Bigma tips please?

[LoveT]

Hi

At last the sun has arrived, and with it the opportunity to get out there with the Bigma at last and do some serious photography.

I've seen lots of superb Gallery images of dragonflies and damselflies etc. by you guys taken with the Bigma, and the subjects seem to fill the frame. I had a go yesterday with a Holly Blue butterfly that decided to pay a very brief visit.

I took this with the Bigma at what seemed a distance of half a mile or so from the subject and got this result:


This leads me to my question of you all (I sincerely apologise if this has been covered before by the way):

What tips can you give a Bigma newbie such as me for taking lovely frame fillers like you guys take? Is there an optimum distance etc.?

Without wishing to start a conflict, I would very much appreciate you sharing some of your techniques.

Thanks

Thea

[Ollie]

The technique I tend to use is to keep the Bigma off full zoom if possible. 350mm to 450mm seems about ideal as this usually gives a very sharp shot. Then crop the image to bring the butterfly or dragonfly nearer.

Some would say this is cheating but if you are getting great images this way I don't see it as such. I find the Bigma struggles a bit with very small butterflies or damselflies and the Sigma 150mm macro lens is more suited to these. The Bigma however is a great lens for the Dragonflies that are camera shy such as Black-tailed Skimmers.

I also use a sturdy tripod

Hope this helps

Roger

[LoveT]

Thanks Roger.

When I took the photo I had the feeling that I might be expecting too much of the Bigma in these circumstances . It's fantastic for birds etc. but as you said, not so good for smaller butterflies (like this one).

I've got a 50mm macro which I tend to use with my 1.4x converter, but I have to get pretty close to my subjects still (usually prompting them to disappear!), and much as I would really love to get my hands on the Sigma 150mm macro I've only just got the Bigma recently, so I'd better not push my luck on the macro .

That's very helpful, and kind of reinforced what I was thinking - thank you.

Thea

[DavyG]

Hi Thea,

I agree with the information given by Roger, although I've had some pretty good results at 500mm with the Bigma.

I'd recommend a minimum aperture setting of f8 to f10 for Dragonflies and butterflies, even smaller if you have the light.

Is it the ZD 50mm lens you have?

If so, are you aware that, when used with the EX-25, this lens will give 1:1 macro and retain the ability to autofocus?

The ZD 50mm is sharp as a tack, it's downfall, as you say, is that you have to get very close to the subject but that is possible with some practice.

The Sigma 105mm is also a very good lens and works well in conjunction with the ZD EC-14.

This photograph was taken using that combination, as you can imagine, I was very close to the subject.



We have the 50mm, Sigma 105 and Sigma 150mm lenses, the Sigmas get the most use.

I hope this is of some help.

Dave

[glsammy]

One thing to remember, the lower the zoom the nearer you can get.

This one was at 363mm:



Dragonflies and butterflies are fine for the Bigma.

Here's a Common Blue, also at 363mm:

[LoveT]

Originally Posted by DavyG

Hi Thea,

Is it the ZD 50mm lens you have?

If so, are you aware that, when used with the EX-25, this lens will give 1:1 macro and retain the ability to autofocus?

The ZD 50mm is sharp as a tack, it's downfall, as you say, is that you have to get very close to the subject but that is possible with some practice.

The Sigma 105mm is also a very good lens and works well in conjunction with the ZD EC-14.

This photograph was taken using that combination, as you can imagine, I was very close to the subject.



We have the 50mm, Sigma 105 and Sigma 150mm lenses, the Sigmas get the most use.

I hope this is of some help.

Dave

Thanks Dave - yes it is the ZD50 I've got - I've got the EX-25 extension tube as well but I find you need good light etc. to use it, so I usually end up putting the 1.4x converter on - that way I don't have to get so close, and said subjects are less inclined to make a run for it !

Cracking shot Dave - hadn't really thought about the 105mm until I saw that!

Thanks for the advice, all being taken on board !

Thea

[LoveT]

Thanks Graham and Dave - that's the frame fillers I'm on about!

Do you have to do much cropping with these images?

Also - thought you might like to see this little critter I managed to photograph this evening - with the XD50mm and 1.4x converter:



Thea

[DavyG]

Nice capture Thea, with the EX-25 you'd have magnified that to 1:1, the macro twinflash or the ringflash would solve the light problem.

With regard to my Dragonfly pic, the pic is not cropped at all, that's as I took it.

The equipment used was: Olympus E510, EC-14, Sigma 105mm, Oly Ring Flash, Manfrotto tripod.

Dave

[Ollie]

Originally Posted by LoveT

Thanks Graham and Dave - that's the frame fillers I'm on about!

Do you have to do much cropping with these images?

Also - thought you might like to see this little critter I managed to photograph this evening - with the XD50mm and 1.4x converter:



Thea

A nice sharp image from the 500mm and 1.4x convertor.

I probably wrongfully gave the impression that the Bigma wouldn't give good results on Dragonflies at full 500mm zoom. Although I try to keep off full zoom for them as I usually get a sharper photo it is possible as Dave mentioned to get good results at 500mm.

Here's one from my Bigma at full zoom. ISO 400, F9, 1/160 secs.

Can't remember how much I cropped it but it has definitely been cropped

Roger

[glsammy]

I agree with Roger, I prefer to zoom back a bit and move closer if possible. 500mm will work OK, but I find I get better detail coming off maximum zoom.