Normally when wandering around a patch of bush I use my big zoom lens. But that’s a bit impractical for the multitude of spiders that have made their home on the fence behind my garden shed. So I’ve started to bring out my macro lens (Canon EF 180mm 1:35) on my EOS R7. Not enough room to put a tripod there.
Is there a nice easy how to tute or article around about stacking and insect photography in the wild? My camera can do the stacking but I need to learn about the best settings. I won’t be using a flash because if I am actually in the wild my geotagger doodackie sits where the flash is and I want the location data.
I could ask my other half who is a photographer but honestly he makes my brain hurt explaining what he thinks is important as opposed to what I actually asked. And he is not normally a macro person.
Goodness, I just don’t know where to start, I fear I would end up being even more confusing than your other half. You have an excellent lens, but far from easy, so the first thing you’re going to need is bags of patience. The vast majority of insect macro photographers will tell you straight away that flash is essential. I’m in a decided minority here in that I take 99% of my macro images with natural light. They mightn’t be the best in the world, but neither are they the worst, so if you prefer not to use flash for whatever reason, then don’t be put off.
You say your camera does the stacking, but just to be clear, does it take all the images and then stack in camera, so you download just the finished stacked image? Or does it do just the focus bracketing in camera, so you download all the images and stack them in your PC afterwards? If the second, you’ll need special software. The two most commonly used are Helicon Focus and Zerene Stacker. Both have a free trial, so you can try them out and see which works best for you. Other general purpose applications like PhotoShop often also have a stacking function which may work for easy stacks with few images, but otherwise they’re guaranteed to drive you crazy (obviously others may disagree, but that’s what I’ve found).
As for the actual photography bit, bear in mind that the hotter it is, the more active the arthropods will be. Early morning is an excellent time as they are usually more sluggish and much easier to approach. To understand the best settings for stacking, the best way is just to experiment and find what works well for you with your particular equipment. Before venturing out into the field, try at home under controlled conditions so you get a feel for how the result changes at different apertures, different aperture steps etc. Luckily we are in the digital era so experimenting costs just a bit of time!
For the rest, take a look in YouTube. There are literally hundreds of excellent tutorials out there, below is a list of just a few I’ve come across: https://www.youtube.com/@JamieSpensley https://www.youtube.com/@naturefold https://www.youtube.com/@MicaelWidell https://www.youtube.com/@StewartWoodArt
If you have any other more specific questions, let me know. And the most important thing is…have fun.
Well, you start by finding an insect that is willing to stay still long enough for a stack…
(Sorry, I’m aware this isn’t particularly helpful, but a lot of what I photograph are hymenopterans, most of whom are likely to be quickly moving. So stacking in field conditions is not generally going to be feasible, unless one manages to find ones that are chilled and sluggish, or carries means to temporarily capture and chill them, in which case it is no longer really field conditions.)
If you’re not using a tripod and you are using in-camera focus bracketing/stacking, you may need to find some other way to make sure your camera is stable and doesn’t wobble while the photo series is being taken (bracing your hands, camera held close to your body etc.). You might also see whether a small tabletop tripod would suit your purposes.
Personally I basically never stack, and just take many photos from different angles to try and get as many features in focus as possible. I try to get a dorsal photo (with wing venation visible), a profile photo, and a photo of the face when possible. I shoot at fairly narrow apertures as well. As mentioned in this thread, stacking tends to be nearly impossible if your subject is at all active, and that’s a very large proportion of small arthropods I run into in the field. Of course you could always collect and chill a specimen to get beautiful focus stacked photos if you are comfortable and legally permitted to do so, I just prefer photographing in the field for a number of reasons…
I personally find a flash extremely useful (again, especially as I don’t stack). You could try looking into using an external device to record your track (e.g. the doodackie you are using to geotag if it can record your route off-camera, or maybe your phone otherwise) and then use software like geosetter to add location data to your photos with that track.