Focus rail reccomendation's

[russellsnr]

Hi,I am looking for a focus rail reccomendation. Looking on Ebay I see them costing from £10 to £400 now I don't have the £400 at this time (I'm married ) and I am only wanting to photograph images of flowers (whole heads and stamens) so any advice please?
Thanks
Russ

[Black Pearl]

Which camera, lens and tripod will you be using it with?

[russellsnr]

Which camera, lens and tripod will you be using it with?

Hi, thanks for the reply.
I have a Canon 6D and 600D
Lenses, 50mm, 24-70mm, 70-200mm.
Tripods, Velbon and manfotto, both carbon fibre..
Tripod heads, various.
Russ

[Black Pearl]

Thats a terribly varied array of gear and none of the lenses are classed as macro so I'll assume you'll be using extension tubes and the 50mm.

A close friend has the below plate that he uses with a Canon 7D and EF 100mm f2.8 LIS to very good effect. Should be suitable for your needs but not sure I'd be happy with the 70-200mm on it.

https://www.manfrotto.co.uk/micro-po...-sliding-plate

[Shadowman]

I have this one from Cowboy Studio. It works well for me.

http://www.amazon.com/Cowboystudio-M.../dp/B0047DS41S

[russellsnr]

I have this one from Cowboy Studio. It works well for me.

http://www.amazon.com/Cowboystudio-M.../dp/B0047DS41S

Hi, Yes that is the one I have been looking at.
Many Thanks
Russ

[ktuli]

I have that one from Cowboy Studios too. Works well. Not sure what one that costs 10x more would do that it doesn't... Short of having stepping motors on it to be able to electronically move the rig (which is the *only* thing I could imagine a more expensive one having), this one should do the trick for you.

- Bill

[russellsnr]

Ordered

[DanK]

Russell,

Before getting to which, I would ask what you want it for.

If you want it for focus stacking, my experience is that at that level of magnification, a rail is not necessary. You can get identical results by leaving the camera stationary and changing the focus on the lens. Almost all of the the flower shots on my site, including the 'wilted flowers,' are stacked, and I have never used a rail to get the sequence of images needed. If you buy Helicon Remote to have a computer change the focus, its default is to do it by changing the focus on the lens. (I do that on rare occasions, even though I use Zerene rather than Helicon for stacking.) If you want very high levels of magnification, a rail may be more useful. This is not an argument against using one for this purpose, if you find it easier; I just want to point out that contrary to what many people will tell you, it isn't necessary.

I do own a Kirk rail, which I bought a few years ago. I have never used it to change focus between shots. I use it because if I find that I am somewhat too far or close for the first shot, the rail lets me reposition the camera without moving the tripod or flower--and therefore without messing up other aspects of the framing. For this purpose, as opposed to the first, a cheap rail might be fine because lack of precision in the machining would presumably make less difference. However, for this purpose, it is helpful to have a release that lets you slide the camera without using the screw adjustment, because the screw adjustment would be VERY slow if you find you have to move the camera some distance, say, 3 or 4 cm. My Kirk has a button on the side that lets me slide the camera freely

For the second purpose, the equipment I find most useful is a geared head. I use this one. It's bulky, heavy, and expensive, but it lets me make precise changes in position in all three directions. I use it for virtually all of my indoor flower shots. I added an arca-swiss adapter from Hejnar Photo (on eBay), which made it even heavier, but since I use it indoors, that doesn't pose a problem.

Dan

[russellsnr]

Dan, I just want to try mainly flower head photography outdoors probably 95% of the time. What I don't want to do is just point the lens at a whole flower head and snap away, yes on occassions I more than likley will but really looking for something else down the composition road. Most of images are to date Landscapes but due to where I live I am finding it harder to find something different in that subject matter.
I am also now trying to print images (not to sell) just for me.
I have the Manfrotto 804RC2 head along with numerous ball heads.
Was looking at a Sigma 100mm but as I just want flower heads I felt a set of macro rings with electric contacts on the lenses I have as posted above.



Thanks
Russ

[rpcrowe]

I don't remember how long that I have had and used this focusing rail. It is left over from my film days but, works just fine with my DSLR gear.



It includes just fore and aft movement, not side by side adjustments. However, it works just great. It is built like a tank and the adjustments hold firm where ever I have the camera/lens. IMO, that is the one of the most important facets of any focusing rail. Additionally, it doesn't have a geared movement so whatever placement I choose, it locks in. Some, less capable focusing rails use a geared knob to move the camera/lens and sometimes are a bit cranky to fine tune.

Best of all, I paid less that $50 USD for this unit, used on eBay and it works like a champ...

[loosecanon]

there are a number of solutions - for rails see the selections at speedgraphic.com , Hague make a range and sell even more, including powered options.

[IzzieK]

Russell,

If you want it for focus stacking, my experience is that at that level of magnification, a rail is not necessary. You can get identical results by leaving the camera stationary and changing the focus on the lens. .......
Dan

Do you have a tutorial for this? I was interested in what I saw a few years back but I don't know where the link is now... Thanks Dan..

Also, thank you John for that link to Amazon. I forgot about that one...I think it was William (chauncey) who first recommended that one, if they are the same ones.

[Dave Humphries]

If you want it for focus stacking, my experience is that at that level of magnification, a rail is not necessary. You can get identical results by leaving the camera stationary and changing the focus on the lens.

Do you have a tutorial for this? I was interested in what I saw a few years back but I don't know where the link is now...

Or you could buy a Panasonic G7 or GX8 and let the camera do the stacking shots for you Izzie

Have you seen Dave's thread: Orchid from 4K photo?

Cheers, Dave

[IzzieK]

Thanks, Dave...I read it yesterday. I think I have this in my links of new postings in my drafts folder...I will take note...'appreciate your help. Again.

[DanK]

Do you have a tutorial for this? I was interested in what I saw a few years back but I don't know where the link is now... Thanks Dan..

I don't have a link to one that is written without regard for the specific software, but there are good tutorials on the zerene.com site for stacking with their software, which is what I use.

For taking the photos, the key is to start with the closest point you want in focus, rather than starting at the back, because the framing of the photo will change as you refocus, and starting at the front end insures that you aren't framing too closely. Then just take a series of photos, focusing slightly farther back each time, until you have one that is sharp at the rear-most point you want in focus. I generally overshoot the mark just to play it safe.


The only hard part of this is learning how much to change the focus each time. This is trial and error at first, but the principle is that it is better to err on the side of too many shots close together. Even using software to control the focus doesn't necessarily solve this problem. When I bought Helicon remote, I found that the intervals were too large for my lens and camera, and I had to try several different adjustments before it worked correctly. However, once you have done this by hand a number of times, it becomes second nature.

[IzzieK]

Thanks Dan...I copied the tutorial and did my experiment today. I will see if I can make a theme out of it for this week's submission to my P52. If not I will have to repeat it again...there were some good examples of macro focus stacking there...appreciate your help.

I don't have a link to one that is written without regard for the specific software, but there are good tutorials on the zerene.com site for stacking with their software, which is what I use.

For taking the photos, the key is to start with the closest point you want in focus, rather than starting at the back, because the framing of the photo will change as you refocus, and starting at the front end insures that you aren't framing too closely. Then just take a series of photos, focusing slightly farther back each time, until you have one that is sharp at the rear-most point you want in focus. I generally overshoot the mark just to play it safe.


The only hard part of this is learning how much to change the focus each time. This is trial and error at first, but the principle is that it is better to err on the side of too many shots close together. Even using software to control the focus doesn't necessarily solve this problem. When I bought Helicon remote, I found that the intervals were too large for my lens and camera, and I had to try several different adjustments before it worked correctly. However, once you have done this by hand a number of times, it becomes second nature.