Another midnight excursion

It was 5°c outside but it felt closer to zero as the after-midnight air was whipped up by a more than modest wind... Meant only a short hunt in the darkness, and 3 subjects found. 

First a midge (or garden gnat) sheltering underneath the fence lateral bar keeping out of the wind as best it could... Then on a nearby concrete post between two fence panels I found another overwintering ladybird... And finally one of my resident Steatoda bipuncta (rabbit-hutch) spiders which don't seem to mind the temperatures at all...

Paul.

Aaron Rogers wrote:

Awesome macro set. The second shot is my pick. 

Thank you Aaron 

Paul.

Awesome set. The second shot is indeed a standout. I also like the monochromatic effect of the last shot. 

Thank you Stephen.  

Paul.

Great shots. I like the second one best, it looks like an alien landscape almost. I am looking at the catch lights on the backs of the ladybugs. It looks like you use a ring light that has two flashes on each side of the lens I would guess. What macro flash system do you use?

I have been wanting to do this for some time and was looking into some flash specific options that would work with a hot shoe/wireless flash. The first option was $70-100 with the roof and the magnetic system and it had good reviews.

The second option was $59, it produced some great catch lights in the eyes of the spider. It was lighter and more easily transportable, at least it seems.

I also looked into some DIY options that consisted of de-fusion paper or plastic wrapped around the lens then taped. By far the lightest but self destructs easily and would have to be replaced often but I would rather not spend money on a specialized thing that I might not use that much if I don't care for macro. Then I said to myself.... self, you have spent a fair amount of money on lighting stuff for other projects, why not try and cobble something together that might work. So I did. I came up with a system that was lighter (No batteries on the camera, but on my belt), 3 times the power of a speed light, (Woo hoo, F/11 here I come) Light weight and portable because the octbox collapses into a sleeve, and best of all 0 dollars spent. I don't think it will give me the nice catch lights like the one above although some portrait photographers will only shoot with an octobox because of catch lights in the models eyes. Can't wait for spring.

Thank you Rich for you considered reply.

Where do I begin?

I do use a twin flash currently (Yongnuo YN24EX) which has had several home made diffusers over time tried on it. At the moment I have settled for a 3D printed diffusion (photos attached) which work quite well - I often shoot at f/8 and the flash at 1/128 EV.

I have tried "over lens" home made things which all have  worked to some degree, though I never settled on any - the problem being they tended to be much too big and don't help when chasing bugs in small spaces - plus they tended to scare insects into flight.

The Crafty Bells diffuser - I have a bonnet that I have used on occasion (minus the over-the-top reflector) which does work but also needs much more flash power to get through it - and this too doesn't help because of the size (mine is for twin heads, there are more options) but these Crafty Bells diffusers are only made in Australia and the cost of exporting them to me almost doubled the cost so I didn't actually order one.

I do however (as mentioned) have one - and this was sent to me by none other than Stewart Wood himself (in the video you linked) and I do have his presets for Lightroom as well. He and I have been in contact on several occasions, he's a great fella and his videos are all worth watching. The one he sent me was an excess diffuser (Crafty Bells had sent him some for review and he had one too many!)

The catchlights in the ladybird are hard to control using any flash - and also are noticeable if direct sunlight is on the elytra and difficult to avoid.

As for the future diffusion, a contact of mine is planning to 3D-print some of his design but not just yet, which would be an improvement on the ones I use now.

Hope that helps.

Paul.

Hey Paul,
Thanks for the info. I have too much stuff, can't justify buying the YN24EX but looks like a nice unit. My cobble is big and bulky and would have problems with corners and overhangs.  But once set, one thumb screw removes it. You said you were running .1/128th power. Not very much at all. Like you said, the bonnet I thought was needing a lot more power. The larger bonnet looks like it has more air lift than Sally Fields flying nun bonnet and sticks out far away from the lens.

I may consider getting a Crafty Bells system the price is right and it is small and light.. the US has "Australia Free Trade Agreement (AUFTA) are free of duty and merchandise processing fee (MPF). All AUFTA goods will be duty free on January 1, 2022
2022. " Then there is only shipping, hopefully it is not too much. while the ship sits in the ocean for a few months waiting to find an open space in the port.

I will try my current setup. I can always try different modifiers and or even the speedlight head which I have a couple modifiers for that. Thanks for your explanation. Understanding peoples like and dislike out in the field helps make for better decisions.