Books on Macro Photography for Large Format

[Jerry Cunningham]

Can anyone suggest a good book (books) on macro LF Photography?
Jerry

[Nathan Potter]

Well, I can't think of any dedicated to LF only but some I've used and referred to I list below. They are old but I confess I still use them on occasion.

G. W. W. Stevens, "Microphotography, (Photography and Photofabrication at Extreme Resolution", John Wiley NY., 1968, 510pp.

Eastman Kodak Co., "Photography Through the Microscope", 1974, 76 pp.

Eastman Kodak Co., "Techniques of Microphotography", 1967, 56 pp.

Nate Potter, Austin TX.

[Dan Fromm]

Jerry, like Nathan I'm not aware of any books on closeup photography or photomacrography that address only LF. The ideas and lighting techniques, however, work for LF as well as for smaller formats. Here's an annotated list of the books I consult for advice on technique and gear:

Books in my library that bear heavily on close-up photography. Listed in order of publication.

Tupholme, C. H. S. Colour Photomicrography With A 35-MM Camera. 1961. Faber and Faber, London. 164 pp.

Primarily about low-budget photomicrography, but with a section on photomacrography that is a useful guide to objectives documented nowhere else. Mentions, for example, Zeiss-Winkel Luminars.

Gibson, H. Lou. Close-Up Photography and Photomacrography. 1970. Publication N-16. Eastman Kodak Co. Rochester, NY. 98+95+6 pp. The two sections were published separately as Kodak Publications N-12A and N-12B respectively. Republished in 1977 with changes and without the 6 page analytic supplement, which was published separately as Kodak Publication N-15. 1977 edition is ISBN 0-87985-206-2.

Gibson is very strong on lighting, exposure, and on what can and cannot be accomplished. His books, although relatively weak on getting the magnification with lenses made for modern SLR cameras, provide a very useful foundation for thinking about working at magnifications above 1:10 and especially above 1:1. Extensive bibliography.

Blaker, Alfred A. 1976. Field Photography. W. H. Freeman & Co. San Francisco, CA. 451 pp. ISBN 0-7167-0518-4

A deep discussion of all aspects of photography, with considerable emphasis on close-up. Discusses getting the magnification, lighting, and exposure. Weaker than Lefkowitz on working above 1:1, stronger on lighting, especially flash. Extensive bibliography.

Shipman, Carl. 1978. How to Select & Use Nikon & Nikkormat SLR Cameras. HP Books. Tucson, AZ. 208 pp. ISBN 0-912656-77-8

This book is parallel to others Shipman wrote for HP Books, on, respectively, Canon SLR Cameras; Minolta SLR Cameras; Minolta Maxxum Cameras; Olympus SLR Cameras; Pentax SLR Cameras; SLR Photographers Handbook. Each has much the same chapter on "Close-up & Macro" that discusses ways of getting the magnification, adjusting exposure for extension, and, as appropriate to the book's main subject, manufacturer-specific discussions of equipment. No bibliography.

Shipman's books were updated regularly as the manufacturers released new equipment. I happened to buy the 1978 version of his Nikon book, there are earlier and later versions that differ from it only in equipment mentioned.

Lefkowitz, Lester. 1979. The Manual of Close-Up Photography. Amphoto. Garden City, NY. 272 pp. ISBN 0-8174-2456-3 (hardbound) and 0-8174-2130-0 (softbound).

A thorough discussion of getting the magnification, lighting, and exposure. Especially good on working above 1:1. Extensive bibliography.

Shaw, John. 1987. John Shaw's Closeups In Nature. Amphoto. New York, NY. 144 pp. ISBN 0-8174-4051-8 (hardbound) and 0-8174-4052-6 (softbound).

Heavily padded discussion of getting the magnification. Weak on exposure and lighting, especially flash. Highly Nikon SLR-centric, with no discussion of other types of equipment. Says nothing that Blaker and Lefkowitz didn't say, explains worse than they do. Gibson is much stronger on limiting factors. Prettiest pictures of all, though. No bibliography.

Bracegirdle, Brian. 1995. Scientific PhotoMACROgraphy. Bios Scientific Publishers. Oxford. 105 pp. ISBN 1 872748 49 X

A terse drier updated version of Lefkowitz. Very useful bibliography, unfortunately scattered into small sections after most chapters.

[Brian Ellis]

John Shaw's book "Closeups In Nature" which Dan mentioned is a classic and while it isn't aimed at LF as such, much of the information would be equally useful there. I can't offhand think of anything about closeups that's peculiar to large format except exposure compensation for the long bellows extensions typical with closeups.

[Dan Fromm]

Brian, tastes differ. See what I say about Shaw in the post above yours.

For my money, Heather Angel does the John Shaw thing better than he does. Read her book, which I don't own, The Book of Close-up Photography and I think you'll agree with me. Shaw gets a lot of good comments from ignorant beginners who are acquainted with Closeups In Nature and not Blaker or Lefkowitz or Angel. I know that's not you, so don't think I'm insulting you obliquely. If I intended to insult you I'd be more direct.

Cheers,

Dan

[Jerry Cunningham]

Thanks to everyone for your great help.
Jerry

[Jay M. Packer]

Another text to consider is

Photomacrography: An Introduction by William White (Focal Press 1987).

Lots of high-magnification (10:1 - 30:1) work with 4x5 Nikon Multiphot, Leitz Aristophot, and Wild M400 systems, including examples of incident, axial, transillumination, oblique, and darkfield lighting. There's even a photograph of the late, great Dynaphot scanning light photomacrography system. It's an interesting, if historical book; almost none of the equipment it describes has been manufactured for 25 years or more, but fortunately the underlying optical principles are little changed.

[Bosaiya]

Is there anything specific you're looking for, Jerry? I'm sure there are plenty of people who could answer specific questions.

[darr]

IMO the bible of macro photography: MacroPhotography -- Learning from a Master, by Ronan Loaec.



If you can find it, buy it! It does not address LF, but it addresses macro photography in-depth with lost of photos and technical info. Currently Amazon does not have it, but abebooks.com does.

Best,
Darr

PS: I have made a lot of macro with my LF and the Rodenstock 120 macro lens.

[Bosaiya]

PS: I have made a lot of macro with my LF and the Rodenstock 120 macro lens.

That sunflower is outstanding, by the way.