Focusing rails (anyone using one?)

[brickie]

Hi, as above how many use focusing rails ? pros and cons please, thanks.

[Shadowman]

I have one and use it when necessary, the only con I can see is not having it when you need it. You still have to concern yourself with vibration so using the timer or a remote is good, timing and slowness of setup can be a con as for an example, an insect isn't going to wait for you to get into position.

[DanK]

Brickie,

Welcome to CiC. Please go to the top right of the screen and edit your profile to include your name (we use real names here) and your location. Locations are often helpful for responding to questions.

To give you a sensible answer, you will have to say what you would be doing with it. I'm assuming you are thinking about macro, as that is generally why people use rails? Are you shooting something stationary or moving? At what magnification? Are you intending to focus stack?

If you answer with that information, it will be more practical to give you useful feedback.

Also, there have been quite a lot of discussions of this on this forum. I have never been able to get the search function on the site to work well--it usually returns more than I want--but if you google <"cambridge in colour" focusing rail> with the quotation marks, you will find some of them.

Dan

[rpcrowe]

I have a very old but, exceptionally solid Minolta macro rail. IMO the main factors in choosing a focus rail is to ensure that the unit is very solidly built and that it can move the camera/lens smoothly with a degree of precision.



My focus rail only has fore and aft controls. There are rails that include sideways controls but, I would not give up the rigidity of my rail to gain the left-right movement. This is not to imply that all rails with side to side adjustments are not solid. I purchased the Minolta rail for about fifty U.S. Dollars used. IMO, some of the Chinese knock offs presently offered don't look too solid. I suspect that this rail, if properly cared for, will last for many years so; buying used may be a good idea, if you find a top line rail on the used market. I would rather pay the same price for a really solid used rail with precision controls than buy an inferior new rail

I use the rail far less often since I purchased my Canon 6D Mark ii camera. The 6D2 has a touch control fully articulating LCD with which I can focus the camera and trip the shutter using a stylus at designated points within my frame. This makes it really simple quick and fun to focus stack.

However The focus rail still makes critical framing quite easy. On other cameras, the focus rail comes in handy - especially for focus stacking when I am shooting extreme macros.

If you are doing this type of shooting, ensure that you are using a solid tripod and head. Releasing the shutter remotely with the mirror locked up is also a good idea.

[shreds]

Brickie, I have never been able to get the search function on the site to work well--it usually returns more than I want--but if you google <"cambridge in colour" focusing rail> with the quotation marks, you will find some of them.
Dan

….strange, just use the words 'focus stacking' in the search or bring up advanced search if necessary and it will give options. Of the three it gave me for this topic, try having a look at this one:

Macro and Focus Stacking

[DanK]

….strange, just use the words'focus stackin' in the search or bring up advanced search if necessary and it will give options. Of the three it gave me for this topic, try having a look at this one:

Macro and Focus Stacking

I actually used 'focusing rail" in my search this time. It does find the relevant ones, but returned 84 posts, and I found it hard to know which are useful in this respect.

In any case, I think the key here is finding out what the OP wants to do. Much of the good discussion here in the past has depended on that. E.g., there have been several threads on whether a rail is essential for focus stacking.

[brickie]

profile sorted, (use for )focusing rail for macro work, on anything that attracts my eye flowers plants patterns etc. seems like they are a handy item. used to have a bellows system years ago so similar really i suppose.

[Shadowman]

profile sorted, (use for )focusing rail for macro work, on anything that attracts my eye flowers plants patterns etc. seems like they are a handy item. used to have a bellows system years ago so similar really i suppose.

I typed in cowboy rail which gave me this thread.
Focus rail reccomendation's

[brickie]

thanks for the answers will look through posts.

[dem]

I own a focusing rail but find refocusing the lens to work better than moving the camera for focus stacking. YMMV. I am using the rail for panorama shots (ala chepo Nodal Ninja) but not for macro.

[DanK]

For macro work at magnifications up to roughly 1.5:1 or maybe 2:1, there is no need for a rail, but some people find it helpful. IMHO, it's best to separate three functions:

1. Initial framing. I find a rail very helpful for this because it allows fairly substantial movements fore and aft without otherwise changing framing. I use a rail for this purpose often.

2. Achieving focus. In my experience, a rail is completely unnecessary for this if you are using a macro lens with a focusing ring. It works fine to enlarge via live view and focus manually with the focusing ring. I never use the rail for this even when I have the camera mounted on it.

3. Changing focus for focus stacking. There are three options: shooting tethered with computerized control (e.g., Helicon Remote), changing focus with the focusing ring, and changing focus with a rail. I almost always use the lens barrel, but some people prefer using a rail.

I can't speak to higher magnifications. I suspect a rail is more important for #3 at higher magnifications, but I don't yet work at more than 2:1.

[William W]

. . . (use for )focusing rail for macro work, on anything that attracts my eye flowers plants patterns etc. seems like they are a handy item. used to have a bellows system years ago so similar really i suppose.

Rails are ‘similar’ to bellows but not the same and therefore not a necessary item to achieve easily focus when adjusting the Magnification: I think this is an important difference to acknowledge.

I have this set of Focus Rails:



I don't use them very much at all. I don't do anywhere as much Macro as other here, (for example Dan K), but would regularly do three to seven 'close up' shots at a Wedding: for that a Monopod was the simplest tool for me to use. I now find using a Monopod and a Macro lens (and suitably fast Shutter Speed and/or Flash), just as suitable for a Macro Shot of a Flower or Pattern that I fancy: but as I stress I am not a Macro Aficionado.

What I have found my rails useful for is detailed Close Up work of sections of a Subject for forensic purposes. For example art work, bank notes, documents etc. In this situation, the "X-Y Rails" that I have can be used to easily move the camera’s lens parallel to the surface of the work for a detailed record of any particular area: this is useful for Photography for Insurance Records, which was a Photographic Service that we used to offer.

WW

[JohnRostron]

I ran a comparison of rail-focussing and lens-focussing a while back. I found that, wth the rail, I needed to get the alignment spot on, otherwise the image would drift vertically in the viewfinder as I racked the rail. No problems with using the lens.
John

[Codebreaker]

There's a good discussion on the subject here https://zerenesystems.com/cms/stacke...ringversusrail

I have a focusing rail for macro work but really only use it for initial composition. It's the same as the one pictured in post #12 and therefore manual. By the time its on the tripod there's a lot of mechanical interfaces which can result in vibration so care is needed.

Personally I find it more convenient to do focusing stacking by using the Auto Focus function in conjunction with an app on my Tablet called dslrcontroller. ( https://dslrcontroller.com/ ) Canon only. This app drives the camera and can incrementally step the focus ring.

I also seem to recall that the third party firmware for Canon cameras - Magic Lantern ( https://www.magiclantern.fm/ ) is also capable of focus stacking but I've never been sold on the idea of re-programming my camera.

Colin

[brickie]

Again thanks to everyone who replied, i have tried to click on the thumbs up button but it does not seem to work ?

[Dave Humphries]

Hi Iwan,

~ I have tried to click on the thumbs up button but it does not seem to work ?

Here's what I know, whether one of these is the cause of the problem you experience, we have yet to discover ...

So, FWIW:

If you hover (assuming using a mouse) over the Hand thumbs up icon, you should see a pop up text box say "Helpful Posts", single click then and there; e.g. not in the number window. However, do note that there is a significant delay (a good second) before the number increments, if you click again within that time, it's possible that you cancel the first click, since I know you can 'unlike' a post too.

That said, often, if you click more than once within 3 seconds, that will pop up an alert advising of this restriction (I believe that's to stop robots 'abusing' the system).

One last thought; there are certain forum features that are disabled until a new members has made at least 10 posts, it is possible, sine you're on 5 as I type this, that maybe that's why it isn't working for you.

Hope some of that is helpful,
Dave

[brickie]

thanks dave for that info could be the under 10 posts reason.

[GrahamS]

Just my opinion: A focusing rail is not the thing to use on location - it will serve you better in a controlled environment with static subjects. Focusing rails are best mounted on a very sturdy platform, preferably on a geared head. Focusing rails work well for copying flat media such as documents or postage stamps when mounted on the column and baseboard from an enlarger.