Tips for a D3400 and Tamron 90mm?

[alpinestar]

Good Morning, Any of you excellent photographers have some advice for macro shots using this setup? I shut off the flow and have the dslr on a tripod using a delayed shutter release but the shots are still grainy because of the low light. I can open the aperature but then the focal point is so small that most of the coral is out of focus. Seems to be blurry either on aperature or shutter priority. Do I need to temporarily boost my led output to 100% to increase tank light?

Also is it just my tank or does the lens need to be directly in front and level with the subject to avoid glass distortion?

 

[RobZilla04]

Using an actual macro lens (40mm & less) will greatly improve the area of focus. You can also try setting the focus area to wide as opposed to spot. Still going to be a little tough with that size lens.

You can try adjusting a few settings such as the exposure, aperture, and shutter speed. Set the ISO low and compensate with a slower shutter speed. Having a tripod this has a greater change of success.

As a disclaimer I do not do reef photography, but scenery, ppl, sports, yes I have experience.

Props on what you've done thus far! That pic is far better than most.

 

[alpinestar]

Using an actual macro lens (40mm & less) will greatly improve the area of focus. You can also try setting the focus area to wide as opposed to spot. Still going to be a little tough with that size lens.

You can try adjusting a few settings such as the exposure, aperture, and shutter speed. Set the ISO low and compensate with a slower shutter speed. Having a tripod this has a greater change of success.

As a disclaimer I do not do reef photography, but scenery, ppl, sports, yes I have experience.

Props on what you've done thus far! That pic is far better than most.

Would extension tubes exacerbate the depth of field issue? Ill try a longer exposure with a lower ISO. This was a highly recommended 1:1 macro lens (for the price) I was surprised to hear it may not be the right lens for the job.

Thanks for the props!

 

[RobZilla04]

Would extension tubes exacerbate the depth of field issue? Ill try a longer exposure with a lower ISO. This was a highly recommended 1:1 macro lens (for the price) I was surprised to hear it may not be the right lens for the job.

Thanks for the props!

I'm not directly familiar with extension tubes. My gut would tell me know since that will only increase the distance of the lens, rather than shorten it, one wont help. Youll have to try to be sure. Not sure where the recommendation came from, but standard generic multi-use lenses come 18-55mm. By utilizing a fixed macro lens you shorten the depth of field, get greater control of the focal position, and can get greater focus area in the shot.

If you have the standard 18-55mm lens (typically included with the D3400) try utilizing it at 18mm.

 

[RobZilla04]

Good Morning, Any of you excellent photographers have some advice for macro shots using this setup? I shut off the flow and have the dslr on a tripod using a delayed shutter release but the shots are still grainy because of the low light. I can open the aperature but then the focal point is so small that most of the coral is out of focus. Seems to be blurry either on aperature or shutter priority. Do I need to temporarily boost my led output to 100% to increase tank light?

Also is it just my tank or does the lens need to be directly in front and level with the subject to avoid glass distortion?

Thread posted today https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/another-tamron-90mm-user.548197/

Perhaps you guys can get in touch and share experiences.

 

[alpinestar]

Thread posted today https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/another-tamron-90mm-user.548197/

Perhaps you guys can get in touch and share experiences.

Awesome, Thanks @RobZilla04 !

 

[hockeyhead019]

I would definitely recommend boosting your LEDs to 100%. It will help you pull some more light through the lens. My LED have a "photo mode" setup and I just boosted all the channels to 100% and do a little temperature correction in post to bring back how the coral is supposed to look under the blue-er light.

 

[alpinestar]

I would definitely recommend boosting your LEDs to 100%. It will help you pull some more light through the lens. My LED have a "photo mode" setup and I just boosted all the channels to 100% and do a little temperature correction in post to bring back how the coral is supposed to look under the blue-er light.

I'll give that a try, nice to see you are getting that non grainy clarity with lower ISOs.

@hockeyhead019 are you experiencing glass distortion if you shoot at any angle other than level and straight ahead?

 

[hockeyhead019]

I'll give that a try, nice to see you are getting that non grainy clarity with lower ISOs.

@hockeyhead019 are you experiencing glass distortion if you shoot at any angle other than level and straight ahead?

I haven't bothered shooting other than straight on. I would imagine it would lead to quite significant distortion