The Efficient Use of Light in Macrocinematography

In a ten-year photographic project documenting the life and character of the bee, many of the more traditional aids for macro-realm photography proved to be inadequate. In particular, the demand for greater depth of field and for light sources that do not cook the bees encouraged a re-thinking of optical and illumination systems. The inefficiency of lens extension tubes and bellows was eliminated by the use of a supplemental lens arrangement. Stroboscopic light pulses synchronized with the camera shutter gave maximum photographic exposure with minimum heating of subject. In addition to the major improvement in optical/photographic efficiency, some very attractive operational advantages result as by-products.

Print ISSN

0361-4573

Published

1962-09

Content type

Original Research

DOI

10.5594/J15484