MP-E and 2X TC

Any one see the macro-photography article in March Outdoor Photography?

The author is using the MP-E and twin flash with a 2X TC to get up to 10x magnification. He also stops right down to f14 at times.

I remember experimenting with a 2X on the MP-E when I first got it, but to be honest I thought it was dark enough already.

thanks for the tip, will try to get a copy. How are the results?

Martin G. wrote in post #15651415
thanks for the tip, will try to get a copy. How are the results?

The results looked fine, but the photos were generally small, so even at a high print DPI it is difficult to judge fine detail sharpness.

Macro means a lot of work.

Lester Wareham wrote in post #15652732
The results looked fine, but the photos were generally small, so even at a high print DPI it is difficult to judge fine detail sharpness.

OK thanks

I wouldn't like to chase a wasp around with that rig.

I think 8-10x must very hard in the field, I find 3-4x the limit for field due to movement of the subject due to air currents etc. I do use the twin flash and MP-E in the field a lot, adding the 2x II would not be a big issue.

I did wonder if some of his high mag shots were studio ones however, just from a practicle point of view.

I am skeptical that shooting at f/14 with the 2x would look good at an any decent size. From what I have heard from those who have tried it, that combo produces somewhat soft results even when shot at wide apertures.

Eddie Nurcombe takes handheld focus stack up to 10x using a ton of extension tubes (see the photo below for an example of his setup), and his stacks come out wonderfully sharp when shot at wide apertures. I have not tried tubes or the 2x, but if I wanted to try shooting at 10x, I would surely go for the tubes and not the 2x.
http://www.flickr.com …8485636613/in/p​hotostream

Working at 10x produces its own set of unique challenges and sometimes a 2x has benefits that outweigh the disadvantages of IQ deterioration.

Tubing the MP-E to 10x gives a working distance of around 15mm and this presents the challenge of how the illuminate the front of the subject given that a full 7 stops of light will be swallowed when compared to normal aperture calculations (ie, f/2.8 is effectively f/32 in expsoure terms). Current bodies like the 1Dx will given you 5 of those stops before noise reduction processing nullifies the advantages but that's where the help stops in practical terms. A 2x will not impact on the working distance an IQ loss is the main worry.

After around 7x magnification, I turn to the older Macrophoto lenses (20mm and 35mm) on a bellows setup. The front on the lens assemblies are chamferred to permit light to be directed at the front of the subject with greater ease.

Bob

Ryan I agree about the high f numbers, over 1x-2x I tend to limit to f/8 or less and stack, I suspect this is why the images are reproduced small.

Bob, yes I wondered about lighting, the lighting in his shots look quite good. I certainly have difficulty with less magnification. Although his emphasis was on the twin flash a ring flash was also mentioned. I didn't notice any ring highlights however.

Note his route to 10x was a 2x rather than more extension so the minimum working distance was not affected. He notes an expected loss of image quality with more glass, but stopping down so much probably does not show it up by comparison. Although he seems to use more conventional f stops with less magnification.