Originally posted by Transit Cleared that up then
be fun to check what minuscule variance does exist over the travel
maybe a laser pointer and distant target ?
That would be fun. But I am on the road in the RV and won't return home until fall. So it won't be me trying it before October.
I can tell you how I focus and shoot. I start with the platform centered on the rack and use live view. I bring in the image as sharp as I can and then zoom the live view and focus even sharper, the zoom in again, etc. Eventually I am zoomed in so tight that the screen's resolution makes any fiddling meaningless. Then I switch off live view and use a wireless remote with mirror up for the shot.
While adjusting, there can be some small amount of shake on the screen, but that's to be expected - I am looking at a zoomed-in live view, at a multiplication of 2, 4, 6, 8, or 10.
Well, actually I find the screen on the K5-iis doesn't really have the resolution to be significantly useful to me past 6x. Better eyes than mine (not hard) could maybe continue to 8x. At 6x I am really looking at an area of 1/36 of the photo. The area you see on the screen will be the reciprocal of the square of the magnification, so 10x would result in you seeing 1/100 of the image you are shooting.
There are lots of moving parts involved in this process starting with the stability of the tripod. I actually have more trouble using the focusing rack when the tripod is on carpet versus concrete because there will be more image shake during the focusing process. However, once I take my hand away this dampens out almost immediately.
I am interested in the methods others use for their macro shots.
Don
---------- Post added 06-16-16 at 12:06 PM ----------
The WeMacro looks pretty neat. And when I am done all the different iterations of my design(s), I may (probably will) end up spending close to the same money.
But I am retired and have plenty of time to mess with things. In fact, I look for these types of projects. Studying the likes of the WeMacro could give me some new ideas. After all, there is no "off" switch on genius.