Cricket

[GardenersHelper]

I've been going back and processing test shots from experimental sessions in the garden over the past month, trying to work out if I want to switch to using a full frame setup and also testing a number of diffuser arrangements and some alternative post processing workflows. Here are some images from one of the sessions that I've been working on today. They were captured hand-held in our garden using a Canon EF mount Laowa 100mm 2X macro lens on a Kenko EF 2X teleconverter, mounted on a Sony A7ii with a Sigma MC-11 EF to E adapter, with a Canon EF mode Yongnuo twin flash operating in manual mode. The raw files were processed with, in this order (which is new), presets in Silkypix and DXO PhotoLab (previously these two have been the other way round), image-specific adjustments in Lightroom and auto settings in Topaz DeNoise AI and Topaz Sharpen AI. The last one had a trip to Photoshop to do a little cloning that I couldn't do in Lightroom.

#1

1672 28 2020_07_15 DSC07737 SP9_PLab3 LR-DNAI-AIS by gardenersassistant, on Flickr

#2

1672 29 2020_07_15 DSC07751 SP9_PLab3 LR-DNAI-AIS by gardenersassistant, on Flickr

#3

1672 37 2020_07_15 DSC07843 SP9_PLab3 LR-DNAI-AIS by gardenersassistant, on Flickr

#4

1672 38 2020_07_15 DSC07848 SP9_PLab3 LR-DNAI-AIS by gardenersassistant, on Flickr

#5

1672 39 2020_07_15 DSC07849 SP9_PLab3 LR-DNAI-AIS by gardenersassistant, on Flickr

#6

1672 40 2020_07_15 DSC07852 SP9_PLab3 LR-DNAI-AIS by gardenersassistant, on Flickr

#7

1672 41 2020_07_15 DSC07858 SP9_PLab3 LR-DNAI-AIS-AISst-PS by gardenersassistant, on Flickr

 

[nandbytes]

absolutely lovely!
good to see this works well with 2x TC (which I guess gives upto 4x magnification?). I have a similar setup (A7RIV+EF version laowa 100mm). I was considering a 2x TC myself, just not sure which one to get.

 

[GardenersHelper]

absolutely lovely!

Thanks.

good to see this works well with 2x TC (which I guess gives upto 4x magnification?).

Correct.

And it turns if from f/2.8 - f/22 to f/5.6 - f/45. These were all f/22 but I've been experimenting with smaller apertures (that was the idea behind using the TC, to get me to smaller apertures than I could otherwise achieve). With the added impact on effective aperture from the magnification, some of the effective apertures have been particularly small, smaller than f/200 in a couple of cases. I'm still working on it to try to establish what the smallest effective aperture is that I'm comfortable with (to give me the largest depth of field I can squeeze out of the rig while getting sufficient detail for my purposes). I'm thinking that it will end up at around f/90, which would give me around twice as much DOF as I've been getting with the bridge camera + close-up lenses setup I've mainly been using for some years at f/45 full frame equivalent.

With such small apertures the images come out very soft and need some quite strong processing to make them usable.

I have a similar setup (A7RIV+EF version laowa 100mm).

Nice.

I was considering a 2x TC myself, just not sure which one to get.

I'm new to Sony, and new to full frame, so I don't really have a view on what TC might be best. The Kenko one I'm using seems to work ok for my purposes, but because of the huge diffraction softening the quality of the optics probably doesn't matter too much. I certainly can't tell from what I use it for whether it is any good optically. From what I've read it seems that all 2X teleconverters (except perhaps some very expensive ones) noticeably downgrade image quality when used in normal fashion with reasonable apertures.

 

[Tintin124]

Great Nick, with my experiments not sure how you mange to get the lighting usable at such small f stops. Had the reversed lens on the other day and had to have the dual flash set to 1/1 which was ridiculous. More experiments needed as wasn't that way on different outing.

 

[GardenersHelper]

Great Nick, with my experiments not sure how you mange to get the lighting usable at such small f stops. Had the reversed lens on the other day and had to have the dual flash set to 1/1 which was ridiculous. More experiments needed as wasn't that way on different outing.

For these I was using a Yongnuo twin flash with the flash heads mounted on the front of the lens, like with the MT-24 EX. Front mounting gets the flash heads much closer to the subject than with (my setup of) the KX800, so I can operate with lower flash power than with the KX800, for which ISO/flash power has always been a bit close to the edge for me, for example sometimes needing ISO800 and 1/2 power with mFT. (It obviously depends on the scene. Occasionally even that wouldn't be enough).

Also these particular shots weren't using the very small apertures I've been using for some of my experiments. These were at f/22 and although I don't know exactly what the magnification was, it couldn't have been high given the length of those antennae, so the effective aperture may not have been more than f/45, quite possibly perhaps less.

ps, I've just this moment finished dealing with the last month's test sessions. I'm glad to have got them cleared away; it was getting a bit burdensome.

 

[alfbranch]

Up to your usual standard Nick

 

[GardenersHelper]

Up to your usual standard Nick

Thanks Alf. It currently looks like I'll be switching over to full frame for invertebrates.

 

[footman]

Excellent set, you have greater attention to detail in PP than I could possibly have.

 

[GardenersHelper]

Excellent set, you have greater attention to detail in PP than I could possibly have.

Thanks Laurence. I think PP can make a big difference to the look of images. And I enjoy spending time doing PP and experimenting trying to get results I like better.