Post update: Which family is it?

The following odonate exuvia is from a damselfly in Suborder Zygoptera.

The overall shape of the prementum (highlighted by a red rectangle) indicates this specimen is from Family Calopterygidae (Broad-winged Damselflies). Notice the embedded raindrop shape (highlighted by a purple rectangle), located toward the upper-center of the prementum — a key field mark for this family.

03 SEP 2022 | Powhatan County, VA USA | (exuvia, ventral side)

Two genera from Family Calopterygidae are common in the Commonwealth of Virginia: Hetaerina; and Calopteryx. For species in Genus Calopteryx the raindrop shape (Fig. 19) looks more like a diamond shape (Fig. 18), so it’s probably safe to infer this specimen is a species in Genus Hetaerina.

Identification Manual for the Damselfly Nymphs of Florida, p. 13

Related Resources

• Which family is it? – a blog post by Walter Sanford
• Identification Manual for the Damselfly Nymphs (Zygoptera) of Florida, by Johnny S. Richardson

Post Update: Congratulations to Doug Mills, Wally Jones, and Bob Perkins for correctly identifying the family of this exuvia.

Doug and Wally looked at the shape of the prementum. Bob looked at the antennae.

The long middle segment on the antennae is the key, found only on Calopterygidae nymphs. Nymphs of the other families have antenna segments that are progressively shorter from base to tip. Source Credit: Bob Perkins.

Looking at the prementum should enable you to identify all three families; looking at antennae works for only one family.

Copyright © 2022 Walter Sanford. All rights reserved.

Which family is it?

An odonate exuvia was collected by Cindy Haddon Andrews on 03 September 2022 along the James River, near the Maidens Boat Landing in Powhatan County, Virginia USA. External gills (3) indicate this specimen is from a damselfly in Suborder Zygoptera.

Pattern recognition can be used to tentatively identify damselfly larvae/exuviae to the family level: the shape of the prementum is characteristic for each of the three families found in the mid-Atlantic region of the United States of America.

Your mission, should decide to accept it, is to identify the family to which the following damselfly exuvia belongs.

03 SEP 2022 | Powhatan County, VA USA | (exuvia, ventral side)

The camera lens was manually focused on the prementum, located near the anterior end of the exuvia.

Here is the same photo rotated 90° clockwise.

03 SEP 2022 | Powhatan County, VA USA | (exuvia, ventral side)

If you think you know the family, then please leave a comment. The correct answer will be revealed in a post update.

Related Resource: How to Identify Damselfly Exuviae to Family – a photo-illustrated identification guide by Walter Sanford.

Copyright © 2022 Walter Sanford. All rights reserved.

Archilestes grandis exuvia (female)

An odonate exuvia from a Great Spreadwing damselfly (Archilestes grandis) was collected by Edgar Spalding at a small private pond in Middleton, Wisconsin USA.

SEP 2022 | Middleton, WI | Archilestes grandis (exuvia, ventral side)

External gills (3), highlighted by a blue rectangle in the following annotated image, indicate the exuvia is from a damselfly in Suborder Zygoptera.

The camera lens was manually focused on the prementum, located near the anterior end of the exuvia (highlighted by a red rectangle). The overall shape of the prementum indicates this specimen is from Family Lestidae (Spreadwings); the unique shape of the palpal lobes (highlighted by a purple rectangle) indicates Genus Archilestes.

There are two species in Genus Archilestes in North America: Archilestes californicus; and Archilestes grandis. I think it’s reasonable to infer this individual is A. grandis since Wisconsin is far out of range for A. californicus.

SEP 2022 | Middleton, WI | Archilestes grandis (exuvia, ventral side)

This individual is a female, as indicated by the rudimentary ovipositor located on the ventral side of its abdomen, near the posterior end (highlighted by a green rectangle in the preceding annotated image).

Related Resources

• How to Identify Damselfly Exuviae to Family, by Walter Sanford
• A Beginners’ Guide to Identifying the Exuviae of Wisconsin Odonata to Family, by Freda van den Broek and Walter Sanford.
• Sexing odonate exuviae (Zygoptera), by Walter Sanford

Copyright © 2022 Walter Sanford. All rights reserved.

Theory into practice

What is the “neighborhood play” in baseball?

The “neighborhood play” is a colloquial term used to describe the leeway granted to middle infielders with regards to touching second base while in the process of turning a ground-ball double play. Though it is not explicitly mentioned in the rulebook, middle infielders were long able to record an out on the double-play pivot simply by being in the proximity — or neighborhood — of the second-base bag. Source Credit: Neighborhood Play, MLB Glossary.

And so it is with the 3-D printed plastic “lens” adapter I bought recently for my Fujifilm X Series cameras. The lens adapter, assembled so that it includes all three pieces (photo credit: Nicholas Sherlock Photography), puts a 4x magnification microscope objective in the neighborhood of where it should be for optimal performance.

Naturally I was curious to know exactly where the microscope objective should be mounted  and whether the “lens” actually performs better at that distance.

Theory

I consulted the experts at amateurmicrography.net and asked for guidance specifically for my Fujifilm X-Series mirrorless digital cameras. Thanks to Mr. Rik Littlefield for his quick reply!

First, Rik referred me to an article from the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) forum: FAQ: How can I hook a microscope objective to my camera? In this blog post, I will refer to the following annotated image — the first one in the FAQ article.

Photo Credit: Rik Littlefield.

Let me summarize Rik’s detailed answer to my question.

Microscope objectives like the two 4x magnification microscope objectives I own and the 10x objective shown in the preceding annotated image, are designed to work with microscopes featuring a mechanical tube length of 160 mm minus 10 mm for the microscope’s eyepiece. [The microscope objective forms an image at the bottom of the microscope eyepiece, according to Allan Walls in Macro Talk #17 (~8:30).]

The difference of 150 mm (160 mm – 10 mm = 150 mm) is known as the optical tube length, and in photomicrography, is the distance the microscope objective should be mounted from the plane of the camera sensor (as shown above).

Photo Credit: B&H Photo. Fujifilm X-T5 camera (body only).

Fujifilm X Series mirrorless digital cameras have a flange focal distance (FFD) of 17.7 mm, meaning the distance between the plane of the camera sensor and the face of the lens mount on the front of the camera body is 17.7 mm (as shown above). 150 mm – 17.7 mm = 132.3 mm. 132.3 mm is the ideal mounting distance between the “lens” and the outside of the camera body.

The next photograph shows the customized 4x magnification macro rig I was able to cobble together using photography gear I had on-hand already, following Rik’s recommendations. Briefly, several extension tubes were used to mount the “crop” configuration of my 3-D printed plastic lens adapter and 4x magnification microscope objective on a Fujifilm X-T3 digital camera.

My customized 4x magnification macro rig.

Remember, my goal was to move the microscope objective 132.3 mm from the face of the camera body. I combined two 16mm extension tubes and one 10mm extension tube (42 mm total) with the “crop” configuration of the plastic lens adapter (~90 mm from back to front). 42 mm + 90 mm = 132 mm. That’s “good enough for government work” as we say in Washington, D.C.

In contrast, the full size 3-D printed plastic lens adapter moves the microscope objective 142 mm from the face of the camera body — in the neighborhood but a little farther than it should be.

Gear I used

The following equipment list includes all items mounted on the Fujifilm X-T3 camera body shown in the preceding photo.

• Fujifilm MCEX-16 [16mm extension tube]
• Fotasy Extension Tube DG 16mm FX
• Fotasy Extension Tube DG 16mm FX
• 3-D printed plastic lens adapter (“crop” configuration)
• Reakway 4x microscope objective

Finally, a few words about extension tubes designed for Fujifilm X Mount cameras.

Fujifilm makes two extension tubes, as of this writing: the MCEX-11; and MCEX-16. I bought both the 11mm and 16mm extension tubes, although in retrospect, the 11mm is the only one I recommend buying (based upon my usage). It’s good to have found a purpose for the MCEX-16.

When I bought my Fujifilm X-T1 camera more than 10 years ago, Fujifilm didn’t offer extension tubes for sale. “Fotasy” was the first third-party company to sell extension tubes with electronic contacts for Fujifilm X Mount cameras. I bought both sizes that were available (10mm and 16mm) and they worked well, that is until Fujifilm released their proprietary extension tubes — at that point the Fotasy extension tubes were incompatible with newer lenses sold by Fujifilm. Although my older Fotasy extension tubes don’t work with newer Fujifilm lenses, they are perfect in this case because my customized 4x magnification macro rig is all manual all the time.

Gear that could be used (instead of my rig)

What if you don’t have a “junk drawer” of old, unused camera gear like me? Rik Littlefield recommended the following items that could be used for mounting a 4x microscope objective on a Fujifilm X Series camera.

• Get a basic X Mount to M42 adapter like … Fotodiox Lens Mount Adapter Compatible with M42 Screw Mount SLR Lens on Fuji X-Mount Cameras $14.95
• then use M42 tubes to get the required total length, …
• and finally an M42-to-RMS adapter like either … Pixco Lens Adapter Replacement Suit For RMS Royal Microscopy Society Lens to M42 Mount, Caliber:25mm $9.70 [flat] or … RMS Thread for Microscope Objective to M42 x 1 mm Converter Cone Only Adapter $39.99 [cone].

Theory into practice

My customized 4x magnification macro rig was used to photograph a small part of a dime, that is, a 10-cent coin in U.S. currency.

All three photos …

• were shot handheld (not recommended for this camera rig). A single external flash unit was used to light each photo.
• are “one-offs,” meaning they aren’t focus-stacked. At a magnification of 4x the depth of field is extremely shallow. The net result is relatively little of each photo appears to be acceptably in focus.
• are “full frame” (6240 × 4160 pixels), meaning they are uncropped.

For scale, the letters “DIM” are approximately 5 mm wide on the actual coin.

A small part of a dime (10-cent coin in U.S. currency).

A small part of a dime (10-cent coin in U.S. currency).

A small part of a dime (10-cent coin in U.S. currency).

Are these photos better than the test shots I took when I first got the 3-D printed plastic lens adapter? You be the judge, but I think they are qualitatively better.

Related Resources

• FAQ: How can I hook a microscope objective to my camera? Post by rjlittlefield.
• Rube Goldberg 4-5x macro photography rig, a blog post by Walter Sanford.
• 5x magnification, another blog post by Walter Sanford.
• Have you ever wondered…? A blog post by Walter Sanford, related to focal plane mark.

Copyright © 2022 Walter Sanford. All rights reserved.

Rube Goldberg 2.75x macro photography rig

My Rube Goldberg 4-5x macro photography rig can be configured as both a 2.75x and 4-5x magnification macro photography rig. This blog post will focus on the 2.75x configuration.

The first two photos show the 3-D printed plastic lens adapter with the middle segment removed. A Reakway 4-5x microscope objective is screwed into the front of the adapter and the adapter/”lens” combo is mounted on my Fujifilm X-T3 mirrorless camera.

Photo focused on body of Fujifilm X-T3 mirrorless camera.

Photo focused on Reakway 4-5x microscope objective.

A recent blog post featured handheld test shots using the macro rig configured for 4-5x magnification. One of those shots shows the word “Liberty” on a penny, that is, a 1-cent coin in U.S. currency. Remember, the actual size of the word on the coin is approximately 5 mm in length.

A copper penny photographed at 4-5x magnification.

The same penny was photographed at 2.75x using the “crop” configuration of the lens adapter. The camera was handheld, like the 4-5x test shot shown above. Notice how much more of the coin is visible at 2.75x versus 4-5x magnification.

A copper penny photographed at 2.75x magnification.

The last image is a focus-stacked composite of four photos that were shot with the camera mounted on a tripod.

Focus-stacked composite image of four photos at 2.75 magnification.

What are the take-aways?

I own two macro lenses capable of 1-5x magnification: a Canon MP-E 65mm macro lens; and a Laowa 25mm Ultra Macro lens.

The current retail price of the Canon MP-E 65mm macro lens is $1,049.00. It weighs 1.56 pounds (710 g).

The current retail price of the Laowa 25mm Ultra Macro lens is $399.00. The Laowa macro lens is noticeably smaller and lighter than the Canon MP-E 65mm. It weighs 14.11 ounces (400 g).

The 4x microscope objectives from AmScope and Reakway cost ~$25.00 each. (Remember, you need to buy only one objective.) The weight of the “lenses” isn’t listed in their specifications, but they are relatively lightweight. The 3-D printed plastic lens adapter cost $50.00 including $35.00 for the adapter itself and $15.00 handling and shipping from New Zealand. The plastic adapter feels nearly weightless.

For me, the single biggest take-away is for ~$75 I was able to buy an extreme macro photo rig that takes photos that are as good or better quality than comparable macro lenses that cost hundreds of dollars more!

And as a big fan of lightweight camera gear for use in the field, I’m far more likely to carry one of the Rube Goldberg rigs with me than either of its bigger and heavier counterparts.

Related Resources

• Rube Goldberg 4-5x macro photography rig, a blog post by Walter Sanford.
• 5x magnification, another blog post by Walter Sanford.
• Macro Photography with a $20 Microscope Lens, by Micael Widell (9:37). Micael’s video (and related resources in the show notes) piqued my interest in macro photography using microscope objectives.
• Microscope adapter for 4x macro photography with Sony E/FE, Canon EF/EF-S, Nikon F, Nikon Z, Fuji X, M4/3, M42 cameras, by thenickdude.
• Microscope adapter for 4x macro photography, by Sherlock Photography.
• 4X Plan Achromatic Objective Lens with Knurled Ring [AmScope]
• CE, Top quality 4x Plan Microscope achromatic Objective lens, Biological Microscope Lens parts (DIN160/0.1mm) [AliExpress]

Copyright © 2022 Walter Sanford. All rights reserved.

How to measure magnification

The magnification of any macro photography rig can be determined by using the rig to photograph a metric ruler such as the one shown below.

Plastic 15 cm (6″) ruler from the Natl. Science Teachers Assn. (NSTA).

The following photograph was taken using an AmScope 4x microscope objective mounted on my Fujifilm X-T3 digital camera with a plastic lens adapter designed and 3-D printed by Nicholas Sherlock. Notice that only a tiny part of the ruler is shown in this “full frame” (uncropped) macro photo!

Segment of an NSTA metric ruler.

The formula for magnification is as follows.

length of camera sensor, in mm / #mm visible in photo frame

Both measurements must be expressed in the same units in order for the units to cancel during division.

The APS-C digital sensor featured in the Fujifilm X-T3 is 23.5 mm long. The annotated image shows 5.35 mm of the small plastic ruler is visible in the photo frame.

23.5 mm / 5.35 mm = ~4.4x

The actual magnification of the AmScope 4x microscope objective is greater than 4x due to the design of the lens adapter.

What are the take-aways?

As a result of photographing the ruler, subject selection should be easier. Now I know ~5 mm is the size limit for subjects to fit entirely within the photo frame. That’s actionable intel.

Related Resource: How to Calculate Your Camera’s Magnification in Macro Photography, by Stewart Wood (12:02).

Tech Tips

The “Ruler Tool” in Adobe Photoshop was used to measure the length (in pixels) of 5 mm along the double-headed red arrow superimposed on the plastic ruler shown above. That value was used to set a “Custom Scale” for the ruler, in millimeters. (See Setting a Custom Scale and Measuring in Photoshop for more step-by-step instructions.)

Select the “Ruler Tool.” From the Menu bar, select Image / Analysis / Set Measurement Scale. 60s ‘shop: Using the ruler tool to measure distances in Photoshop CC, by Photoshop for the Scientist (1:00) provides a clear and concise explanation of how it’s done.

Then the “Custom Scale” for the “Ruler Tool” was used to measure the entire length along the ruler that’s visible in the photo frame: 5.35 mm.

Post Update

“Photopea” is a free Web-based clone of Adobe Photoshop — Photopea doesn’t do everything Photoshop does but it can be used to measure length (in pixels) using its version of a ruler tool.

Right-click on the “Eyedropper Tool” — located in the left sidebar of the main window — and select the “Ruler Tool.” Click and drag a line segment; record the length of the line, in pixels. Click the “Clear” button (optional) and repeat the same process for more line segments, as needed.

As far as I know, the Photopea “Ruler Tool” doesn’t allow the user to set a custom scale. No problem. Make measurements similar to mine and set up a proportion of two similar ratios.

x mm / 5 mm = #pixels for photo frame / #pixels for 5 mm

Solve for x by cross-multiplying and dividing.

x mm = #pixels for photo frame x 5 mm / #pixels for 5 mm

Remember that similar units above and below the dividing line cancel (pixels, in this case) so the final answer is in millimeters (mm).

Copyright © 2022 Walter Sanford. All rights reserved.

Add Fujifilm film simulations fast!

RAW FILE CONVERTER EX 3.0 powered by SILKYPIX is a free application available for download from Fujifilm USA. The current version for both Mac and Windows is Version 8.1.10.0, last updated 29 September 2021.

The application can be used to convert Fujifilm RAF files to TIFF files. “RAW FILE CONVERTER EX 3.0″ can be used to edit photos too. One editing feature I like a lot is the capabilty to quickly add Fujifilm film simulations to RAF files, Fujifilm’s proprietary raw format.

First, select “Development / File output settings…” and configure the menu settings as shown below (or as appropriate for your purposes).

If you’d like to export several files, then select “Development / Batch development settings…” and configure the menu settings as shown below (or as appropriate for your purposes).

Use the left sidebar to navigate to a set of RAF files, then choose the images that you’d like to edit. Select one of the RAF images, as shown below. Next, click on the button in the right sidebar that is labeled “Camera setting” [highlighted by a red rectangle in the following annotated image].

A menu displays all of the Fujifilm film simulations that can be added to the RAF file, including several options that don’t appear in the in-camera menu of film simulations for my Fujifilm X-T3 digital camera.

In order to export an edited RAF file, select “Development / Batch develop selected images…” You can repeat the process over and over to add multiple film simulations to the same RAF file.

For example, the SEPIA film simulation was applied to the first image.

Here’s the SEPIA file after “development” [export]. The SEPIA film simulation is used to make photos look old and yellowed, in this case, as old as a dinosaur.

Next I selected “Edit / Undo.” Then I applied the ACROS film simulation. ACROS is used to “Shoot in Black and White in rich details with sharpness.” Source Credit: Fujifilm.

Here’s the ACROS file after “development.”

The process is easy and fast — much easier and faster than using Fujifilm X RAW STUDIO to add film simulations!

Tech Tips

When your camera is set to record either “JPG” or “JPG + RAF” files, Fujifilm film simulations can be added in-camera as you are shooting but are only applied to the JPG files, not the RAF files.

It’s worth noting FUJIFILM applies the “PROVIA” film simulation to its JPG files by default.

Related Resources

• The ultimate guide to Fuji’s Film Simulations; A DEEP dive to de-mystify one of Fuji’s best features, by Dave Etchells, Imaging Resource.
• Your Guide to FUJIFILM Film Simulations, by Todd Vorenkamp, B&H Photo.
• Fujifilm X RAW STUDIO. The current version for both Mac and Windows is Version 1.15.0, last updated 28 June 2022.
• Fuji Guys – FUJIFILM X Raw Studio – Walkthrough, by Fuji Guys Channel (9:04)
• Using Fujifilm X RAW Studio, by pal2tech (8:59).
• How to use FUJI FILM SIMULATIONS with RAW files in LIGHTROOM using CAMERA PROFILES, by Reggie Ballesteros (5:50).

Copyright © 2022 Walter Sanford. All rights reserved.

Fujifilm/Fringer/Canon MP-E 65mm macro lens

In a recent blog post I mentioned that I was looking forward to testing the Fringer EF-FX Pro II lens mount adapter with my Canon MP-E 65mm Macro lens.

The MP-E 65mm doesn’t have a ring for focusing on the subject — you set the magnification ratio (from 1x to 5x) and move the camera/lens rig back and forth until the subject is in focus. For all photos, I focused on one eye of the model.

Dimetron

The first studio model is a toy Dimetron, photographed at a magnification ratio of 1:1. The toy is ~3.6 cm (~36 mm) long. The size of the APS-C sensor in the Fujifilm X-T3 is 23.5 mm x 15.6 mm. At 1x magnification, the entire length of the toy doesn’t fit on screen.

Dimetron toy | 1:1 magnification | 1/16 flash power ratio

With the camera/lens set for the same f/stop, shutter speed, and ISO (f/5.6, 1/250 s, and 400, respectively), less light reached the sensor when the magnification ratio was increased from 1:1 to 2:1. So I increased the flash power ratio by one stop, from 1/16 power to 1/8 power.

Dimetron toy | 2:1 magnification | 1/8 flash power ratio

Triceratops

The last studio model is a toy Triceratops, photographed at a magnification ratio of 1:1. The toy is ~4.3 cm (~43 mm) long.

Triceratops toy | 1x magnification | 1/16 flash power ratio

As with the first model, when the magnification ratio was increased from 1:1 to 2:1 it was necessary to increase the flash power ratio by one stop.

Triceratops toy | 2x magnification | 1/8 flash power ratio

Gear Talk

The Fringer EF-FX Pro II lens mount adapter enables one to mount Canon lenses on Fujifilm X-Series digital cameras. As you can see, my Canon MP-E 65mm macro lens works well with the Fujifilm X-T3 camera.

The APS-C sensor inside the Fujifilm X-T3 digital camera has a crop factor of 1.5x, so the Canon MP-E 65mm macro lens has a focal length of ~98mm (35mm equivalent) when mounted on an X-T3. The net result is an increase in apparent magnification, …

Post Update Update

Just because something looks like a duck and seems to act like a duck doesn’t mean it’s a duck. And so it is with the Fringer EF-FX Pro II lens mount adapter — although it looks like an extension tube, it isn’t. Why was I deceived by its appearance? Because I didn’t understand something called “flange focal distance.”

For an interchangeable lens camera, the flange focal distance (FFD) … of a lens mount system is the distance from the mounting flange (the interlocking metal rings on the camera and the rear of the lens) to the film or image sensor plane. This value is different for different camera systems. Source Credit: Flange focal distance. Wikipedia.

For example, the FFD for Canon EF-mount is 44 mm and the FFD for Fujifilm X-mount is 17.7 mm. In order to make a Canon EF lens perform properly on a Fujifilm X-series camera body, an adapter must move the Canon lens 26.3 mm farther from the digital sensor. (44 mm – 17.7 mm = 26.3 mm)

Not surprisingly, when I remeasured the thickness of my Fringer EF-FX Pro II lens mount adapter it turns out to be closer to 26 mm than my original course estimate of 30 mm (cited below). The net result is the 17.7 mm FFD of my Fujifilm X-T3 combines with the 26.3 mm thickness of the Fringer adapter, resulting in an FFD of 44 mm — exactly the right FFD for the Canon lens to work properly on a Fujiflm X-series camera body!

It’s worth noting that “apparent magnification” is still a real thing when a camera lens designed for a “full-frame” camera is mounted on a camera with an APS-C size sensor. The image formed by the lens is exactly the same size regardless of the size of the digital sensor used to record the image, but a smaller part of the image is “seen” by an APS-C sensor than a full-frame sensor, resulting in the misperception that the image is magnified.

I hope this sets the record straight. Sincere apologies for any confusion I might have caused — I never heard of “flange focal distance” before I bought the Fringer adapter!

---

[Post Update: From this point forward everything I wrote is incorrect. Is my face red, or what? I’ll explain further when I have a chance to use a desktop computer to edit this post.] … although the images appear to be magnified more than can be explained by this fact alone.

In the opinion of this author, the Fringer adapter functions like an extension tube. The adapter is ~3.0 cm (30 mm) in thickness. There aren’t any optics inside the adapter but it does move the lens 30 mm farther from the camera sensor. That, my friends, is an extension tube.

I used an online, interactive Macro Extension Tubes Calculator to estimate the effect of a 30mm extension tube on photos taken with the Canon MP-E 65mm macro lens at magnification ratios of 1:1 and 2:1. The calculator shows the magnification ratio increased from 1:1 to ~1.5:1 and 2:1 to ~2.5:1 respectively.

Macro Extension Tubes Calculator | 1:1 magnification ratio

The values for “new minimum focusing distance” are in millimeters, despite the fact that the second “m” only appears when you click an insertion point in the box and scroll to the right. The values for magnification ratio seem reasonable; the values for new minimum focusing distance, not so much.

Macro Extension Tubes Calculator | 2:1 magnification ratio

[End of segment with information that is incorrect.]

---

Related Resources

Full-size photos of the preceding studio models are featured in the following blog posts. Those photos should help to give the reader a better sense of how much the subjects were magnified by the Fujifilm/Fringer/Canon MP-E 65mm macro lens rig.

• What is it? (published on 21 DEC 2020)
• What is it? It’s a toy Dimetrodon. (published on 23 DEC 2020)
• Toy dinosaur: focus-stacked composite image (published on 08 JAN 2021)
• Flange focal distance, by Wikpedia.
• Sensor Size and Magnification – correcting a common misunderstanding, by Allan Walls Photography (20:02). Fast-forward to 5:48. See also Sensor Size Matters – Part 1 (the Front Half) – A Demonstration (19:51).

Copyright © 2022 Walter Sanford. All rights reserved.

Fujifilm X-T3: Focus Peak Highlight

I like to use manual focus to shoot photographs with my Fujifilm X-T3 digital camera. Set the small dial on the front of the camera to “M.” The beauty of manual focus on Fujifilm X-series cameras is back-button auto-focus still works!

When the small dial is set for “M” both manual focusing and back-button auto-focusing can be used in combination with what Fujifilm calls “Focus Peak Highlight,” or more simply, “focus peaking.”

The following YouTube video by pal2tech explains a technique that makes it much easier to see the focus peaking.

BEST Fujifilm Manual Focus Setting, by pal2tech (6:01).

The process is simple. Set the camera to record JPG + RAF [Fujifilm’s proprietary raw format]. Select one of the black-and-white Fujifilm film simulations, e.g., ACROS. [More about Fujifilm film simulations in an upcoming blog post.]

The camera display will be black-and-white. As Chris Lee (pal2tech) explains in the preceding video, it’s much easier to see focus peaking on a black-and-white background.

JPG files saved to a memory card are black-and-white too, as shown below.

Buzz Lightyear plastic toy. [Focus Peak Highlight not shown.]

RAF files are saved in full color, as shown below.

Buzz Lightyear plastic toy.

Tech Tips

“Focus Peak Highlight” can be activated when the camera is set for manual focus mode. Using back-button focus (AF-L button) in manual mode enables one to retain full control of the exposure triangle, focus quickly, and see what’s in focus before shooting a photograph.

Fuji Back Button Focus (4:06), a YouTube video by Ashraf Jandali, provides a clear demonstration of how to use back-button focus on the Fujifilm X-T1. The same technique works with the Fujifilm X-T3.

Related Resources

• BEST Fujifilm Manual Focus Setting, by pal2tech (6:01).
• Fuji Back Button Focus, by Ashraf Jandali (4:06).
• The ultimate guide to Fuji’s Film Simulations; A DEEP dive to de-mystify one of Fuji’s best features, by Dave Etchells, Imaging Resource.

Copyright © 2022 Walter Sanford. All rights reserved.

Sample photos: Fringer EF-FX Pro II lens mount adapter

Oh look, it’s the “Made in the shade” monkey and Buzz Lightyear — two of my favorite studio models! Whenever I need to test new photography gear and/or techniques, they are always willing to help.

As promised in my last blog post, here are a couple of sample photos taken with my Canon EF 100mm macro lens mounted on a Fujifilm X-T3 digital camera body using a Fringer EF-FX Pro II lens mount adapter.

Single point focus was used for both photos. For the first photo, the focus point was located on the monkey’s right eye (bottom eye, relative to the photo). The real world size of the toy monkey is ~4.8 cm long.

“Made in the shade” monkey toy.

The Canon lens is controlled by the Fujifilm digital camera via the Fringer adapter. EXIF information (shown below) is available for each photo. As you can see, the photos in this set were taken using an aperture of f/5.6 and a shutter speed of 1/250 s, the default sync speed for the X-T3.

The “sweet spot” for the Canon EF 100mm macro lens is either f/5.6 or f/8. The depth of field is shallower at f/5.6 than f/8, but I thought the former might be a better test for sharpness than the latter.

Apple Preview | Inspector

Buzz Lightyear reporting for duty, sir. I don’t remember exactly where the focus point was located, but it was probably somewhere near Buzz’s face/head.

Buzz Lightyear plastic toy.

Regular readers of my blog might be happy to know Buzz will be back again for my next blog post.

What are the take-ways?

As you can see, my Canon macro lens works well with the Fujifilm camera. Does it perform better than my Fujinon 80mm macro lens? It’s too early to tell.

The APS-C sensor inside the Fujifilm X-T3 digital camera has a crop factor of 1.5x, so the Canon EF 100mm macro lens has a focal length of 150mm (35mm equivalent) when mounted on an X-T3. The net result is an increase in apparent magnification.

Some of the advantages of mounting the Canon lens on a Fujifim digital camera (rather than my older Canon DSLR camera) are really about features available on the X-T3 that enable me to get more from the same lens.

For example, there are only nine (9) focus points on my Canon EOS 5D Mark II; the Fujifilm X-T3 can be set for either 117 or 425.

The Canon EOS 5D Mark II doesn’t feature focus peaking; the Fujifilm X-T3 does. Focus peaking is a useful aid for focusing the Canon lens manually. More about this topic in my next blog post.

And of course, don’t forget that all of my Canon lenses (including several L-series lenses) can be used with my Fujifilm cameras via the Fringer adapter. I’m especially looking forward to testing the Fringer adapter with my Canon MP-E 65mm Macro lens.

In summary, the Canon/Fringer/Fujifilm rig works as expected. During limited testing, I discovered something that doesn’t work. (Again, more about this topic in an upcoming blog post.) The problem isn’t a deal-breaker and it should be something that can be fixed in a firmware update of the Fringer adapter. Editor’s Note: I just contacted Fringer as of this writing. I’m interested to see whether they are receptive to customer suggestions for improvement. I’ll update this post to include their response. Post Update: Fringer replied to my message promptly. Details in an upcoming blog post.

Related Resources

• How to Find Your Lens’s Sharpest Aperture or Sweet Spot, by Todd Vorenkamp for B&H Photo “Explora.”
• Depth of Field, DOFMaster.

Copyright © 2022 Walter Sanford. All rights reserved.