F36A5354 ZS DMAP retouched_DxO_2880I have the same question as AlanF: Did you use focus stacking? It’s a beautiful capture, but I can’t achieve that DOF on a dragon perched at such a shallow angle.
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Dragonflies and Damselflies
- Thread starter AlanF
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I have the same question as AlanF: Did you use focus stacking? It’s a beautiful capture, but I can’t achieve that DOF on a dragon perched at such a shallow angle.
Yes, it is a stack of 3 pictures each at f/14. Wings and body are more or less in the same plane but the head and the flower gained sharpness from the two other pictures.
It is hopeless to stack dragonflies if the picture changeover happens to be is somewhere in a wing. The dragonflies have a tendency to move the wings and the fine structure reveals any microscopic mismatch no matter how much manual retouch effort you put into Zerene stacker
But it use to work out quite well as long as each wing can be taken from a single photoI'm hoping I can shoot dragonflies this weekend, there might be a few Ruddy Darters still flying but since it was almost freezing the other night, they might be all gone..
Thanks for the feedback ISv, Alan, Wiebe and Bluediablo. Your pictures are beautiful, ISv!
Here is another chaser (or possibly a white-faced darter?), stacked from 3 pictures at f/25 (Oops! Shouldn't go below f/18..)
f36a4495 ZS DMap3p_DxO_r2880 by Erik Astrom, on Flickr
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+1 to Click's comment - to me the picture is all the more impressing because you've managed to take 3 shots without significant movement of the dragonfly (and camera )
For focus stacking you need to manually alter focus right?
W.
)For focus stacking you need to manually alter focus right?
W.
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I have to admit that it happens now and then that a stack is ruined since a single critical picture is blurred.. It helps a lot to have some kind of support to lean on.+1 to Click's comment - to me the picture is all the more impressing because you've managed to take 3 shots without significant movement of the dragonfly (and camera
For focus stacking you need to manually alter focus right?
W.
In the past I used to shoot individual pictures and slowly advance focus (or move the camera closer to the subject) between each picture. AE lock (or M mode) is necessary to avoid exposure variation between pictures. Latest tests were done using continuos shooting while I rotate the focus ring slowly. This goes faster and increases the chance that the dragonfly doesn't move, maybe the sharpness of each picture might become slightly worse but I think the final result will be better.
I have reprogrammed the AE lock button so it does not time out but need a second push to release. I think Magic Lantern adds stacking features but I could not live with the 1s delay at start-up..
Both Zerene and Helicon have one month free trial of their software so it doesn't cost anything to try
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Well done, you don't need to stack those
Indeed, these come pre-stacked 
Very nice picture all the same
W.
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Another Ruddy Darter.. Slightly unsuccesful stack made from 4 pictures, had to take both wings from a single picture..
A36A9481 ZS DMap 4p retouched_DxO_2880 by Erik Astrom, on Flickr
A36A9481 ZS DMap 4p retouched_DxO_2880 by Erik Astrom, on Flickr
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Here's a shot of the ruddy darter pair having landed, with the 2xTCII at 800mm with the 5DIV. People complain about getting dust on the 5D/7D sensors. I change TCs several times on a shoot and never ever have had a dust problem.
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It is not easy to figure out what is going on behind these facet eyes but at least I was not assaulted.. By the way, I think it is a 'she' judging from the colors.
I tend to get a feeling of 'eye contact' because of the dark spots next to the nose. But the spots are just decoration, dragonflies watch nearly 360 degree view all the time.
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F36A2558_DxO_r2880
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