I found this shot quite difficult but enjoyed the process immensely
I had been searching the woods for some Fungi and found a few examples although it was still quite dry so not ideal conditions. I found this group next to a rotten tree trunk on the ground.
A very difficult set-up, I had to lay on the ground, flatten the tripod and get the camera/lens into position, it was very dark and the ISO was at 12500 to get 1/4 sec at f5.6 on the Canon EF100L f2.8IS Macro lens, due to this aperture it was essential to focus stack. I used the facility on the camera having tried it out previously and learnt of its shortcomings, you need to allow a bit more space around the subject as the alignment process tends to leave some fuzzy borders ( I believe this is down to focus breathing). I also added a Polariser as the light on the top of the fungus was reflecting and creating some highlights, half turning the Polariser toned this down nicely.
I took a test image but it was very flat and uninspiring, I then had the idea to use a small LED light that I keep in my camera bag, I set the temperature to a warm setting and turned the power right down to 20%, after a bit of fiddling with the light position and a few more test shots I then ran a stack of 30 images. From this stack I ended up using 14, the 'in focus' images behind the Fungus were dismissed as they did not allow any subject separation, it was all too sharp.
The stack was processed in Photoshop with some additional dodging and burning. It can take several minutes to blend the stack and it is very memory hungry, but it gets there in the end.
Overall I am very happy with the result and have just printed it out at A2 size, it looks great (in my opinion)
I think the attraction for me is that the Fungus is not in pristine condition, it adds character and interest.
Ian

Tags: Fungi Autumn Macro Woods Close-up and macro

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