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How do I get the right focus? (with pic)

Jul 21, 2018

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    1. Hey guys,

      I hope you can help me figure this out. Basically I want to photograph my selfmade eyes to add them to my store - however I have a problem focusing my pictures.

      I use manual focus, but I cannot get my camera to "get the whole picture". I hope the picture below shows what I mean (Im sorry it is quite bright). It either focuses too far back (on the gem in this case) or too far front (the flitter stuff). No amount of fiddling with focus got me the desired result aka the eye as a whole, with both parts clearly visible.

      What am I doing wrong?
      I use a Tamron 90mm F2.8 macro for this.
      I also have a Canon 50mm F1.8 (but I dont use that often).

      [​IMG]
       
      #1 Rillja, Jul 21, 2018
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    2. Sounds like a depth of field problem.
      Set your camera to aperture priority and
      close the aperture way down to f22.
      That will require a long shutter speed so
      put the camera on a tripod. Use the shutter
      delay to avoid contributing camera shake
      by pressing the shutter release.

      If that's not sufficient you may need to resort
      to "focus stacking" This is a technique that
      blends multiple exposure into one image that
      appears focused throughout an image.

      Focus stacking - Wikipedia
       
      #2 TomB, Jul 21, 2018
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    3. Your depth of field is too narrow.

      Make the aperture nice and tiny (f/22 as above, but also depends on how small the lens will go, and going too small can make it blurry as well).

      You need a flash, and you'll need some kind of diffuser so you don't get hotspots on the eyes. If you can do off-camera flash then even better. Alternatively, use a long exposure instead of a flash.

      Make sure the camera is on a sturdy tripod. Take some test pictures to gauge exposure. Then turn on live view and set the camera to manual focus. Use the zoom in function to go to 5x or 10x zoom on the display and get the focus perfect. Set the camera to 2 second delayed shutter. Press the shutter button, take your hand off the camera and wait.
       
      #3 Leiothrix, Jul 22, 2018
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