What do I keep doing wrong with my florals?

[praline3001]

Hi everyone! I keep struggling with my florals AACKKK I am about to pluck every flower in my garden and throw it in the trash rather than be tempted LOL

I WANT that super clear center but I keep getting blurr. =/
I am NEW and my hubby says I am being too hard on myself but I can be a bit of a perfectionist and he just doesn't get it LOL
I KNOW they don't look right and I know the look I am trying to achieve and I keep falling way short.
Here is an example.. cute flower but NOT that macro clear shot I am looking for!


Here is the info:
Canon G10
TV 1/10
AV 3.5
ISO 200
flash off
I did play with the white balance a bit as this was taken indoors (the wind was being mean to me) I had to bring the ISO up due to it being indoors. Do you think that is why I didn't get that clear shot? I did use a tripod believe it or not =/ what am I doing wrong?!

[Gulpa]

Did you try using manual focus?

Sometimes it makes a world of difference when doing macro photography

[flomaster]

I found when trying to focus on the creepy crawlies that often the eyes were OOF or some thing else was not quite right and I finally nailed it, having the camera TOO close will not give you that sharp center your looking for, try taking a step back, maybe not zoomed in so much focus on the center and possibly crop to your liking and see how it turns out.

-=Jason=-

[Nicole]

Aperture and shutter speed are two things you'll want to look at. If there was absolutely no breeze indoors, the 1/10 second would be fine, but flowers are delicate and little breezes can cause motion that won't be frozen at 1/10 second. However, in this case, it doesn't look like motion blur, but it does look like you need a smaller aperture (larger f/#). The smaller aperture will allow you to have more of the item in focus. However, that also means less light is getting to your sensor so you'll have to compensate with either the slow shutter speed or the higher ISO. And last, but not least, check your focus point. I think that what looks slightly off in this case is that the yellow is nice and sharp, but the top part that's pink is blurry.

So, let me summarise those ramblings :P Use a higher f/# (smaller aperture) to get more of your subject in focus and see if that helps a bit.

[inkista]

It's called "depth of field". Macro photography causes a very thin depth of field (the distances that things can be from the lens and be in focus), because the subject is so close. You can stop down the lens (use a smaller aperture/bigger f-number)--and that may require a tripod or flash to get a good exposure, but some of the frame is still going to be fuzzy.

There's a digital post-processing technique you can use called focus stacking, where you take multiple images, focusing at different points, and then merging the frames, but with a P&S camera like the G10, it's hard to control where the camera focuses with precision. But you might want to try it.

[praline3001]

Thanks guys! As soon as the little angels are on that big yellow bus I will try again. They are not known for their grace and poise and the tripod is a accident waiting to happen (to their heads when I beat them with it for knocking over my camera )

I just got too frustrated with myself yesterday and put the whole project up LOL

I will have to see what is blooming in the garden this morning

I am finding RAW a bit easier to work with when it comes to macro. I guess I better stock up on memory cards LOL

[praline3001]

OK I did some more work on my tropical flowers! I swear I can grow 'em but I am so thankful they don't live off of focusing LOL
I DID try MF, and still not so hot. Do you see any improvement?


f/ 6.3 (did the bigger number like was suggested)
Focal length: 15.7mm (maybe too close?)
ISO: 80 (again I dropped it down as was suggested)
EV: +1 (maybe I shouldn't have used this?)
Exposure: 2




Exposure: 2
f/6.3
Focal length: 12.1mm
ISO: 80
EV- +1
With this one I changed the white balance to try and lessen the brightness of the bloom.

I added several not so hot florals on my Flckr account. If your bored and would like to help me get this right... I would appreciate you being able to view them and help me fine tune what it is I am doing wrong!

[gempics]

I can definitely see an improvement in these - they are lovely flowers! I love how you can see all the lines in the petals, and the focus is certainly sharper. I also like the brighter exposure. Great work!

Gemma x

[Gulpa]

I agree with Gemma, the flowers are a lot sharper now and the details are clearly visible. Well done!

You need to listen to Nicole, your shutter speed is WAY too low.

Look at this photo
This is a MEGA close up of an orchid...
Go to this link
http://impermanence.kungphu.com/gall...picture&id=598

Now click "Show details".... notice the shutter speed? 1/200. Eliminates shake from me or the flower