the range of sharp focus.
I've begun using a technique called "focus stacking" - this involves a composite of several photographs, each taken at a slight variation of focus, which together encompass the whole range of the wings' depth from the focal plane. These photos are then combined in Photoshop, which selects the sharpest part of each photo and merges them into a single, stunningly sharp result. Combining this technique with the 50 MP Canon 5DSR camera and a very high quality Zeiss 100mm macro lens, I've been able to obtain results far superior to the old method. The full-sized images that you see here can easily be printed to 40" x 32" / 100 cm x 80 cm or even larger, while keeping every scale in crisp focus. The new camera is also far more accurate in colour rendition; whereas the old model had an annoying shift toward red, the new one is virtually perfect as it comes out of the camera.
The full-sized images are too large to post online; instead, I'll show the full images reduced to 1200 pixels in length, plus smaller full-resolution clips, which illustrate a sample portion of the image at full size. Correction: despite instructions to the contrary, the hosting company (Imageshack) has downsized the images...instead of 1200 pixels, they're being saved in the 1050-1150 pixel range, i.e. slightly reduced.
I've used two of my favourite Charaxes as test subjects: Ch. superbus female and Ch. fournierae female. Both have boldly marked rectos and intricately patterned versos. The full-sized sample clips each show a small part of the lower hindwing. Upcoming tests will include photos of only a portion of each wing as it fills the frame, rather than photographing the entire specimen; individual scale detail will be far better even than results shown here!
bad internet in the French countryside nowadays 
