Macro system setup for marine biology

[JJLoke]

Hi all, I would like to get some advice from fellow forumers who have experience in shooting macro for marine biology. My laboratory is in the discussion of setting up photography and videography equipment to study the behaviour of marine animals. Cost is not really a big problem since it is from research funding, but of coz not exorbitant prices.

I have no problems taking portraits of larger creatures such as crabs, mantis shrimp, lobsters etc, but small creatures (alot of them) less than 5mm can be tricky. A macro lens is definite, but would a 100mm macro be sufficient? I have contemplated a MPE-65 but could be even more challenging. Our tanks are opaque on all sides, so the only way to shoot is either take out the animals (for some, and the less aggressive ones), or submerge the lens into the saltwater (with protection, and to remove the refraction). This sound crude but professional advice would be highly beneficial.

For video is a high speed camera which is in consideration. Thanks for any input!

 

[J-Chan]

Your question is really specific for the general discussion sub-forum, anyway I will attempt to provide some solutions.

A macro lens would give you 1:1 magnification, so if you are using a FX/Full frame camera you can fill the frame with a subject 24x36mm in size. Depending on your intended usage, a high resolution camera like the D800 would give you room to crop down to fill your 5mm subject. Advantage of a "normal" 1:1 macro lens, you have more freedom for framing your tiny subjects.
If you really need the MP-E 65mm, no doubt you can completely fill the frame with your subject, but your DoF is razor thin. Unless you have some way to immobilise your subject, framing them would be a very big issue.

Tank wise, I suggest you build a dedicated photo tank. Some suggestions here: Aquarium Photography Info - Photo Tank Set-up If some circumstances don't allow you to move the subject, an dedicated underwater case for the camera easily costs as much or more than the camera itself. Or you could attempt to build a periscope design that allows the camera to stay above way, something what Dustin did for his video: AK-47 Underwater at 27,450 frames per second (Part 2) - Smarter Every Day 95 - Smarter Every Day 97 - YouTube

I'm not sure if you want to consider using continuous hot-lights for the setup since you also have a high-speed camera. High-speed ballasts run in the 5-digit range.

Either way, if your lab hasn't acquired any of the cameras/high-speed camera. You're looking well into the 5-digit range.

 

[ed9119]

moving this thread to the Underwater Photography discussion group for more help ... best of luck !!


if u are shooting in a controlled tank environment then google Aquarium Photography or similar

http://www.advancedaquarist.com/2012/7/photography