Update - March 15, 2013: These set-ups are very out-dated. I have just finished an Ebook - The Ultimate Guide to Water Drop Photography. The link to purchase is on my Facebook Page. It is very detailed from beginner to advanced.

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I've been asked for my current setup for water drop photography. This is what I have been using lately. Managed to recycle a table and desk for this. Remember - it's the end result that counts ;-) I set the timer to 5 seconds and release the drops. I get about 1 in 10 success rate. A StopShot is on my wish list.

Also, I'm not a carpenter or engineer, so this will have to do for now. Sometime, I plan to make something a little more adjustable and practical. This is in a corner of my basement (right beside the warm furnace) so I can just leave it set up like this.

I'm always changing things, so nothing ever stays permanent - this is basic.

My camera settings vary as well.

A few tips

My self made wall mounts for my seamless paper background.

Yes and when I mean self made I mean self made.My daughter and I mount them on the wall:)

I baid like $25 for the hooks and one wooden pole.

The North America and Pelican nebulae imaged with my StarAdventurer setup - I also wanted to show some of the dark and emission nebulae below the two main nebulae in this image.

Modified Canon 80D

Sigma 135mm f/1.8 Art lens at f/2

Clip-in IDAS D1 light pollution suppression filter.

136 subexposures of 80 seconds at ISO400 and f/2.

StarAdventurer tracking mount

William Optics wedge

40 Flat frames - Electroluminescent panel at 1/125s, ISO 400.

40 Dark frames

Acquired with Backyard Eos

Edited in PixInsight 1.8.9

Light Pollution measured at 20.3 mag/arcsec2.

This is my view of the diorama right before I start shooting. I'm either kneeling or sitting on the ground, so I can preview how the scene will look.

Along with moving the models and accessories around, I can swivel the base to get best view in relationship with the background.

If you cover up the bottom half of this photo with your hand, the magic takes place and scene comes into focus.

I'm amazed every time it happens. Really, how is this possible?

Yashica Electro 35 GT | APX 100 NEW 100@800

Rodinal 1+100 / 120,0 Min / 20°C Info

Behind the scenes for this photo for Macro Mondays:

www.flickr.com/photos/mag3737/53146548963

I stood next to the window for several minutes trying to determine the height and angle at which the light would reveal the hexagons without being visually overwhelmed by the circular patterns on the crowns of the bolts. It took long enough that I worried the sunlight would completely change before I figured it out.

But I did, and then it took me another few minutes to figure out how I could get this relatively heavy object to hold still at just exactly the angle and position I needed it. I envisioned needlessly-complicated structures (requiring various equipment that I don't have) before I hit upon the idea of an open book.

I put together a widefield setup from scraps and spare bits lying around to run as a secondary imaging rig. My main setup is a 100mm refractor on an EQ mount. My favorite star party of the year Okie-Tex is coming up, the first week of October. I want to maximize my time under the Bortle-1 skies.

This is an old Nikon D7100 from 2013, full-spectrum modified, a Rokinon 135mm prime lens, ZWO Eaf focuser, Sky-Watcher Evo-Guide, and ZWO ASI 178mm guide cam. The Nikon D7100's sensor is showing its age, but it can still get the job done with enough integration.

I like to use aluminum angle iron bolted to universal "bread plates". This way, I can mount accessories any way I need to.

I spent last Tuesday and Wednesday nights at CRO working the kinks out of this setup. After a few adjustments and swapping out guide cameras, it's working great. I tested it with APT, Backyard Nikon, PHD2 and Celestron PWI, and Cartes du Ciel.

I was able to get some data on the Nebulae near Deneb. The North America Nebula and the Pelican Nebula.

Image data:

88), 5-minute, iso-200, f/3.2 at 135mm, stacked with calibration frames. 90% of best subs stacked. Nikon D7100 (full spectrum modified), guided, stacked with DSS, processed in Pixinsight and Adobe Photoshop.

setup...

"I'm" kicking back while I'm setting up for a shot. Never a fun time for "me" or Jem.

This will give you a clue what's hopefully coming in a few days. It's been a time searching for a new location to shoot in, choosing lighting, making sure shadows are working and fingers aren't poking through handbags -- all the usual of good Second Life photography. And then posing, and coordinating the poses with Jemmy. We don't have nearly enough to choose 4-8 for a good photo spread in the blog, but we're trying every possibility.

Gown by Elegance Boutique; shoes by KC Couture; prop cigarette holder by JCNY Collection (vintage); headdress by Yula Finesmith (vintage); pearl jewelry by Zuri Rayna; jeweled eyebrows by PurpleMoon.

Setup with the raynox in normal position later, 6X setup later too.

1x and 6x setup also out.

Mk2 10X microscope lens camera setup.

Using EOS to M42 adapter £5, set of M42 extension tubes £10. M42 to RMS cone £20 and a cheapish Olympus 10X plan lens £28. All new either from Ebay or Amazon.

The narrow end makes it easier to rest the lens on my hand and get a reasonable angle on a potential subject on a surface

setup for this.

Here is a run down of the gear used:

Shoe was placed on a well-cleaned piece of picture frame glass purchased at Home Depot (for only $4.95!). Glass was elevated using gobo arms so that I could shoot from underneath (I am sick of using fishing line to suspend floating objects-- but this trick proved to have too many obstacles so the search continues...)

Profoto Acute2 packs and heads were used. One head through soft box directly over the shoe as key. A second head with a 5 degree gridspot was used as a rim, to camera-right and behind the shoe, with a scrim to cut the output by a stop. A third light with another 5 degree grid illuminated the seamless background to add some drama. Many images were taken and combined by focus stacking to achieve even, sharp focus over the whole shoe. This was my first attempt at focus stacking.

I guess that's it. The nebula photo I dropped in the background is courtesy of NASA, and is in the public domain, as I believe most of their images are.

The masking I used in retouching allows me to change the orange in the shoe to any color, and since the Mercurials come in green and purple (at least that I know of ) I may consider a diptych or triptych later.

I took this with the lights turned back on to remind me how I got the gloomy, claustrophobic feel of Dark Ages.

Electric tea lights were the only light used for the photo. They were positioned to light the figure and the backdrop, but only a little.

Arab Sheikh Setup for Hussain Al-Radea

Taken on January 31, 2016 for a facebook challenge of my daily life.

Photo by Poul-Werner Dam / bit.ly/PWD_Flickr

Actual Photo

old photo.. demolished

Photo setup used for my latest builds.

Background: "Tupplur" roller blind from Ikea, put up on an old drying rack.

Lighting: Flash bounced off the white roof.

The gray card is used to calibrate the white balance and was removed before the final pics.

I never realized how many interesting buildings and views there are in the town I live in until I seriously started to scout around for backgrounds.

The one thing I have to do is wait until the shops close so there aren't any cars or trucks mixing in with the Elgin Park vibe.

Usually early in the morning or on the weekends is the best time.

The Holidays, though, are great because everyone leaves town so the streets tend to be empty.

When I was young, I would purposely take walks by way of short cuts and back alleys to avoid seeing people. It gave me the impression that I was the only person around.

But I must add here, I liked the fact that I could walk by an open window and hear a radio or a muted conversation, or off in the distance I could hear a train rolling by.

How interesting that decades later I would be photographing such scenes.

I know, I know, perhaps I should see a therapist. Actually I did but there were no inroads made on this particular subject.

Just think, if there were, Elgin Park might not exist!

Now that's a scary thought.

Here is the completed image:

www.flickr.com/photos/24796741@N05/11594728873/

Taken: NY, USA.