Lenses for macro on Linhof Tecknikardan

[vizion]

I am wanting to do some macro using with my TK 45 S.

I am wondering if any macro workers would be willing to tender some advice on suitable lenses and comparative performance. My main interest with macro work is photographing insects.

Thanks in advance

David

[Bob Salomon]

What magnification do you need to do?

[vizion]

What magnification do you need to do?

Depends on the insect <chuckles>
My objective is to go from 1:1 at the lower end to recording a bug with a length of 1/10th of an inch (2.5mm) & rendering it into 75% (3.75 inch or approx 95mm) of the film width without distorting the image.

The question is what are good choices of lenses & techniques to cover the range. There are the normal limitations imposed - fast lenses preferable to slow (bugs move) lighting challenges - I have things like ring flash etc but artificial lighting produces problems with highlights and I prefer dull daylight - hence a preference for faster lenses.

Depth of field requirements produce problems making for hard choices (push the film to get shorter exposure times with greater depth of field).

[Bob Salomon]

Depends on the insect <chuckles>
My objective is to go from 1:1 at the lower end to recording a bug with a length of 1/10th of an inch (2.5mm) & rendering it into 75% (3.75 inch or approx 95mm) of the film width without distorting the image.

The question is what are good choices of lenses & techniques to cover the range. There are the normal limitations imposed - fast lenses preferable to slow (bugs move) lighting challenges - I have things like ring flash etc but artificial lighting produces problems with highlights and I prefer dull daylight - hence a preference for faster lenses.

Depth of field requirements produce problems making for hard choices (push the film to get shorter exposure times with greater depth of field).

You have a couple of problems. First you have to work within the 20" of bellows on the TK + how ever much you can add with an extension board. But you mention distortion. Modern lenses don't distort but shorter lenses will foreshorten the image so those things closer to the lens will appear larger then those things further away. Is that what you call distortion?

A macro lens like the 120 mm Apo Macro Sironar will normally work for most of what you want but would have more foreshortening then a longer macro like the 180 mm. But the bellows length will not let you get the ratios you want.
These are 5.6 lenses but at your ratios no lens will be very fast thanks to bellows extension and you want depth of field o the speed of the lens s not going to make much difference other then for focusing.

[pdmoylan]

Refrigerating the subjects prior to shooting might help the movement problem. Some don't approve of this method.

[vizion]

You have a couple of problems. First you have to work within the 20" of bellows on the TK + how ever much you can add with an extension board.

I should have mentioned I was also struck by this problem and have, in anticipation, designed an extension system which will add up to 7" (175mm) for macro work. I will be doing the engineering in March and will report back when I have some results.

Currently I have is a Schneider- Kreuznach Componon-S 5.6/180 mounted on a Synchro-Compur shutter.

But you mention distortion. Modern lenses don't distort but shorter lenses will foreshorten the image so those things closer to the lens will appear larger then those things further away. Is that what you call distortion?

A small amount of DOF distortion cannot be avoided but I would like to restrict it to the barest minimum.

A macro lens like the 120 mm Apo Macro Sironar will normally work for most of what you want but would have more foreshortening then a longer macro like the 180 mm.

Bearing in mind my Componon-S 5.6/180 mounted on a Synchro-Compur shutter plus the possibilities opened up by a 7" (175mm) extension system additional thoughts would be much appreciated.
Thanks in advance
David

[vizion]

Refrigerating the subjects prior to shooting might help the movement problem. Some don't approve of this method.

Unfortunately that includes me mainly on practical grounds because it eliminates the chance of shooting images showing the reactions between multiple insects and between the insect and its activities in the environment. The freezing techniques is really only useful for shooting specimen records for species identification purposes.

[pdmoylan]

Not to question your methodology, but Mark Moffet (National Geo) who has become quite famous for his incredible photography of ant behavior incorporates Olympus macro lens (38mm) as well as Canon macro lens on 35mm film (and now presumably digital), of course with multiple flash units, while years ago Stephen Dalton (scientist) became world renowned for his images of flying insects with elaborate infrared tripping devices. He started using Leica macro lens and bellows, added Hasselblad and Nikon 105micro later, all with many powerful flash units, both for subject and backgrounds.

As a photographer of such subjects, without reflex viewing and portability, I would find a Technikardan essentially unusable for this adaptation unless one was able to attract insects to the exact focus spot (pheromones?). You didn't mention whether you were a biologist (by profession or design).

I am not familiar with the magnification rates of MFD lenses. Assuming you could attain the right magnification, it would seem to me the best way to go to obtain enough resolution to print out massive sized images. A Nikon D3x or comparable Canon FF 21mp+ camera with macro lenses would be immensely easier and still give you quality large sized prints.

[vizion]

As a photographer of such subjects, without reflex viewing and portability, I would find a Technikardan essentially unusable for this adaptation unless one was able to attract insects to the exact focus spot (pheromones?). You didn't mention whether you were a biologist (by profession or design).

I am something of an experimenter as well as a beekeeper! This means I know how to get my subjects and their parasites (around 1.5 -2.5mm) exactly where I want them to be and keep them there naturally. The same thing goes for my greenhouse & its insects! I also have what is currently a rather Heath Robinsonian rig for monitoring the TK and the GG screen remotely from a laptop with shutter operation directly from the keyboard. After some testing I will make more information available here and hopefully a less weird version will be possible<grins>! I also want to add shutter and focus controls using small stepping motors.

For me 5x4 is an ideal format giving great detail and a forerunner for experimenting with a 10x8 version of my rig.

I have done what you suggested with a digital slr (using canon 5d) and I am interested to see how far LF can push the boundaries and obtain much greater detail.

I would be interested to hear of more information about lens choices especially for higher magnification ranges.

david

[pdmoylan]

There are many posts regarding lenses for jewelry photography. Using the search engine you might find the answer you are looking for.