Technique Archive
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A play with Topaz Adjust
Posted on October 27, 2011 | No CommentsI recently purchase Topaz Adjust (A photoshop plugin) after trialling the software for some landscape shots. After taking a shot of a spider on some fungi, I decided to have a quick go with Topaz Adjust on a macro shot. Now whilst it may not suit many macro shots, I... -
Using Sunlight with Butterflies
Posted on August 4, 2011 | No CommentsWith Butterflies we normally see shots of detail in their wings from front lighting. However you can also get some interesting pictures by taking advantage of different sunlight angles. Backlighting can be effective as this can have the effect of making their wings more translucent and see-through in effect. The... -
Replacing a Background with Select Colour in Photoshop CS5
Posted on May 27, 2011 | 1 CommentThis is a tutorial on using the Select Colour tool in Photoshop CS5 to replace a background with a single colour. I shot this Small Pearl Bordered Butterfly, with flash and was holding a leaf in the background to stop a black background effect. Unfortunately I held it too close... -
Checking the background.
Posted on March 28, 2011 | No CommentsOne important aspect when taking macro photographs is to check what is in the background of the shot for distracting elements. This can be bright sky, twigs, bright colours etc that distract the viewers attention from the image. With digital photography you have the advantage of being able to check... -
First Play with Sound Trigger.
Posted on January 14, 2011 | 2 CommentsI have recently been building some triggers from HiViz.com for use in macro photography. I had an initial first play with a sound trigger tonight, trying to capture some dancing milk on a speaker. I only got one half decent shot, some more work is required on the setup. I... -
Turning photos into drawings.
Posted on November 23, 2010 | No CommentsFollowing some advice and help from a poster on pixalo.com forums, I had recently had some fun turning some shots taken earlier in the year into drawings or illustrations in photoshop. Here are some examples that I have recently done. A Common Darter. A Marbled White Butterfly A butterfly on... -
Automated Stacking With Helicon Remote
Posted on October 8, 2010 | No CommentsI had a first play with HeliconSoft.com’s Helicon Remote tool this evening. This software allows you to automate the taking of stack photographs with a compatable Camera and Auto-Focus Lens attached to a PC. In the software you define the start and end points of the stack. Then using the... -
Focus Stacking with Helicon Focus Tutorial
Posted on September 24, 2010 | 2 CommentsIn the second of my series of tutorial articles looking at stacking software, I take a look at focus stacking with Helicon Focus from Helicon Soft. Again I am just going to let the software do all the work, the only tweaking being some dust and noise adjustments on the... -
Using a reflector to boost natural light.
Posted on September 19, 2010 | No CommentsA useful and cheap accessory that can aid in some macro work is a reflector. This can be bought, made out of tin foil on cardboard (my first was like that), or acquired free from a magazine – as my current one was from Amatuer Photographer last year. The reflector... -
Stacking Macro Photographs in Photoshop CS5
Posted on September 17, 2010 | No CommentsI’ve recently been experimenting stacking macro shots in various stacking tools. I intend to add some tutorials on some of them over the next few weeks. I’ll start with one that I’ve recently been using to stack some shots together (usually only 2 or 3 at the moment, but there’s...