A macro retrospective

[Reef Bass]

These are my favorite 20 or so macros I've shot over the last 4 or 5 years, in roughly chronological order. All are / were my corals except where noted. All were shot with my 50D and 100mm macro lens, except the last, shot with my 6D.


ORA Plum Crazy

Eagle Eyes

ORA Blue Voodoo

Pink Millepora

ORA Borealis

Alicia's Strawberry Chalice

Inflated Acan Polyp

Purple Rim Green Monti Cap

 

[Reef Bass]

Tyree Purple War Coral

Mixed Zoanthids

Reverse Sunset Montipora

Mezmerizing Halo Acan

Dinosaur Egg Montipora

Jedi Mind Trick Montipora

Unknown Tort

 

[Reef Bass]

Purple Stylophora

Grants Garf Bonsai

Hammer Coral with bubble

Grants Nubbly Acro

Frogspawn

Rainbow Montipora

Orange Stargazers

 

[Misled]

Very nice Ken. I do remember most of them, but must give my emotions on some. I'll go somewhat in order, but I'm only gonna say something about the ones I think I have to.

The Plum looks a little over exposed. I know you know that. But there's something about it. It almost looks fake. It's beautiful though.

The Chalice. Dude that's a beautiful coral.

The Acan. Great shot, good timing and wonderful colors.

Halo Acan. Great DOF. Excellent colors.

The rest are all great shots but there are two more I must comment on.

The Purple rim. Great shot. The DOF and the use of negative space really make this one that stands out, at least to me. Beautiful!!!

And last, my favorite, the War coral. Holy freakin crap that's sweet. The colors look like they're running down the sides. It looks like something from a sci-fy movie.

Nice stuff Ken!!!!

 

[bubblewood]

Incredible shots! Would you mind sharing some of the parameters on your camera? White balance, iso etc. I have a Nikon 5200 with a 105mm macro lens. I simply don't get the colors and closeness you are getting.
Thanks! Joe

 

[Reef Bass]

Thanks Jesse. I appreciate your taking the time to comment.

I hear you about the Plum Crazy. It was my first. There is something surreal about it. Maybe I've just been staring at it too long.

I am also pleased with the composition and negative space in the PRGMC image. I also learned there that having a few inches of nothing but space behind the subject allowed the background to fade to black, which I think works here.

Thanks for the remark about the War Coral. Yeah, it was sweet (RIP...). I totally agree about the "green lava oozing down the slopes" thing. The first time I shot it I noticed the sparkles too. Ridonculous! For me it's a good example of how much beauty is to be had at the macro level which often gets overlooked.

bubblewood, I shoot in RAW and adjust my white balance during post processing. I try to shoot at the lowest possible ISO, usually 100. I shoot straight through the glass, not at an angle. I use a tripod and remote shutter release (actually I shoot remotely, tethered to my laptop). And I turn my pumps off so there is less water motion. Debris tends to settle and polyps tend to inflate. Plus I can then use longer shutterspeeds with the tripod and employ smaller apertures for greater DOF.

 

[bubblewood]

Thanks Jesse. I appreciate your taking the time to comment.

I hear you about the Plum Crazy. It was my first. There is something surreal about it. Maybe I've just been staring at it too long.

I am also pleased with the composition and negative space in the PRGMC image. I also learned there that having a few inches of nothing but space behind the subject allowed the background to fade to black, which I think works here.

Thanks for the remark about the War Coral. Yeah, it was sweet (RIP...). I totally agree about the "green lava oozing down the slopes" thing. The first time I shot it I noticed the sparkles too. Ridonculous! For me it's a good example of how much beauty is to be had at the macro level which often gets overlooked.

bubblewood, I shoot in RAW and adjust my white balance during post processing. I try to shoot at the lowest possible ISO, usually 100. I shoot straight through the glass, not at an angle. I use a tripod and remote shutter release (actually I shoot remotely, tethered to my laptop). And I turn my pumps off so there is less water motion. Debris tends to settle and polyps tend to inflate. Plus I can then use longer shutterspeeds with the tripod and employ smaller apertures for greater DOF.

Thanks Ken for the info!
Everything you had mentioned is what I'm currently doing. I have my ISO set a little higher (400) I will reduce it to (100). Are using a remote flash? What is the software you use for adjustment?
Is most of corals close to your glass? It just seems like I'm unable to get the depth and sharpness as you get.
Thanks again for your input!
Joe

 

[jroovers]

A very nice retrospective indeed! I like all of those shots, all the acros are great, and I like the colour in the inflate acan. I miss my acans, I had to get rid of them because of my regal angel.

 

[Reef Bass]

You're welcome Joe. Also, I leave the EXIF info in my shots, so you should be able to see all the settings on each pic if you have an EXIF viewer. I use the free Opanda EXIF viewer for windows.

Thanks Jordan. I have a soft spot for acans as well. You must really like that regal! It is a beautiful fish.

 

[zachhll]

These are amazing! The lady has a DSLR, going to have to get her to take some photos of my tank. Don't have quite as much in it as yours though!

 

[Reef Bass]

Thanks zachhll. I have been fortunate to have some good looking subjects over the years.

 

[faithenfire]

very nice work indeed

 

[Ssteve]

How are you liking the 6d compared to the crop body? Shooting the same 105 on the 6d? I've been waiting to jump back into a slr until I can afford a 6d, but Ive got the itch and been kicking around buying a 7d to hold me over... I told myself after switching to the 5d2 though that I would never buy another crop as a primary body.

 

[Reef Bass]

Thanks faithenfire.

Steve, your line about "never buy another crop as a primary body" rings very true to me. My shooting process is very similar, but the results are better. The full frame sensor brings a lot to the party. And the super low noise at high iso is really great. I haven't even begun to make use of that.

Yes, I am using the same 100mm Canon macro lens. I'm toying with the idea of getting the 180 L macro for my birthday. :dance:

There's an irony now that I have a sweet back, work is sucking up all my time and I haven't been able to shoot much. Must make time!

 

[Ssteve]

Well if you need someone to exercise your equipment, let me know...

The low noise is what drove me to ff originally cause I was doing a lot of stuff for night clubs, and after owning the d700 and 5d2 and comparing images to the various crop bodies I've owned, there's really no comparing the two.

The 6d has had my attention for a while and while I liked shooting nikon for a bit, the GPS is really a deal breaker for the d600/610, so I think I'll hold out and get a 6d sometime this spring.