Macro and clarity

[ketan]

Hi,
I have been trying for quite some time to shoot flowers / bees with my 30D + 100mm macro + flash.
I am not satisfied about the focussing or DOF of the objects as it appears partly blurred and partly focussed depending on the area focussed. Very small area focussed makeing the viewing unimpressive. Am I missing the anything?
I have seen many macro shots on the web with crystal clear sharpness of most of the subject and with the gear I use.
Does this need only practice or editing or some equipment like extension tubes etc?
I am bit frustrated on this... and request guidence.

 

[mosu84]

Can you post some examples?

 

[ketan]

Some of the images, but are by far from the good ones on the net...
For example
TCProimages- powered by SmugMug
He is excellent, have checked with him.
Has the same gear as I have but not sure what magic he does

 

[Overread]

hmm could you post the exif data for the photos - just teh shutter speed, ISO and aperture that you used for them. I am not seeing any major problems with those macro shots at a glance - though the hardest thing to learn with macro is that because depth of field is so limited you have to learn to get used to angling your kit so that you make the best use of that depth - that is often where "masters" of macro differ from those starting out - see that many of your bee shots are above the bee and focused on its back (are you using auto focus or manual?) rather than being aimed at the side of front of the bee and also focused more on the eyes than the back

 

[doenoe]

When i shoot macro, i have to use a flash with a difuser on it. The difuser is to take out the harsh shadows. And like TCImage, i usually go with these settings: ISO100, F13, 1/200. Works like magic most of the time. You really need the F13 or bigger, too get most of the bug in focus. And with an F-number like that and you still want to shoot with 1/200, you really need a flash. And offcourse you need a difuser or a lumiquest softbox to get some soft shadows. You can also try a ringflash, which works brilliantly with macro, but those are just a bit too expensive for me. TCImage uses one though and you have seen his pics
Like Overread allready mentioned, you really have focus on the eyes. Most of the times anyway, but that depends on what you want to photograph offcours. With macro you really have to focus well. Since your DOF is rather small, a slight movement of your camera can change the focus point. So a steady hand is needed. Its really all about practice really And also allready mentioned, play around with the composition, dont shoot the bug from the same angle. Just look around and see if you can come up with a different point of view. Also, watch the background. Depends on the shot offcourse, but a very busy background can ruin the shot.
I always need some editing, since i shoot in RAW. And i have to crop most of the time too. Thats all i have to tell you for now