anybody shoot their old C5050 in super macro mode?

[DazedAndConfuzed]

Hi,

For macro shots, I've been shooting my old C5050Z in regular mode and zooming in and getting as close as the camera allows for a long time. Then I got a Sea&Sea YS-01 external strobe & Inon UWL-100 and found out I can zoom in and get real close to my subject at the same time, but it turns out the off-center part of the image is out of focus.

My next plan is to, as much as I hate to take the wet lens off, remove that lens and set the camera into super macro mode, where I have to use the internal flash as a slave to trigger the external strobe in manual mode. Anybody with experience shooting that way? Or is using diopter closeup lenses better? I know it could preserve TTL flash, but putting on a lens in addition to removing the UWL-100 seems to be to much things to do constantly.

 

[oly5050user]

I shoot directly thru the wa lens when doing macro.

 

[DazedAndConfuzed]

Are those cropped? Also, do you set it in super-macro mode when shooting thru the WA lens? Plus, do you zoom in when in WA mode?

I am asking because when I shoot with the WA lens and full wide, the 35mm lens becomes 20mm (all 35mm film equiv). So doing anything macro frequently means havig my lens touching the subject (in fact, a few times, my lens bumped into the subject). If I zoom in, the images blur off-center.

In super macro mode, the lens sets to 50mm, along without the WA lens protrusion, allows me to get pretty close....just no TTL strobe. Without TTL strobe, I will have to take multiple pictures with different strobe level. I take enough of the same subject with different composition, now multiple light level for each composition, instead of 5 pix, it would be 20 pix.

 

[SEMO Scuba]

The internal flash does not work in super macro on the C-5050. I may be wrong but I don't think the C-5050 will fire your strobe at all using S-macro in slave mode. With my C-5050 I am using an Inon D200 with an optical cable. I have not used mine in super macro under water yet, but on land I am more successful using manual focus for shooting in super macro. I find it very difficult to get the camera's auto focus to focus on my subject when shooting very close up in super macro. It tends to focus on background or other objects when the lens is just a few inches from the subject. I set my manual focus distance, then move the camera forward or back until the subject looks to be in focus.

 

[oly5050user]

Are those cropped? Also, do you set it in super-macro mode when shooting thru the WA lens? Plus, do you zoom in when in WA mode?

of course it is ..but due to low megapixel count you can only go so far before it starts to pixelate.

I am asking because when I shoot with the WA lens and full wide, the 35mm lens becomes 20mm (all 35mm film equiv). So doing anything macro frequently means havig my lens touching the subject (in fact, a few times, my lens bumped into the subject). If I zoom in, the images blur off-center.

lens is to almost touch subject.fill the fram as much as possible.I get as close as i can very often 2" from subject.Keep zoom to a minimum and set f stoop to smallest aperatue..f8 to maximize depth of field.

In super macro mode, the lens sets to 50mm, along without the WA lens protrusion, allows me to get pretty close....just no TTL strobe. Without TTL strobe, I will have to take multiple pictures with different strobe level. I take enough of the same subject with different composition, now multiple light level for each composition, instead of 5 pix, it would be 20 pix.

This is why i prefer to use an ikelite housing and ikelite strobe with a sync cord connected to the cameras hot shoe. Camera has a hot shoe and to have a housing/strobe that does not make use of it is counter productive.You paid for those features and should use it to maximize systems full potential.With sync cable strobe will fire on super macro..internal strobe will not..

 

[DazedAndConfuzed]

The internal flash does not work in super macro on the C-5050. I may be wrong but I don't think the C-5050 will fire your strobe at all using S-macro in slave mode. With my C-5050 I am using an Inon D200 with an optical cable. I have not used mine in super macro under water yet, but on land I am more successful using manual focus for shooting in super macro. I find it very difficult to get the camera's auto focus to focus on my subject when shooting very close up in super macro. It tends to focus on background or other objects when the lens is just a few inches from the subject. I set my manual focus distance, then move the camera forward or back until the subject looks to be in focus.

I tried super macro with the strobe above land and setting the camera to slave mode. It is just that I have to constantly adjust the strobe's power setting depending on the position of the strobe. In fact I set it as one of My Mode (spot focus, super macro, constant focus, slave at min level, aperture at f8, shutter at 1/2000, iso 200), just havent use it yet.

Unfortunately, the camera's small display does not allow for fine level focusing, especially if ones eyes are over a foot away.

I find it kind of PITA since up to a certain magnification, I can use the WA lens, then if I want to have the image a little bigger, I can either zoom in more (which I don't know at what point the off center image becomes unacceptable), or take off the WA lens (and I decide to use diopters, I have to screw them on.

This is why i prefer to use an ikelite housing and ikelite strobe with a sync cord connected to the cameras hot shoe. Camera has a hot shoe and to have a housing/strobe that does not make use of it is counter productive.You paid for those features and should use it to maximize systems full potential.With sync cable strobe will fire on super macro..internal strobe will not..

Probably a little late for that. If I was to get something new, it would be a new camera with a new housing. I will just make sure to see how the camera works in super macro mode. I didn't even get into external strobe until recently, since when I first wanted one for the C5050, TTL for P&S didn't exist as a market yet, so I went creative with internal flash and ISO/shutter/aperture settings in MY MODE and never looked back, that is until when I went on dive trips, I saw more and more strobes attached to cheap cameras and eventually I thought, maybe it ain't 2003 anymore. Tried to get my old Ikelite strobe to work with the setup, but needed arm, base, optical to electrical adapter...too much to get that old manual strobe working.

 

[SEMO Scuba]

For super macro If you use a smaller aperture, f-8 is the smallest on your C-5050, you will have a deeper field of depth, and that may help your subject to be more in focus. At least that would give your focal range more tolerance.