External flash and Macro

--I just purchased an external flash for Macro shooting and I have been studying up on Macro techniques and I would like to know if I can use this flash on the camera or do I have to spend more $ to get a off camera set up?
Bill Romer

Try using it on-camera first and see how it works. You'll want to add a couple of things to it though. They're both very easy to DIY:

1.) Some means of channeling the light from the flash head to where your subject will be in focus. I'm not trolling you here--a Pringles can is probably a good way to start experimenting.

2.) Some sort of diffuser at the end of the device from above to soften the light. I've seen a lot of people using paper towel or white printer paper.

Most of my shooting is macro, and I try to do it as cheaply as possible. You can get surprising good results using DIY solutions for lighting, provided that you're willing to spend the time to figure out how to get it to work the way you want.

If you end up decided that on-camera doesn't work well enough for your purposes, a trip to home depot and a cheap ballhead might do the trick

Nice wasp pictures in your other post, btw

Best,
Scott

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http://burbanmacro.wordpress.com

Thanks for the reply, Scott...Home Depot and a ball head huh...do you mean I should make an extension attachment for the flash?...hummmm not a bad idea
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Bill Romer

BILLY 0F THE NORTH said:

Thanks for the reply, Scott...Home Depot and a ball head huh...do you mean I should make an extension attachment for the flash?...hummmm not a bad idea

Click to expand...

I would seriously consider trying to rig up a way to use the flash in its on camera position before trying to move it off-camera. Orionmystery has some things on his blog that might work out:
http://orionmystery.blogspot.com/2010/07/diy-snoot-diffuser-part-ii-further.html

I was actually forced to go the off-camera route because I shoot with a NEX5N--it doesn't have a hotshoe for a speedlight. I looked for an off-the-shelf solution to attach an off-camera flash, but found that the ones that looked like they would suit my needs are all way beyond what I can afford.

If you want to go the DIY route, this is what I'm using:





And everything together, camera and all. It's ugly, but it gets the job done.





Best,
Scott

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http://burbanmacro.wordpress.com

Here's a thread about a super-convenient collapsible diffuser panel that mounts on the lens: http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/readflat.asp?forum=1025&message=35870560

With the D90 and the Tamron 60 (non-extending macro), the pop-up flash is powerful enough at base ISO. Provided that you set flash power manually (or use FV-lock or spor metering) because the default TTL-BL mode underexposes not using full power. If you use such diffuser with an external Nikon flash, you can switch to plain TTL flash metering. There may be similar issues with flash metering and diffusers with other camera brands.

If you have a longer or/and extending macro lens, a "lightguide" approach may be more important, or better try to get the flash closer to the lens with a bracket.

Notice that you can actually see the active surface of the diffuser reflected in spider's eyes and such, and that the diffuser form matters similarly with other semi-reflective things as composite eyes etc. Large diffuser surface which is brighter in the center and fades smoothly at the edges seems to produce better light than the output of "lightguide" types which have a uniformly-bright circular or rectangular diffuser with a sharp edge.

I recommend a light weight setup like this:

http://orionmystery.blogspot.com/2011/05/270ex-for-macro-improved-version.html

More ideas here: http://orionmystery.blogspot.com/2010/12/more-macro-rigs.html
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Macro Photography Blog: http://orionmystery.blogspot.com

Thanks for post this advice Scott, very helpful for me.

I use a NEX C-3 & I only just realised that the stock flash is no good for Macro since the lens casts a huge shadow over the subject.
Now with a toilet roll cut to fit & some tape i have a 5min & $0 fix - ha ha.

Hahaha! I'm glad it was helpful I actually did the exact same when I started experimenting with flash for macro--it works surprisingly well with short focal lengths.

All the best to you,
Scott
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http://burbanmacro.wordpress.com

I bought one of these second hand and use the canon ring light to control two other canon flashes (Not a cheap option unless you already have the extra flashguns I will admit)
http://www.manfrotto.co.uk/macro-bracket-support
Regards Mark