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Low tide was at noon in Portugal when we were there, the worst time for photography. However, I promised myself to go for these great waders. An alternative title could be "please, some water.. "
I got a question from someone about the blurred background: Trust me, no artificial blurring or whatsoever. Just some sharpening and colorcorrection.
I'm always forgetting that there's a glow to traditional IR photots that have been shot on film. This is an old shot that's been reprocessed for the diffused glow. See the original here: www.flickr.com/photos/static808/202562459/
Camera : Nikon D700
Lens : Nikkor AFS-105mm Micro
Conversion Lens : Raynox DCR 250
Flash : Nikon SB700
Diffuser : Macro Diffuser
This post describes a simple flash diffuser solution I've been using a lot lately as a complement to my regular beauty dish style diffuser. The basic concept is nothing new: the diffuser is attached to the front end of the lens and wraps around the subject creating the equivalent of a small light tent.
This type of diffuser is sometimes referred to as "cup diffuser" since the main component is usually some sort of white plastic cup (Stephen was the first I saw describing this idea so I consider him to be the inventor).
Besides giving an extremely even and soft light this type of diffuser has another benefit since it makes it easier to get a well exposed background. A common problem with flash macro photography is that while the main subject is easy to expose properly, the background – being far away from the light source in relation to the foreground – becomes relatively dark or black (and if you expose for the background the main subject is over exposed or blown out). This becomes less of a problem with cup diffusers since the diffuser also acts as a shade, reducing the intensity of light hitting the main subject and thereby compensating for the fact that it's much closer to the light source than the background (which is lit by light coming from the flash directly).
I've been using this type of diffuser for at least a year or so but there are a couple of things that I've found inconvenient:
• Different lenses need different ways of mounting the diffuser. If it has a good fit on one lens, chances are it will fit badly on other lenses.
• Switching between diffusers is fiddly. I often want to be able to quickly switch between this type of diffuser and a beautydish style diffuser attached to the flash (better for skittish bugs and sometimes gives a more dynamic (less flat) light).
• Closely related to the previous point: mounting/unmounting the diffuser takes time. You either have to pack the gear with the diffuser attached (which often takes a lot of room in the camera bag) or spend precious time in the field mounting/unmounting it. And of course moving the diffuser from one lens to another becomes troublesome to the point where it might even put you off switching lenses.
• As you use this type of diffuser in the field they are often subject to quite rough treatment. Some solutions I've tried has worn out in a few hours.
The solution I've arrived at works by using several different small mounts, customized for each lens but with a standard fit for the protruding "light tent" part (referred to as the tent from now on). The mounts can be left permanently on the lens without interfering with different types of diffusers or making packing the equipment difficult. With the mount in place the tents can be mounted/unmounted using one hand in the matter of seconds. It's also very easy to make new tents if the old get worn or if you want a smaller/larger or differently shaped one.
Obviously this idea can be implemented in many different ways and the one I'm showing here is just one that happened to suit my needs in terms of size, diffuser material properties and availability.
Taken from a mountain top near Udaipur. Due to the haze in India the sunsets tended to always be quite diffuse, but beautiful in their own way.
Female Andrenosoma fulvicaudum (Say 1823). Found at Necedah NWR in central Wisconsin. Juneau County, Wisconsin, USA.
She was ovipositing in deep bark crevice on a large log from a felled hardwood tree.
Single exposure, uncropped, handheld, in situ. Canon MT-24EX flash unit, Ian McConnachie diffuser.
In the Monza Park (the big park where the F1 race circuit is included) there are many perfect places for a romantic autumn shooting. Here Alessia is backlit by late afternoon sun and is lightened by my flash in fill-in (with light diffuser) and by an assistant with a golden reflective panel. The result is the beautiful light that makes Alessia's skin sparkle and the color result is soft and warm.
Every year I get sort of dragged into autumn and winter, holding on to, the warm temperatures, the long days, the colorful leaves, dry weather, whatever, but slowly but surely this all fades away. Feels like a loss at times. But then, when the temperatures really drop and daylight gets super sparse, ths sky becomes colorful again, and it's time, for the sunset hunting season. Even though this was more a lucky shot on my way back home.
Nikon D750 (full frame / FX) + MB-D16
Minolta MD ROKKOR 50mm f/1.7 prime
Fotodiox Pro MD - Nik adapter
ISO100, 50mm, f/8, 1/1600sec (-1EV)
single photo, manual, handheld
A clearing storm from the previous night provided a day of nice diffused light on the landscape. The colorful columnar jointed lava flows from the Nelson Formation contrasted nicely with the newly emerging green spring foliage and the turbulent whiteness of the 100' waterfall. Here, numerous repeating outcrops of volcanic deposits hundreds of feet thick each spoke volumes about the volcanic evolution of the area, and its proximity to what is considered one of the largest volcanic eruptions (La Garita) ever on earth beginning 27 mya. Thanks for looking!
Part of the Daily In Challenge on Pentax Forums
Day 19
Lens: smc MACRO Takumar 50 mm f/4.0
shot at f/4.0
Sisyrnodytes sp. Found at Karoo Desert National Botanical Garden, N of Worcester. Western Cape, South Africa.
These were cute little robbers in the range of 5-7mm. They were relatively common at this reserve and I saw them perching on small rocks, small plants, and the ground.
Single exposure, uncropped, handheld, in situ. Canon MT-24EX flash unit, Ian McConnachie diffuser.
Nikon D700 | Nikkor AFS-105mm F2.8 VR Micro | Nikon Speedlight SB700 | Raynox DCR 250 | Macro Diffuser
Entrance to the 9th Street PATH Station in New York City. I got a little excited when I saw all those pipes overhead. Had to sit and wait a few minutes so those pesky people would be out of my way. ;)
Went to NY last night and met one of my fellow flickr PACtards at a fancy barber shop in Tribeca. Why would I do that? Because they had a little party to showcase some artwork and one of the photographers whose pictures were shown there is also a flickrite. But he wasn't there so I didn't meet him.
After the show my friend and her friend kindly dropped me off by cab at the PATH station. But it was way too nice of a night and too early so I walked around, had 2 hot dogs, looked at used books for sale and finally decided to go home. Was glad that I got to take at least one picture before I made my way back to NJ.
I have to thank this guy. I smell his influence on this shot. If you like this go look at his.