How to do DIY repair of rubber grips on Nikon cameras?

Question

The rubber grip is peeling away from my D700, just near the autofocus mode selection switch. That whole (tiny) section of the grib is pretty much coming away. How can I do a DIY repair? What glues should I avoid using? If I need to replace the grip itself (there's another that's a little bit loose) where can I get them?

I'd like the grips to look, after the repair, quite a lot like they did before there was a problem. It's OK if they're not entirely identical, but very similar would be good.

Asked by James Youngman

Answer

A quick search turns up these items

Are these any good?

Answered by Stevetech

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DIY Lighting for Macro Photography

Question

I am using a simple reversal ring to mess around with macro photography at my home. My question is this what is the best way to light shots for macro photography?

A Few Notes:

• I am photographing stationary objects.
• I am looking for cheap Do It Yourself Methods
• I am not looking to buy a macro flash.
• I have only the built in flash, no external flashes.

Asked by Lynda

Answer

Although it's not a DIY, the NEEWER® Macro Ring LED is considered to be cheap (around $30). I tried myself with my extension tube, not bad at all. It provides constant light which is essential if you are too close to the subject. You can mount the power supply for it in your camera's hot shoe, you can use either 4 AA batteries or plug it directly.

If you want to Do It Yourself for the sake of fun, check this but it will cost you around $20

Answered by Akram Mellice

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How to shoot water spilled on the floor?

Question

I am planning a scene with water spilled on a floor or desk. The floor and desks have designs which will be distracting for my shot.
I am thinking of placing a paper sheet as a back drop.

Which colour of the paper will suit most for showing up the water on the paper?

The lights which I have are shade table lamp with yellow light, an emergency light with white tubelights, candles, and a white tubelight on the wall.

How much should be the minimum or maximum shooting distance for the spilled water to show up?

Asked by Anisha Kaul

Answer

I think you need to try a few things and see what works for you as ultimately it seems to boil down artistic choice. What is the picture that you’ve got in your head that you want to try to produce?

Some colours may work better (my guess would be lighter colours), however I suspect any colour could be made to work. If you have a dark, non-reflective surface, then positioning your lights may create reflections in the water / help to instil it with a presence. With lighter colours you may be able to create a similar effect by adding some colour to one or more of your lights (blue tissue paper / gels for example)...

Having an object as part of the composition (possibly the source of the spill) may also give opportunities for showing reflections in the water to give it more presence.

Different types of paper are going to have a different effect on the water. Tissue paper is very absorbent, crate paper can have a matt finish, wrapping paper can be more water resistant but is often shiny. Having a slight pattern in the paper may help to emphasize the presence of the water if you can get it to distort the pattern. You may find that you can get a better balance between colour/reflection/absorbency by opting for card rather than paper.

As for how close, again it’s very subjective. If you zoom in all the way in the centre of the spill you may not be able to tell that it’s there. However from the same distance if you zoom out there’s a good chance you will... If your focus were the edge of the spill however you may be able to tell at both ends of the zoom... Your angle to the spill is going to impact how much water the light goes through between the camera and the surface which is going to change how visible the water appears.

It sounds like a fun project, but really I think you need to experiment a bit, try a few different options and see what is closest to the picture you’ve got in your head.

As it's water week, I did a bit of experimenting and for me, I thought darker colours with a bit of a reflective tint seemed to work the best.

This one's some water in a teflon pan. It caught the light well and showed an obvious water edge.

I shot another pan, which was much lighter with a matt finish and the water is far less obvious:

I quite lighted the effect of water on foil (the less shiny side)

But largely, I think it's more the angle that you shoot the water at that makes the edge of the 'spill' more obvious.

Answered by forsvarir

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How do I to clean prime lenses' internals? Or should I even try?

Question

I have some very old primes (grandfather's 1950s Exakta Varex lenses, ranging from 28mm to 85mm) that I've been really enjoying on my Sony NEX with an adapter. It's partially sentimental, but I've also gotten some great shots from them.

One of my favorites of the series is the 85mm, but it has quite a bit of dust on the inside, and the focus ring puts up a heck of a fight when it's moved. There are a couple specks of dust that are occasionally noticeable in my pictures, sometimes glaring.

It feels silly to pay for professional cleaning of lenses that are likely worth far less than the cleaning cost. I'm mechanically inclined; what are my chances of success disassembling and cleaning them myself? Is there a generic guide about lens cleaning that you have used with success (what to oil the aperture blades with, what cleaning products to use, etc.)?

Asked by Evan

Answer

I would suggest trying it yourself, especially if you are mechanically minded and have had success at other small part disassemble/reassemble jobs. If you do decide to give it a go, I am an electronic engineer by trade and here are some suggestions that I use when I have to repair small electronic devices ...

• Have a LARGE clean, clear, flat and preferably white area available. Spend time cleaning it and if you have to, cover with a white cotton sheet.

• Break the disassemble down in to stages so you work towards one small goal at a time. Each time you reach the end of a stage spend the time to ensure everything is ready and set for the next stage.

• Have a collection of small pots available to put screws or small parts in from different stages of the disassemble. I use a collection of old 35mm film canisters as if I then have to pause during the repair I can put the lids on knowing I will not loose parts.

• Make notes on what you have done at each stage, what parts were removed, how and how many screws were involved as well as what container they are now in. You could even take photographs of each stage. This is invaluable when you come to reassemble it back and will ensure that you don't have the dreaded left over screws at the end.

• Take your time, the more you invest in to the task the greater the euphoria at the end when you have a lens that is like brand new :)

I do hope you manage to clean them up successfully as every time you take a great shot with the old lenses you will be happy knowing you have done your grandfather proud! Besides the optics in those old ones are probably pretty good glass compared to a lot of modern mass produced stuff. Good luck Evan!

Answered by Barry Semple

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How to create candle reflections?

Question

I put some burning candles on a cement floor, and I could see their reflections; so could my f1.8 50mm G lens.

Because of the dull background wall, and the floor and the wall together making a visible horizon, I am thinking of putting a chart paper beneath the candles and up the wall behind to make an 'infinity curve'.

Now, the problem is that the paper will prevent the reflections from occuring, and I don't have glass or other substance than paper.

To counter the problem I was thinking of spreading some water on the paper and then placing the candles on that. Another option would be to place transparent polythene on the paper. Would this work? Or does anyone have a better suggestion?

How about glazed paper and laminated paper? Which will be better?

Asked by Anisha Kaul

Answer

A couple of ways to do this are to get bendable plexiglass or lexan and rig something to create the "infinity" bend. A couple of boards and clamps should do the job pretty well. That way you get the reflection and the "infinity" look. I favor black opaque plexi for this, but your tastes may be different.

A different approach is to do it as you are and put the background of your choice behind the candles. You have a line to patch in every frame, but it's just a line so patching might be easier than creating a special rig. Plexiglass can be a bit pricey.

Answered by Steve Ross

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What size hole do I use to make differently shaped bokeh?

Question

This is my question in one huge breath:

What would be the correct size of an elliptic bokeh filter be to create a fake anamorphic distorted bokeh effect with a regular Canon 50mm f/1.8 II lens with a Canon EOS 550D (crop sensor of 1.6x, AF-S)?

Say what, elliptic bokeh, fake anamorphic?

Check this video to see an example of the fake bokeh. Notice the bokeh appears to be stretched vertically.

How can you make one?

Check this video for an example. The actual filter is shown at 0:36.
The basis is to draw an elliptic "slit" on the filter. I'd take it a step further in cutting some vinyl and taping it to the filter, to get a clean edge and no leaking light.

Why do I need you in this process?

I have no clue on what the best dimensions of this ellipse would be. Trial and error could work, but to what extent? It's optics, can't this be calculated?

You expect me to solve that just for you there?!

That would, of course, be great! Yet, I'm just as grateful for any and all pointers in the correct directions!

Asked by n/a

Answer

• Well "best" is an extremely subjective term and will largely be determined by individual taste.
• In general, what you're describing sounds alot like a Bokeh Master
• Your cutout must be at least smaller than the real aperture you'll be shooting at (shooting at, not the maximum for your lens). This is because you need it to become effectively the new aperture shape. If you're shooting at 50mm f/2 - then it must be at least smaller than 25mm across. If you have a 50mm f/1.8 and are shooting wide open, all the time - then its 50/1.8. If you have a 50mm f/1.8 lens and are shooting around f/2.8, then its 50/2.8. In order to keep as much light, you want it as large as possible without going over (focal length / f-stop).

Answered by rfusca

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What are the best and worst diffuser materials for DIY softbox/light tent?

Question

There are hundreds of web sites with tips of building a DYI soft box or light tent, and it looks like people are using almost anything as the diffuser material, from white plastic bags to old t-shirts.

If I take a common household item that I might want to try to use as a diffuser, it is fairly easy to see how much it scatters light, how much it reflects light, etc. However, it is a lot more tricky to estimate how it affects the colours: if there is a slight colour cast, or if the diffuser blocks certain wavelengths. As we know, what looks like white to a human eye is not necessarily perfectly white...

Therefore I would like to know: which materials are good as diffusers and which materials should I avoid? Are there any useful rules of thumb in selecting the diffuser (besides experimenting with various materials)?

In particular, if I wanted to actually invest $5 in a diffuser, what kind of material should I buy? I would prefer a paper-like material, something that resembles wax paper or tracing paper.

Asked by Jukka Suomela

Answer

The best diffuser I ever found was two-side-matte drafting film (either mylar or acetate). You get excellent diffusion and minimal light loss. The only problems with it are:

• it burnishes, so you have to be careful with pressure and rubs when transporting or storing it; and

• it's relatively stiff, so there are fewer options when constructing things out of it.

Another good material is frosted window film -- the sort of thing you'd use for privacy. You actually get a couple of different options here: frosted film gives very good, flat diffusion; while something with a micro-beaded texture gives a gradual radial fall-off with hotter highlights. This stuff is available by the foot at any home center.

If you want something that can be thrown casually into a bag without too many consequences, then a translucent white plastic shower curtain is a cheap option. It may be the last thing you want to have hanging in your bathroom, but it's good for photography.

I'd give muslins (beedsheets and so forth) a pass for most applications. Excellent diffusion, but they tend to block too much light. There's not a lot of point saving a couple of bucks on diffusers if you need to make up for it with tens or hundreds worth of more expensive lighting. That being said, it may be worth a trip to a fabric store to buy a couple of yards/metres of a white synthetic -- often they are woven of transparent yarns, and rely on the thread size/texture and weave density to give them the appearance of whiteness. Take a flashlight with you. You need to hit the right store at the right time of year, but you can often pick up something that's just as good as the expensive commercial products at a real bargain price in widths you can't get with paper products or drafting film. But if the fabric is in season or en vogue, it'll be on the pricey side.

Answered by Stan Rogers

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Has anyone successfully mounted other lenses on Ricoh GR II?

Question

I've been given a Ricoh GR II to play with — sort of a long term loan really. Lovely little camera. In the past I've messed about with Olympus film and digital, and Nikon compacts and SLRs with other manufacturer's lenses using converter rings and reverse mounts (for super macro effects).

I'd like to try something similar, but I can't see any evidence that others have tried this online, and can't find any converter rings or etc.

Any thoughts? The GR II is so good in terms of features and the 10MB ccd etc, I'd love to hack it a bit in terms of optics.

Asked by Mere Development

Answer

The Ricoh GR-II is not an interchangable-lens camera. So the only alternative/additional lenses you can use with it are the conversion lenses GW-1 (wide, 21mm) / GT-1 (tele, 40mm) and the GH-1 hood adapter.

I'm not sure which other lens adapters will fit the GH-1. Perhaps your camera manual specifies the thread size for the GH-1, which will allow you to figure that out.

Answered by James Youngman

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What lenses can I use to build a DIY tilt/shift lens for a Nikon DX body?

Question

I've found an awesome description for how to build your own tilt/shift lens (http://www.creativepro.com/article/build-a-tilt-shift-camera-lens-peanuts) that mentions using, for example, a lens for the now obsolete Pentacon 6 format. What other lenses could be used for this purpose? Are there any other concerns than it having to be a lens for a larger format than the target one (DX, in my case)?

Ideally, it would be a lens of great optical quality that you can get hold of cheaply (though I realize that posting this question doesn't really help with that).

Answer

The best lenses to use are those originally created for medium format cameras. This is for two reasons:

-when you tilt or shift a lens, you can end up with part of the resulting photo being black because the lens is not no longer pointed directly at the sensor. With a medium-format lens, you have a lot more play in tilt and shift, because the "image circle" is larger. It allows you to tilt and shift more.

-the lenses in medium format cameras are usually designed to be farther away from the sensor/film than your regular dslr lenses. This means that to get a correctly focused picture with a medium format lens, it needs to be spaced away from the camera. This gives you a bunch of space where you can construct a tilt/shift mechanism.

I would suggest… Mamiya or Pentax 645/67 lenses. They'r readily available (check keh.com) and some aren't too expensive.

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Can I make my own Expodisc?

Question

I've been contemplating the purchase of an Expodisc to finally be rid of most white balance corrections. The price is a little steep for me, however. I was wondering, is there a way to make something similar to this using materials that one might find 'off the shelf' at a store like Home Depot?

I've tried lenses (prismatic diffusers) from lighting fixtures combined with various translucent plastics without much luck.

Note, the price is not that steep, I'm just one who sticks to a very strict gear budget and I like the satisfaction of making my own stuff.

Answer

From what I understand about Expodisc, it is a rather carefully engineered filter. It is designed to transmit a diffuse 18% of visible light, corresponding to a standard 18% gray card. Unless you have a way to precisely measure the light passing through materials that can be found at the likes of Home Depot, and can ensure that the resulting light is properly diffused, I am not sure you'll have any luck.

I would either buy a set of gray cards, or just bite the bullet and get the Expodisc.

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How does this TLR camera expose properly?

Question

I found a DIY TLR camera kit that lets you build the camera from parts, then use it to take photos. What I don't understand, is that the specs list:

1/150s shutter speed; f/11 aperture

From that description, it makes it sound like it has a fixed shutter speed and aperture. Assuming I use 24 or 36 exposure 35mm film, am I limited to one set of exposure values for the entire 24 or 36 frames? I am thinking I might be misunderstanding how TLR cameras work.

Answer

This is very similar to a Holga medium-format toy camera, where the shutter speed is approximately ¹/₁₀₀th of a second (give or take the particular camera you have and how it is feeling today) and the aperture is about f/13 (regardless of whether you have the alleged aperture lever set to one of its two non-functional options).

So how do you get the exposure right? You shoot in lighting that's right for the film speed you've chosen. You depend on the greater exposure latitude of film when it's off by a bit, and don't worry so much about getting it perfect. Or close to perfect. If you wanted it perfect, you wouldn't have a plastic DIY camera, right? Rather than control and execution of vision, it's about happenstance and creation through serendipity.

PS: this isn't normal for TLR cameras in general. It's normal for toy cameras, though.

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Is there an easy way to force chromatic aberration?

Question

A couple of months ago I was playing with my camera and a magnifying glass and I noticed that this glass produced a very soft chromatic aberration. Here's an example:

(Here is the full size, 18mp image)

Altough the effect was pretty cool, I couldn't focus too far from the lens. Here's another example, but with an object to a few meters farther.

Maybe at this resolution the dog seems to be focused, but in the full picture you can notice that it isn't. Also the CA effect isn't that pronounced as in the first picture. (For pixel peepers, here's the full size image)

So, is there an easy way to produce chromatic aberration? I know that there are some lensbaby optics that can do that, but I'm looking for something like DIY.

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ADDENDUM

Just a random thought: Could I emulate it by shifting the color layers of the image? I mean, the image is composed by three diferent layers of color, if i offset them a few pixels, will that produce some CA?

I'm pretty sure that the colors of the photo will go nuts, but maybe there's a related solution.

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ADDENDUM ADDENDUM

I'm offering 300 sexy points of my own reputation for a cool, nice and DIY solution for this. Go go go!

---

LASTUM ADDENDUM ADDENDUM

Well, this wasn't easy. Coneslayer gave me the best answer, but Autopulated gave me the most easy, direct and (not-so) DIY solution. So:

1) I've accepted Coneslayer answer

2) I've gave the 300 sexy points to Autopulated

Thanks for your help, you both are awesome!

Answer

I think the dog is in focus, but it's not sharp. And it's not sharp because a magnifying glass isn't corrected for any aberrations, chromatic or otherwise. In other words, it's a technically poor lens (though you're still welcome to have some fun with it, of course).

Lenses focus light by slowing it down as it passes through the glass, which bends the rays ("refraction"). But glass slows down blue light more than red light, bending the blue light more strongly, so the different colors come to a different focus. We say the refractive index for blue light is greater than for red light, and the fact that they're different is called dispersion, and the difference can be expressed as a dispersion index.

While all types of glass are dispersive, some are more dispersive than others. If you combine two lens elements made with different types of glass in the right way, one with a high dispersive index and the other with a low dispersive index, you produce an achromat, which reduces the chromatic aberration by bringing red light and blue light to the same focus. Pretty much any camera lens provides at least this level of correction; your magnifying glass does not. An achromat still has some residual chromatic aberration; for example, green light may come to a different focus than red and blue. Further correction produces an apochromatic lens.

If you swapped the glass type for the two elements of an achromat, it seems like you would end up with a system that exaggerates chromatic aberration. You might be able to source the required elements from an educational supplier like Edmund Scientific. Or you could just try to find a convex singlet (like your magnifying glass) made from a high-dispersion glass, which may be called "flint glass."

There are lots of other lens aberrations besides chromatic aberration: These include spherical aberration, which degrades sharpness. Your magnifying glass is, again, uncorrected for spherical aberration, which contributes to the lack of sharpness. In a real camera lens, spherical aberration is corrected through the use of multiple lens elements and/or aspherical lens elements, which are more difficult to produce than spherical elements (whose surface conforms to the surface of a sphere).

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What do I do with a cracked screen?

Question

I just cracked the screen on my out-of-warranty Canon EOS T2i. It just happened to fall right onto a corner of the foot of a table.

The glass cover for the screen is smashed, but the LCD is still intact.

Since the camera is out of warranty and I'm feeling adventurous, can anyone recommend a place where I could order such a part? All the Googling I did yielded only screen protectors.

Possibly a side question, but are there any screen protectors that could prevent screen cracking? I could just go out and buy something that looks nice, but I think advice from actual users might be more valuable.

Any advice would be appreciated!

Answer

You can get the replacement part directly from Canon for about $30-40 USD. It doesn't seem like an overly complicated replacement either, you just have to be a bit DIY to get the job done without throwing your camera across the room.

I found a tutorial on how to do it for a 5DMK II here.

Once you do replace the cracked protector, I would recommend a Giottos LCD screen protector.

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An inexpensive way to make DIY gels?

Question

Have any of you found a way to make inexpensive gels? I'd like to try using a few colors with my lights but have found most shops are mighty proud of theirs. My son saw me looking at them online and asked if photographers could use either plastic colored/see-through folders or colored page protectors? I'm sure there's an issue of melting and safety. If you've had any success with a cheap way of making gels, where to find them, I'd sure appreciate any tips.

Answer

I would pick up the Strobist Rosco collection, $12 gets you 55 gels. You aren't going to be able to handcraft 55 different filters out of things you can find at an office supply store.

If you really want to make them yourself, head on over to instructables.com and read this tutorial.

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How do the ePhoto and Cowboy Studio beauty dishes compare for a newbie learning the ropes?

Question

I'm wanting to buy a beauty dish and I'm on a tight budget, I can't find reviews comparing the ePhoto vs Cowboy Studio Beauty Dishes and was hoping one of you might help me choose.

I'm looking at these two to start off:

ePhoto Beauty Strobe A120 Bracket or Cowboy Studio Strobie Bracket Strobist Photographic

I want one to hook onto my Canon 580ex speedlight on location since I don't have a way to port my lights around outside yet (no portable power).

Answer

You said that you are on a tight budget, so I am going to suggest a different route and build your own dish. I used this tutorial written by David Tejada and made my own beauty dish for I believe under $20. Works fantastic, and since it cost so little, if you are unhappy with the results, you could then look into spending more money on a pre-fabricated model. It took me under and hour from start to finish to create it, and no special tools.

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Can I make a panorama mount for occasional panorama shooting?

Question

I sometimes (about 5 times per year) decide to shoot a panorama, just for me, with no intentions to sell or use the photo outside my family and close relatives.

Currently I use my Pentax DAL 18-55 lens and free Hugin software for it but I plan to buy Samyang 8 mm fisheye. I made few panoramas using my monopod (better than to shoot "from hand"). However I read something about things like nodal point etc. and found out that the head mount should be located not on the bottom of the body but near the rear lens element.

I know of things like Nodal Ninja etc., but it is too expensive and I do not plan to shoot panoramas often. When I would stick with my monopod and lets say with the Samyang fisheye, than some simple small and light aluminum profile with two holes, tripod nut and screw would make it possible to mount the camera and rotate it around nodal point - is it right? Does it make sense to build such gadget or do you think I will have similar results using standard mount?

Answer

Yes, you can do it. I know some people that have, one friend made one out of wood because it was easier than metal. If you intend to do it for your 8mm, it will be relatively easy since there is ONE fixed nodal point, contrarily to the zoom.

You said you do not do panoramas often but do you do Macro? If so, a macro rail is sufficient to work for a DSLR with a short lens and it will work for the 8mm and your zoom at all focal-lengths.

Included in my How To Make a Panorama tutorial are instructions with an example on how to find the nodal point (technically entrance pupil).

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Are there cheap or DIY focus assist solutions for the Canon 5D?

Question

I want a better autofocus system for low light. Low light auto focus is my biggest bane.

I use a 5D so the options are AF on a flash like the 430 or 580. I happen to use the Pocket Wizard TT1 so I don't have a flash on my camera. I could mount a 580 on top of the TT1 but the TT1's top bracket is so weak it breaks, plus the whole mountain of gear is pretty awkward even before my TT1's bracket broke.

I have tried the ST-E2 on top of the TT1 which is lighter weight and smaller profile than the 580 but I've had issues with the my ST-E2 and don't feel like forking out $200+ dollars for simple auto focus and I don't find the auto focus assist that good when it does work.

What I'd actually love is something like an autofocus laser. I've tried with pen light laser and it works way better than either the auto focus on the 580 or the ST-E2 but it's almost impossible to use a laser in one hand and camera in the other. Plus if I put a pattern diffuser over the laser I have a hard time seeing where it's landing event though it still works well for autofocus.

I've debating with the idea of getting some sort of mounting bracket that I can put into the tt1 hot shoe to mount the laser. Even with such a mount there is no clear way to fire the laser.

I've checked all the hotshoe pins for activity when autofocusing, but can't detect anything. I believe instead of a typical circuit connection, the autofocus is sending a bunch of bits that fire autofocus assist on the flash unit.

I am surprised this isn't more of an issue. I've seen people wish that PocketWizard added an auto focus assist to the TT1, which would be awesome, but I'm surprised there aren't some DIY kits out there, or even available gear to help focusing better.

Answer

How about something like the 220EX or one of its current equivalents (I don't know the model numbers of these)? I used one of those at need when I had a 5D; you should be able to pick one up cheaply these days. That said, the AF on the 5D is one of the things I don't miss from that camera; the 1Ds2 I replaced it with eats it alive in that respect.

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How often can I change the focusing screen?

Question

I know this sounds crazy, but is anyone here in a habit of swapping their focusing screen between a regular (the ones shipped with the DSLRS) and a split prism screen regularly?

Is is bad to keep swapping them based on the kind of environment I plan to take pictures in on a particular day?

What harm can I possibly do when I swap a focusing screen? What precautions must I take?

Answer

The first thing to tackle is keeping all your focusing screens (and equipment used to handle them) tidy. Any dirt will be clearly visible in viewfinder and somewhat hard to remove from the ground side of the glass. Often a focusing screen kit has tweezers and a finger-protection glove (like a tiny condom, to protect the glass from body grease) to assist handling the focusing screens.

I'd also worry about wearing off the clip holding the focusing screen in place - it's not designed for frequent fiddling, so I'd expect the screen to become rickety or not lock in place any more after frequent switching.

Third, changing focusing screens involves fiddling with small items using clumsy tools in a tight space and becomes quite tedious.

I kept the original glass after changing mine in a drawer "just in case", but have never bothered switching back. Although the replacement is slightly dimmer, the image pops more clearly when in focus. And even when the middle prisms become black with a consumer zoom, I'm likely more interested in my subject (usually off-center) and edges.

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