Dutchman's Breeches

Gallery: FloraPosted April 30, 2013118 views7 comments

Finally got out to shoot the spring wildflowers! I shot this lying on the ground a few days ago. Just as I aligned the tripod, a screw on my glasses popped out, so I had to use one hand holding my spectacle lens so I could see the LCD. I was relieved to see I got it all in focus, since there was no lee-way aligning the focal plane, even at f/22 with the 150mm. lens on a full-frame body. (Luckily, I was less than 1/2 mi. from car, so I made it out of the woods with one-eye vision without falling off a ledge. :D )

Canon 5D Mk. II
Sigma 150 Macro
1/50 sec. @ f/22*; ISO 640

*Technical Note: Many people refuse to shoot at f/22 because of image degradation due to diffraction with small apertures. This negative effect decreases as focal length increases, however. After all, an aperture of f/22 is physically larger in longer lenses. With my Sigma 150 mm. Macro, images at f/16 are sharper than those shot at f/22, but you really need to be a pixel-peeper to notice that. (And f/22 with the 150 is still sharper than shooting at f/16 with most shorter lenses.) An in-focus shot at f/22 is still a lot sharper than an out-of-focus image shot at a larger aperture, so I don't hesitate to stop down when I really need the depth of field.

Comments

7 comments

Comment posted by Dennis Plank on April 30, 2013 at 11:09 PM

Excellent, Wayne, and thanks for the quick tutorial on f-stop vs focal length.

Registered on January 28, 2008, 1767 Posts, 23192 Comments

Comment posted by Gary Yeoh on May 1, 2013 at 4:49 AM

Wayne:

Lovely. I like everything about the image. The curved stem, the odd number bloom, the clean bg, the lighting and plenty sharp (even at F22).

PS I don't worry too much about diffraction blur which can be corrected with post processing sharpening. I sometimes shot at F32 with my macro lens and get pretty sharp images.

Registered on September 1, 2009, 588 Posts, 8184 Comments

Comment posted by John&Patty Benway on May 1, 2013 at 5:25 AM

Simply beautiful Wayne, excellent exposure on the whites, beautiful light and color, couldn't get any better. Don't think I will be back to the Adirondacks till fall, but I will let you know, My sister is leaving for good this Thursday. Take care.
John

Registered on May 12, 2006, 626 Posts, 8700 Comments

Comment posted by Giuseppe Guadagno on May 1, 2013 at 9:04 AM

Wayne, I see for the first time white bats! Jokes apart, I love the back light that show transparencies enhanced by the dark background. Excellent photo for me.
Wayne, I use always f/22 and some of the photos that I like more are shot with f/32.
Take care.

Registered on February 3, 2007, 827 Posts, 5052 Comments

Comment posted by Philip Hodgkins on May 1, 2013 at 2:41 PM

Well and simply done.

Registered on July 24, 2006, 2741 Posts, 12349 Comments

Comment posted by Wayne Bartz on May 1, 2013 at 2:42 PM

I really like this shot. These and a few other wildflowers are just starting to show in SE MN. With more snow in the forecast, it could make for some interesting shots if they don't get buried.

Registered on May 12, 2007, 56 Posts, 92 Comments

Comment posted by Bill Fach on May 1, 2013 at 6:24 PM

Wayne: Oh this is fine! Terrific find. Great subject, light and comp. What's not to like. Many kudos and keep that f22 rolling. >=))>

Registered on November 1, 2003, 1805 Posts, 26981 Comments