Dung Beetle

Found dead on a conifer forest path fairly near home.

K5, 100mm. D FA Macro. Polarising filter.
AF 280T on-camera flash, 2x tracing paper diffuser on homemade softbox.
Stack of 31 images in Combine ZP.
Elements 11.





Any thoughts welcome.

What incredible detail, it would be amazing to see this at the camera's full resolution!
Regards
Mike

Impressive, what do you use for focus stacking?

This is done with Combine ZP, available as a free download.
I find it easy to use, giving good results.

The first shot is taken once all camera settings have been made, I use manual for both focus &exposure.
Thereafter, focus is adjusted to advance the focal point further down the subject, away from the camera.
On the 100mm. D FA Macro, I use the ribs on the focus ring asa guide, moving the ring round by about a ridge & a half for each shot.

Best thing to do is to try it.
If I can do it, anyone can.

Go on..... You know you want to!

Roger.

Combine ZP is excellent, especially as it is free. It has but one quirk and that is, it sometimes leaves a (very narrow) border of incomplete processing around the edges, so be sure to allow a tiny bit of leeway around the part of the image that matters. Then you can simply crop it off the final result. I tend to use my bellows and then it is easy to accurately advance the focus by the millimeter increments on the carriage. I generally focus on the furthest extremity of the subject, note the position of some convenient index marker on the scale, then focus on the nearest part of the subject. This gives me the extent of the carriage travel needed to photograph the whole thing, from which you can determine how many incremental exposures will be needed. (e.g. count the millimeters). The lens itself is set at infinity throughout. The carriage movement does the work.

Like Roger says, Go on - have a go!

A Focusing Rail is very handy for stacking, especially if it has mm markings.


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MMMmmm never tried focus stacking. might see if i can rig something up to use as a rail, as i handhold most of my macro efforts.

Super work Coker.

Most of your subjects will try to leg it. You need stuff that stays still

With stacking I have found the easiest way is to put the camera into it's highest fps and take multiple shots. You will find that if you do this handheld you will naturally get different parts of the subject in focus then just choose which shots to stack. Especially useful for live subjects.

Good detail in this one, like the high key background as well.

Brilliant, Mike!

Would never have thought of that!

Thank you!

Roger.

Yes indeed. That's exceptionally clever !