Macro Rails

[wildman]

Got my new Sigma 105mm macro just at the start of winter so I've not had a chance to do much with it yet.

But now Spring is coming and thinking more about macro photography and what I might need.

So how about a general discussion on the use, selection and recommendations of macro rails.

At this point I'm not sure I need one so I'd like to hear what others have to say about them.

Wildman

[newarts]

Originally Posted by wildman

Got my new Sigma 105mm macro just at the start of winter so I've not had a chance to do much with it yet.

But now Spring is coming and thinking more about macro photography and what I might need.

So how about a general discussion on the use, selection and recommendations of macro rails.

At this point I'm not sure I need one so I'd like to hear what others have to say about them.

Wildman

I bought $37.37 macro rails from china thru eBay and am happy with them. I have found them to be very useful. Well made, no gear lash, no wiggle, repeatable.

They are important when you want to shift the focal plane and/or axis, but not the magnification, eg. for focus stacks.

I use them frequently - I just noticed they are on my tripod now. Here's a desk-top tripod I also use:


Dave

[wildman]

Originally Posted by newarts

I bought $37.37 macro rails from china thru eBay and am happy with them. I have found them to be very useful. Well made, no gear lash, no wiggle, repeatable.

They are important when you want to shift the focal plane and/or axis, but not the magnification, eg. for focus stacks.

I use them frequently - I just noticed they are on my tripod now. Here's a desk-top tripod I also use:


Dave

Interesting.
It looks identical to this:

MFRS Adorama Macro Focusing Rail Set, 4 Way, Fine Control, Camera Focusing Rail to Aid in Tripod Mounted Macro Photography.

"focus stacks"?
Does that mean taking a series of pictures at slightly different focus points and then combining into a single image for greater DOF? At least that's what it sounds like.

[pacerr]

Watch the *bay and other estate sale/auction sites for odd ball bellows on OTHER than major brands. Aside from specific lens mounts, most are universal. I acquired an old Minolta slide copier bellows unit that included a focusing rail and a nice f1.7/50mm for less than $15 USD including shipping.

The focusing rail is a completely separate component (although you may have to disassemble it to get that part).

Lens mounts grafted from Tamron Adaptal parts and/or Pentax mounts recycled the bellows unit for a universal solution. That's sometimes mounted via an old tripod head to a 20-pound hunk of red oak with a Tamron f2.5/90 macro and works great for some uses.

Two focusing rails combined would provide a 2-axis component ($250+ if purchased new) with other than 90-degree flexibility and with universal application. I haven't needed one (yet) so haven't actually built one of those - but have sketched a 3-D system just in case.

H2

Oh, yeah. Harbor Freight sells a cheap survey/transite head with (cheap) tripod that can be converted into an indexed rotation table.

[snostorm]

Hi Wildman,

I have an old Velbon Macro Slider, and it's big, heavy, and cumbersome to use. . . so much for my actual experience. . .

If I were in the market right now, I'd consider the Velbon Mag Macro Slider, the Manfrotto Micrometric positioning plate, or one of the Chinese macro sliders -- all under $100 USD

Velbon | Super Mag Slider | SMAGSLIDER | B&H Photo Video

Manfrotto by Bogen Imaging | 454 Micrometric Positioning | 454

4 way macro focusing rail truck for Nikon Canon Sony - eBay (item 200281722102 end time Mar-28-09 15:09:58 PDT)

New 2 way Macro Focus Rail Plate for Canon Nikon Sony - eBay (item 200316264144 end time Mar-13-09 07:57:56 PDT)

Another alternative that you might consider is getting a good external flash and going handheld. It seems like most of the better bug shooters I know have gravitated to this technique.

Scott

[wildman]

I think I'll go with the Bogen.

I already have this:

357 Bogen - Manfrotto Pro Rapid Connect Adapter Assembly with Sliding Mounting Plate# 357PL (#3273)

So I think I'll put it on the Bogen micro rail and use it for lateral adjustment. This way it will be a 4 way rail. Don't think I really need fine adjustment on lateral movement.

There were some very good buys on Ebay but due to some very bad experience buying through them I just won't anymore.

Thanks to all