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Both solutions have no motors or electronics apart from the DSLR camera. This means you focus manually and set the aperture by hand as well. Manual settings bring two things to mind; one is how do you get good exposure and the second is how to ensure sharp focus. DSLR cameras can do it all in auto or semi auto modes and many photographers do not stray too far from the automation. The good news is you get near instant feedback from a DSLR camera and can get good exposure and focus with a few attempts. Simply review your photos on the camera’s LCD screen and adjust (focus or aperture) accordingly. I read some place that people refer to this as chimping. You shoot in a manual or partial manual mode and quickly review your results – make adjustments and repeat until you get the image you want. It is very liberating to work this way and enjoyable to take control of the camera. The process should be familiar to the strobists who have used manual flash with a DSLR.Focusing is perhaps the hardest part of macro photography. In general, focusing involves moving the lens to the subject versus using a focus ring. In addition, you make ever so small movements of the lens to get the shot in focus (millimeter adjustments.)
Focusing also involves maximizing dept of field and manual control of the aperture. Time to discuss “Stop Down Metering”. Sounds intimidating, but it really is a simple three step process.
Here is the idea. You need light to focus and you need a stopped down aperture to maximize depth of field. Manual focus lenses on a DSLR cannot do both at the same time. So you will do the following routine – sometimes in iterations until the final result meets your needs:
1. Compose and focus wide open
You need light to focus, the more light the brighter the subject and easier to ensure the main points of interest are sharp. The way to get light is to have the lens wide open (on its smallest f stop).
2. Adjust your aperture down by hand - No need to go beyond F16
However, a wide open lens will reduce the depth of field and reduces sharpness of a three dimensional subject (only part of a three dimension subject will be in focus). Even worse, depth of field is at a premium with macro photography. There never seems to be enough to ensure a sharp frame to frame focus unless your subject is one dimensional.
3. Expose the picture – review your results and adjust as necessary
Before I compare and contrast the options there are a few things both have in common. Read on under section 2.) A Word on Focal Length to learn more.
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