Member postings for Raphael Golez

Got also some stacked photo done. Magnification is way improved and I'm really happy with the results. I will test the limits of my set up once I added further extension tubes. I will run a test on reveres macro plus extension and see which one delivers better result. I also plan to do microscope objectives to try to reach ultra macro territory.

A. Details of the wing roots of the Crane fly. You can clearly see the second organ of flight. This helps with the flight sensory input.

B. Close up of a woodlice

Looks like a Trilobite.

C. Maybe this is a Hoover Fly?

Regards,

Raphael

Edited By Raphael Golez on 30/05/2020 18:27:39

Edited By Raphael Golez on 30/05/2020 18:28:31

Got my PN-11 extension tube today. This is a 52.5mm extension. So my current set up is a Nikon Micro lens 105mm AF-D plus PN - 11 extension tube. Im still waiting for my PK-13 to add to the length.

So to play a short game. Can you guys identify exactly the following close up pictures. See if you can all guess it right. Labelled A to E.

A.

B.

C.

D.

E.

No problem veering from topic gents. I really don't mind in fact it would be great to see the branches of our discussion. That is just how it is. I say you guys continue discussion here as I'm following through and learning along the way. Discussion stems from our interest in macro-photography and with out the main topic it would not spring into existence. Let's carry on guys.

Raphael

Correct Michael. That is how it works physiologically in a "normal" functioning lens. Our lens make sure that it is focusing in the same fixed area (focal point) which is our retina. Im not 100% sure but the focal length is dependent on the shape of the eye (any opthamologist here) .The plot thickens if you add the Iris which i would compare similarly to the aperture. All in all our eyes behave similarly to the camera lens or should I say we copy the eye and incorporate it in the lens design. The other thing we have to factor in is how we perceived each image from each eyes to be analysed in our visual cortex to produce a single image, that's if our eye yolk muscle works normally. To me this is not far off-topic as it is relevant to the subject and we all learn. That is how we have conversation in real life. Thanks for the input Michael.

Raphael

Edited By Raphael Golez on 28/05/2020 11:40:51

Edited By Raphael Golez on 28/05/2020 11:44:57

Hi Michael, its interesting you mentioned cataracts. I always think that the lens in our eyes is comparable to a prime lens which provides a fixed point of focus in the back of our eyes (retina). If there are error in the general structure of the lens then the focus point of light will be altered thus causing error of focusing hence we used corrective lens to address this issue. Cataract is the "clouding" of the lens (we won't go to the causes as there are so many). If our lens is not clear then light could not pass through thereby affecting its ability to focus light properly thereby affecting vision.

Raphael

Nice photo Sam, for a while I thought it was a tick. Never seen a beetle with that colour pattern before. Are you still using your bellows?

Lainchy, nice capture. Very interesting.

Rod, very nice. Your the first one to post a butterfly picture here. Haven't seen one yet in my garden. I'm sure i will get a cabbage white soon feasting on my packhoy.

Raymond, quite amazing to see the crystals at this magnification. Do you know what this is? Thanks for sharing.

Roy, Michael explained ways to do photo stacking, I move my camera anchored securely to my milling machine cross slide. I focus from front to back.

Bandersnatch, thanks! It is a very good experience for all of us here sharing our macro photo and everything else that needs magnification. The thread is open to related topics, that way we all can enjoy discussing things here.

Neil, Thanks. I did it after several tries. Felt dizzy. Our eye muscle acts like a yolk muscle, moving together to produce one image. Making two image turn to one is so difficult. When I do eye examination for my patient with neurological issues I test all the eye muscle and back track the cranial nerves that innervates it so I can locate more or less where the lesion is prior to scanning. Sadly the art of clinical examination in our junior doctors are taking a back seat.

Thank you all for sharing your photos here. I really enjoy the discussion here. Lets keep it going.

Raphael

Edited By Raphael Golez on 27/05/2020 20:44:15

Edited By Raphael Golez on 27/05/2020 20:45:06

Neil, please feel free to post your Astro photography here as I feel its a very relevant subject with regards to magnification. It would be very interesting to know the ratio and proportion of the cosmos.

Michael thanks for the link.

Nick, congratulations. I'm sure you will have a blast doing more macro shots with your new lens. Brilliant pictures and subjects as always. Its fascinating what we all can find under our nose. Bringing it up with macro lenses opens up a new appreciation of things our eye seldom see. Good choice with the extension tubes. I'm waiting for mine to arrive. I would encourage you to read on photostacking to improve the depth of field of the pictures. Try a burst shot on a freehand shooting and do an image stack.

Raphael

Nice picture Dave, However I don't think this is T. Pallidum. It could not exist long out side the human body as its is the only known reservoir of the disease. I don't think it will exist in your hay infusion either but you might be right that this might be a Spirochaete. The other most important Spirochaete (there a several) that exist in nature that cause a significant medical problem in humans is Leptospira which causes Leptospirosis. It can be found in moist soil, water area, ponds, river, sewer, agriculture area (rice paddies) etc.

I'm not saying that the one you found is Leptospira but that's a possibility. It seems like you did a Dark Field microscopy, did you intend to look for Spirochaete? Last case of Weil's disease I treated was back home in the Philippines. Young farmer who waded across the field during typhoon season ended up with severe hepatic and renal failure. Barely made it out.

Very interesting. Keep it coming. Enjoyed it a lot.

Raphael

Baer, thanks for sharing your pictures here. Never seen that type of bee before. Roger, thanks for the ID. I remember a species of carpenter bee back home in the Philippines. It is huge and yellow in colour. It bores holes in dead wood. I don't know how they do it though.

Rod, great capture there. Thanks for sharing your macros. Keep it coming.

Ed, great details on your machining. These macro lens opens up a lot of fine detail that we can appreciate. Nice capture on the winged insects.

Michael , keep the high magnification pictures coming.

Enjoyed all the work and discussion here.

BW

Raphael

Jack, Thanks for posting your macro shots here. Enjoyed looking at those tiny chicks.

Michael, your pictures are all fascinating. Great you can magnify thing much better than the rest of us. I'm at awe the details we can't see with our naked eyes. Keep sharing your work here.

Bill, great close up macro. Is that corrosion in your taps or just work debris? Are you still putting extension tubes on your 150mm Macro? Very nice! Are you using off-camera flash or this is all natural light? Keep posting your pics.

Edited By Raphael Golez on 25/05/2020 21:01:50

Fantastic magnification Michael. Micro world of arthropods are complicated. The wings of this small flyers are very complicated. Likely they take the flight information generated by their wings and its sensory component (hairs and a lot more structures such as the one you posted) to make minute adjustment during flight and use it to control their wings. Think of it as a very sophisticated structure that allows lift, drag, variable pitch etc. Its the ultimate flying structure made. A wing and a propeller with variable geometry during flight. If we can reverse engineer it and make one I think that would be the ultimate evolution of flight (birds and bat not included here in the discussion).

Great to see this Michael. Post some more. This thread is getting more and more interesting.

BW

Raphael

Thanks Michael. Here is another algorithm stocking option from Helicon focus. It is 180 stack so they advise if its over 100 shots option C needs to be chosen for rendering. I tried it and observe that the fuzzy area near the wings are all gone.

Hi Michael, I found this poor little bee on my door step that can barely move prior to cycling this morning. An ant is tugging on his legs so I placed him near a leaf and an early morning sunshine. When I got back from my run the poor thing is dead.

I took a picture of him prior to placing him back in my garden. I took a 180 stack shots. Each picture is taken at an increments of 0.125mm. Taken at 1:1 magnification. HeliconFocus is brilliant and was able to merge all the photos in without any issue despite high numbers of shot taken. I don't think its necessary to take that much but I was testing the software if it can handle it.

First uncropped picture.

Second with cropped borders.

Third cropped which focused closely to the head.

Wish I can magnify closer to see more fine details. Each hair looks sharp and the fuzzy look of the bee was captured very well.

BW,

Raphael

Edited By RAPHAEL VAL GOLEZ 1 on 24/05/2020 18:04:26

Edited By RAPHAEL VAL GOLEZ 1 on 24/05/2020 18:05:14

Thanks Neil.

Sam, tried to look hard and make my eyes crossed but no luck. Ended up feeling dizzy and sick.

Thanks Nick, just utilising what I have. Wanted a dedicated macro rail but my problem is it could not hold its position on vertical plane. Maybe a more permanent solution is to adapt a low cost cross slide which I can tighten the gib strip to hold its position on a vertical plane.

Chris, great shots here. Very nice on this small carnivorous plant (or am I just imagining things). Take another picture during feeding time.

Hans, the movement on each shot is 0.25mm. I could do less than that but the focused area is quite good. You can lessen the distance to over lap it and the stacking software will do they rest. I use HeliconFocus. I think the software can handle quite a lot of stacks, never tried it more than 30 but I might just to see.

BW,

Raphael

Edited By RAPHAEL VAL GOLEZ 1 on 24/05/2020 14:36:59

Edited By RAPHAEL VAL GOLEZ 1 on 24/05/2020 14:38:10

My first attempt at photo stacking. This is an essential tool to keep everything in focus especially in macro photography. I used HeliconFocus as this a a fully dedicated photo stacking software and superior vs photoshop in terms of photo stacking as per review. I then rigged up my set up to prove the concept. I scavenged most of the things I needed to set up my camera. Hopefully once my PN-11 and PK-13 extension tubes I can utilise this for closer magnification. I'm also planning to get an Ultra macro lens with a magnification of 2.5 to 5 times.

Here is my poor mans version of macro rail...... Very good use of the Emco milling machine. I used the Unimat 3 to hold the specimen.

This is the results of my first attempt at photo stacking a macro shots. Magnification is 1:1. 30 pictures stack in total

I'm surprised and very happy with the results. I will start making a more permanent set up for a dedicated macro photography slider. I will utilise this cross slide as I am not using it. It is very precise and very good control with the increments you can move.

Raphael

Edited By RAPHAEL VAL GOLEZ 1 on 22/05/2020 21:49:53

Edited By RAPHAEL VAL GOLEZ 1 on 22/05/2020 21:51:02

Made me smile Dave, I would imagine that being a professional photographer you have to carry all your office device with you. On the other side you have to be physically fit to carry all those gears. I would imagine that a full combat load out for the SAS on a month long reconnaissance mission would not carry that much. He comes fully equipped with knee pads.

Intersting adaptation. Could it be a natures equivalent of vortex generator on wings? If it is then 300 million years ago evolution gave us practical solution to help with aerodynamics.

Very interesting to learn from insects the dynamics of flight and what they evolve to be efficient in what they do. Its very much related to engineering I guess. They also use hydraulic principles. Using macro photography greatly helps appreciate this adaptation. It enables us to see and appreciate nature at this level of magnification. I say keep it all coming guys.

Thanks Sam, clever use of perspective at this magnification to induce a temporary acute confusional state! Post some more pictures like that....injects more fun in photography.

Thanks for the link Michael, very good information.

Thanks John, I will give it a try.

So I did change my camera to see the difference. I usually use my D700 FX with my macro lens. This time I used my D90 DX crop sensor. I have more room on the focusing distance though it feels different to my D700 in some ways. Took a range of subjects I can find in the garden and selected appropriate size from a pea size spider to as small as a tip of a ball point pen spider. I cropped it to get more closer. I'm surprised at how the D90 captured the image on the sensor. This are all hand held and did my best to hold my breath while shooting in macro.

I'm waiting for my extension tubes and I will also try reverse rings attachment.