H
heavyharmonies
Guest
Good morning. My first post here, so please be gentle.
Background:
I am a complete and utter newbie when it comes to photography despite having taken pictures for years; I'm strictly point-and-shoot. No background at all in traditional photography (never owned a camera growing up).
I've tried to learn the terminology and the theory behind it all, but despite my being a tech geek when it comes to computers and electronics, for some reason photography eludes me. Metering, white balance, aperatures, exposure, etc., and the interaction between the various aspects as well as the sheer complexity of digital cameras, and my eyes roll back into my head.
When I'm doing shots and I see something I want to change, I know where I want to go (brighter, darker, greater depth of field, changing the white balance, etc.), I just don't know which settings to change in order to get there without messing up the parts that are currently ok. I'll change a setting, and the next shot will be better in one aspect but worse in another; it's the interplay of all the settings that makes me feel like I'm trying to hit a moving target.
What I really need is a hands-on digital photography class to build concepts from the ground up, but haven't found any locally. I think having someone show me things would help them stick.
The only reason I've been able to come up with even remotely presentable results (and even they pale in comparison to what is offered here) is that I spent years as a digital prepress technician and know my way around Adobe Photoshop. I can frequently compensate for things after the fact (lightening shadows, adjusting brightness and contrast, changing the hue and saturation, etc.).
Anyhoo, I primarily do macrophotography of coins, and am now branching into wristwatches, which present additional challenges, especially in lighting.
You can see examples of coin macro shots taken from my old camera (Olympus C7070 Wide Zoom) here: http://www.cheapmorgandollars.com/gallery.shtml (please don't look at the domain name and think I'm spamming, there's nothing for sale there). The majority of the shots are mine, with a few exceptions that I had done.
Wanting to tread in the area of more capable equipment and have the options of using different lenses, but still wanting basically a "point and shoot" camera, I opted for the Lumix G1. Thus far I am very pleased with what the kit lens can do on "Intelligent Auto." About the only thing I've done is to adjust to f11-f14 to give more depth of field.
I went and purchased the DMW-MA1 adapter (which was IMPOSSIBLE to find in the United States; no one has it in stock. I had to buy one on eBay from Japan), along with an Olympus Zuiko 35mm f/3.5 macro lens.
Some examples of shots taken with this combination:
http://watchgeeks.net/showthread.php?t=27918
http://watchgeeks.net/showthread.php?t=27548
The biggest problem I'm running into is that this macro lens still requires me to be very close to the subject, which interferes with lighting.
Unfortunately, I don't know enough about the nomenclature of it all to know which (if any) of the below lenses would be most appropriate, or if I should be looking into a different adapter and lens combination. Ideally, I'd like to keep the cost below $500 (I don't mind used).
The copystand I use for coin shots is massive (old-school from the 1970s and is about 3.5 feet tall), but for the wristwatch shots, I would like to be able to be about 2-3 feet away, whereas right now 1 ft is pushing it.
From B&H Photo:
$379: Sigma Zoom Super Wide Angle 18-50mm f/2.8 EX DC Macro Autofocus Lens for Olympus Digital Cameras (Four Thirds System)
$429: Sigma Wide Angle 24mm f/1.8 EX Aspherical DG DF Macro Autofocus Lens for Olympus Digital Cameras (Four Thirds System)
$459: Sigma Telephoto 105mm f/2.8 EX DG Macro Autofocus Lens for Olympus Digital Cameras (Four Thirds System)
And then we take a big jump:
$689: Sigma Telephoto 150mm f/2.8 EX APO Macro EX DG HSM Autofocus Lens for Olympus Digital Cameras (Four Thirds System)
$749: Sigma 70-200mm f/2.8 II EX DG APO Macro HSM AF Lens for Four Thirds System
Any advice or suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!
Background:
I am a complete and utter newbie when it comes to photography despite having taken pictures for years; I'm strictly point-and-shoot. No background at all in traditional photography (never owned a camera growing up).
I've tried to learn the terminology and the theory behind it all, but despite my being a tech geek when it comes to computers and electronics, for some reason photography eludes me. Metering, white balance, aperatures, exposure, etc., and the interaction between the various aspects as well as the sheer complexity of digital cameras, and my eyes roll back into my head.
When I'm doing shots and I see something I want to change, I know where I want to go (brighter, darker, greater depth of field, changing the white balance, etc.), I just don't know which settings to change in order to get there without messing up the parts that are currently ok. I'll change a setting, and the next shot will be better in one aspect but worse in another; it's the interplay of all the settings that makes me feel like I'm trying to hit a moving target.
What I really need is a hands-on digital photography class to build concepts from the ground up, but haven't found any locally. I think having someone show me things would help them stick.
The only reason I've been able to come up with even remotely presentable results (and even they pale in comparison to what is offered here) is that I spent years as a digital prepress technician and know my way around Adobe Photoshop. I can frequently compensate for things after the fact (lightening shadows, adjusting brightness and contrast, changing the hue and saturation, etc.).
Anyhoo, I primarily do macrophotography of coins, and am now branching into wristwatches, which present additional challenges, especially in lighting.
You can see examples of coin macro shots taken from my old camera (Olympus C7070 Wide Zoom) here: http://www.cheapmorgandollars.com/gallery.shtml (please don't look at the domain name and think I'm spamming, there's nothing for sale there). The majority of the shots are mine, with a few exceptions that I had done.
Wanting to tread in the area of more capable equipment and have the options of using different lenses, but still wanting basically a "point and shoot" camera, I opted for the Lumix G1. Thus far I am very pleased with what the kit lens can do on "Intelligent Auto." About the only thing I've done is to adjust to f11-f14 to give more depth of field.
I went and purchased the DMW-MA1 adapter (which was IMPOSSIBLE to find in the United States; no one has it in stock. I had to buy one on eBay from Japan), along with an Olympus Zuiko 35mm f/3.5 macro lens.
Some examples of shots taken with this combination:
http://watchgeeks.net/showthread.php?t=27918
http://watchgeeks.net/showthread.php?t=27548
The biggest problem I'm running into is that this macro lens still requires me to be very close to the subject, which interferes with lighting.
Unfortunately, I don't know enough about the nomenclature of it all to know which (if any) of the below lenses would be most appropriate, or if I should be looking into a different adapter and lens combination. Ideally, I'd like to keep the cost below $500 (I don't mind used).
The copystand I use for coin shots is massive (old-school from the 1970s and is about 3.5 feet tall), but for the wristwatch shots, I would like to be able to be about 2-3 feet away, whereas right now 1 ft is pushing it.
From B&H Photo:
$379: Sigma Zoom Super Wide Angle 18-50mm f/2.8 EX DC Macro Autofocus Lens for Olympus Digital Cameras (Four Thirds System)
$429: Sigma Wide Angle 24mm f/1.8 EX Aspherical DG DF Macro Autofocus Lens for Olympus Digital Cameras (Four Thirds System)
$459: Sigma Telephoto 105mm f/2.8 EX DG Macro Autofocus Lens for Olympus Digital Cameras (Four Thirds System)
And then we take a big jump:
$689: Sigma Telephoto 150mm f/2.8 EX APO Macro EX DG HSM Autofocus Lens for Olympus Digital Cameras (Four Thirds System)
$749: Sigma 70-200mm f/2.8 II EX DG APO Macro HSM AF Lens for Four Thirds System
Any advice or suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!