Photographing your flies

[Tom Hennessy]

I'm looking for info on photographing flies. Any tips or directions to a source of info would be greatly appreciated. I've got a Pentax Optio W20 digital camera. It's a 'point and shoot' but has good macro capabilities with 7 megapixels. Lighting is my main issue - getting 'natural' color, not the warm incandescent look from standard lighting. Thanks, Tom

[Darian]

Not an expert by any means but have experimented a bunch with backgrounds, back lighting, elimination of shadows, etc., ad nuaseum. :? :? :? Still haven't settled on a formula.... :? I've used my Nikon Coolpix (8.0 mgapixel) digital, the camera built inot my MacBookPro computer and my 35 MM, SLR, non-didgital and had similar results with each, mixed. :? :?

IMHO, one of the biggest issues for resolution in lighting, etc., is were too intense using the standard white background. I've found that varying the colors of the background solves many of the lighting problems and enhances the colors of the fly.

At this point in my amatuerish photography efforts, I just shoot up a bunch of pic's (like using a shotgun) and hope one or two of 'em work.... :lol: :lol: :lol:

[SteelieD]

Here is an idea for a 'studio'... Be sure to check all of the links at the bottom of this page.

http://homepage.mac.com/riverwader/tying/Personal24.html

[davkrat]

The problem usually with backgrounds, lighting and exposure is that your camera wants to make everything neutral gray. The reason your incandescent lights make the colors funny is the probably the white balance on your digital camera. White balance or WB sets the "color temperature" for the lighting you are in. A cloudy day will have a bluer hue than a bright sunny day; your camera probably has a little sun emblem and a cloud emblem. Our eyes naturally adjust for color differences but the camera won't. Well they try but it's never as good as when you set WB your self. If you are shooting with incandescent light set your camera to the light bulb and if it is fluorescent light use the horizontal bar that is supposed to look like a fluorescent tube.

To figure out what I mean by neutral gray take a white sheet of paper and take a picture of it without adjusting the exposure at all. The picture should come out looking rather dark and GREY. The camera sees an image and trys to let in enough light that will result in a gray image. That gray reflects exactly 50% of light, white reflects 100% and black reflects 0%. Now if you take a medium tone gray (neutral gray actually seems a little darker than you would expect, at least to me) background and take a picture of it the resulting image should look fairly close to the color and tone of the background in real life. Your background does not need to be gray and medium to dark colored paper or sheet will work. Portrait photographers use big sheets of fabric and put folds in them to make interesting shadows in the background but any old blanket, towel construction paper will work. If you can see the background in your picture in focus and see all the bits of dog hair or an annoying pattern in it just move the background farther away so it will be out of focus. That’s why it helps to have a sheet or something of that nature that will fill the frame even from a distance.

Lastly lighting, to take people portraits they often use a bunch of lights all set at different “brightnesses”. One to put a sparkle in the subjects eyes, some to light the hair and the background, a couple to either hide or accentuate wrinkles and texture in the skin. You can do the same thing with your flies. You don’t need lots of lights though. A few task lights like the kind you would clip on to your workbench with articulating arms work great. Also you can put a light on one side and then use aluminum foil or even better the cheap fold up reflectors for car windows, not the circle ones that coil up on themselves but the rectangular ones that are rigid and fold like a map. They will stand up on their own better. If you can get the light coming from all directions and surrounding the subject it looks much better than one bright head on light. The bathing light surrounding a subject is probably the number one reason studio portraits look so much better than deer in the headlight family photos. It can be fun to play with the light direction and moving the reflectors. The “mood” really changes with light direction.

The number one rule for taking close ups is to have the camera on a stable surface like a tripod or table top and do not touch it while the picture is taken. Use the timer that allows you to run around in front of the camera for those wonderful deer-in-headlight family photos. It’s best to set the camera to manual focus so it doesn’t focus on your background instead of your fly.

So pick a neutral background, set the white balance to the light type you are using, use multiple lights or reflectors to cover the fly with light, use a tripod/table, manually lock focus on the fly and then don’t touch the camera while the picture is being taken. Sounds simple right. That might be a lot of info but it really isn’t that hard. Just take it one step at a time and feel free to ask me to explain any of it. Good luck!

It's not a fly but the same idea!
http://kratvillephoto.com/images/web-2005-03-05-IMG_8051.jpg

[davkrat]

I just looked at SteelieD's link to the fly studio. That will give you nice even light. Pretty much the same thing as I said, just try to get reflected light all around the fly. Just think of when you see girls in bikinis on the beach and there are all those helpers with big umbrellas and reflectors standing around the girl. Same thing just a much smaller scale, and not quite as sexy! :o

[Adam Grace]

That fly studio, although crude, is a great idea. Previously I have been using aluminum foil under my vise and fly to re-direct light from my super-great-awesome tying light made by the Daylight Light company (or something like that, I forget their full name right now, Bill carries this brand in his shop) the light offers daylight spectrum rays that offer a much more natural light than flourescent or incandescent lighting. This more natural lighting makes taking macro pictures, without the use of an overpowering flash, look much more natural and well balanced as far as the lighting is concerned.

I also use a mini tripod and I utilize the timer function on my camera while mounted to the tripod to reduce any vibrations caused by me while I depress the shutter button.

I finally convinced my friend Hogan Brown, a contract tier for Idylwilde Fly Co., to try the daylight lamp and he loves it. If you guys enjoy tying flies you have to buy one of these lamps! Heck, I bought one for my Mother 2 years ago, for when she is doing her needle point and similar crafts, and she is still thanking me for that lamp.

[Tom Hennessy]

Thanks for the info guys. I'm going to assemble a 'Studio' set up this evening. I picked up a translucent 5 quart paint bucket - I'm usually tying streamers from 3" to over 7" and I think I need the extra room in there. I'll also play around with the White Balance settings on the camera and use the tripod & self timer. Maybe I'll come up with some shots worth posting.

[Adam Grace]

Have fun taking pictures of your flies. I can't wait to see how they turn out!

[Jay Murakoshi]

I also use a crude set up. I have light gray or light blue backgrounds, set way back from the fly. I use a tripod with a 3 way swivel head.
Flash units SB800 and SB 600 Nikon flashes. I use the wireless flash and use them for fill flash. By adjusting WB also helps

Jay

[Adam Grace]

I took Jay's advice about using a blue background and it improved the look of my macro fly pictures. Thanks Jay.

[k.hanley]

Say Hey Folks,
I'm in the middle of photographing a new tying book. Without getting into the specifics of camera and lens models, flash units, etc..... here's what works for Glenn Kishi and myself:

1. Use multiple light sources...front, side, background. It helps to highlight features in the fly and knock out shadows.

2. Put the background far away from the subject. It keeps it soft in the final pic.

3. I prefer to use "Spectra Fadeless Art Paper" (50 lb.). Blue, tan, and gray are standards worth using with most flies.

Here's a pic of the studio rigging and a dragonfly set.
Enjoy!
Cheers, Ken




http://i175.photobucket.com/albums/w155/pacificextremes/StudioFlySet-up.jpg

http://i175.photobucket.com/albums/w155/pacificextremes/DragonflySet.jpg

[Adam Grace]

Thanks for the picture of your setup Ken, nice! I can't wait to read your book............might there be more flies tied with that twisted material :wink: Your alevin pattern looked deadly when I saw it in San Rafael. Keep up the good work.