What experiences he was able to make and why he macro photographs uses the sled outdoors, you can find out in this blog post.
The play of sharpness and blurriness
Florian Kunde discovered his passion for photography early on and thus also focused his studies on photography. Personally, he likes to work out with a good mix sharpness and blur in his pictures. His goal: the viewer of his pictures can feel like a hidden observer of his scene. As if you could see through the grass or the leaves yourself, says Kunde.e.
| camera | focal length | ISO | cover | exposure |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fujifilm X-T3 | 56mm | 160 | f/1.4 | 1/640 sec |
In addition to large and wide landscapes, he likes to capture moments when one detailed look worth the moss carpet in the forest, the flowers on the sidewalk, small crawling animals in the garden and much more. However, this also poses a certain challenge for an experienced photographer. The closer you bring your lens to the desired subject, the smaller it becomes focus area. If you want to get more sharpness in your picture, you need it clearly more light and loses that beautiful bokeh an open aperture.
focus stacking or macro stacking can remedy this. Here, several recordings of the image are created and combined into one final result put together. In order to enable the necessary millimeter-precise shifts, the macro slide ideal for this work. The photographer himself has been using Rollei products for a long time and was therefore pleased to find the tool directly in the test practice to be able to
Macro photography with millimeter precision
In order to simulate before and after pictures with and without the Macro Rail, the photographer set up his setup again at home. Without the macro slide was that macro stacking not possible, or there were partially blurred parts. With the built-in crank thread, which moves the macro slide and the camera mounted on it precisely at individual intervals, it was possible to create these neatly arranged shots. In the digital post-processing he was able to stitch the images together into a typical macro stack and get the desired result.
Practical test: photo stacking with the macro slide
To the macro slide In combination with the LUMIS Solo 2, Florian Kunde drove to the Kummerfeld forest to take a closer look in practice. Due to the large moss landscape, this is ideal for macro stacking at. For the recordings he has next to his Fujifilm X-T3 on the Viltrox lens 56 mm f/1.4 set. To the macro slide to be able to place it optimally, he also uses that Compact Traveler Mini M-1. The mini tripod allowed him to take shots close to the ground.
| camera | focal length | ISO | cover | exposure |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fujifilm X-T3 | 56mm | 160 | f/1.4 | 1/640 sec |
For the Photo stacking setup the photographer positioned the camera mounted on the macro slide in front of a moss-covered tree trunk. Due to the changeable weather during his shoot, he resorted to the LED cube LUMIS Solo 2 return. For the targeted lighting In this setup, he uses a device prepared with an orange color filter and another LUMIS Solo 2 with a spotlight attached in the right area of the image. These served to simulate the sun's rays. With another device, Kunde irradiated the moss layers from the left side. Here he used a blue color filter to Contrast in the cooler ambience to create.
Foolproof camera rides
In his test, Florian Kunde, in addition to the classic use of the macro slide for photo stacking also the possibility for simple camera rides particularly fascinated. He also tested this with a camera run in the forest and once again chose a moss-covered tree trunk as a motif. He wanted to include the dewdrops that could still be seen on the moss as a special highlight. In order to put this even more in the limelight, he resorted to one again LUMIS Solo 2 return. For one directed beam of light he again used the included spot attachment this time.
Around „almost jerk-free“ To create recordings, Florian Kunde recommends adjusting the resistance of the crank. When taking the pictures, he noticed that the focus was shifted using the crank on the macro slide more precise and easier to be operated than via the lens itself.
In addition, the photographer advises that these recordings are also included in the slow motion mode to create if your own camera supports this mode. Not only does this make it easier for him to balance the macro slide each time he focuses without blurring the subject, it also makes it easier for him to do it digital post-processing the camera movement.
Macro shots in the garden Put motifs in the limelightn
In order to be able to test the macro slide again with a different setup, the photographer also installed it second setup in the home garden. He decided to use the blooming crocuses and the grass in between as a motif.
To a beautiful Image composition near the ground to realize, he also used the macro slide in the combination with the Compact Traveler Mini M-1 a. To enable portrait format, he tilted the ball head of the tripod by 90 degrees.
Especially with this setup, the challenge of macro photography realized. As soon as he designed the recordings with an open aperture, he lacked that sharpness of the image or the focus in the motif. In the eyes of the photographer, the context of his picture was lost. In return, he tried to stop down to get more sharpness. However, this resulted in the loss of great bokeh, which that Viltrox lens just awarded.
That's why he offers macro slide, from Florian Kunde's point of view, the optimal solution. With the interval timer of his camera he could easily take the pictures in an interval of 20 pictures with a two-second break in between. During the two-second pause, he turned the sled's crank by a few millimeters, thereby changing the focus area of his image.
You can see what the images look like in the quick view in the following example. Next to the final result, in which the individual shots were stacked, you can clearly see how the focus shifted with each shot.b.
| camera | focal length | ISO | cover | exposure |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fujifilm X-T3 | 56mm | 160 | f/1.4 | 1/640 sec |
The photographer's conclusion on the macro slide
Already that Macro slide design convinced Florian Kunde. In addition, the thread together with the crank pretty tough is. I can toss the macro slide in my camera backpack without worrying about damaging it, the photographer says.f.
He pointed out that the crank and, depending on where the camera is located, individual wheels are a bit more difficult to reach, but that on the whole didn't prevent him from working with the macro slide. We are of course very happy to take this as feedback and will do so at the revision of the product take into account.
In addition to his camera, which in combination with the correct lens one by default integrated stacking mode offers, he sees the macro slide as optimal complement. Together with the sled he can stop motion images and still more accurate stacking shots create. Also for (Dolly) camera rides the photographer can only recommend the macro slide.
| camera | focal length | ISO | cover | exposure |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fujifilm X-T3 | 56mm | 160 | f/1.4 | 1/640 sec |