Question 1

What size of RTI Dome do I need?

Accepted Answer

We advise the image size not to exceed 30% of the dome diameter. Therefore, a 30 cm diameter dome is best suited to image zones up to 10 cm. Note that you can use advanced techniques (like stitching) to create large images from a tiling of smaller ones.

Question 2

What is the warranty policy?

Accepted Answer

By default, all our products have a 1 year waranty. Neverthless, they are built tough! Our test units have performed thousands of images and are still running...
You might purchase extra waranty for custom domes, and were your dome to break after the warranty, contact us, we will propose you a fair repair service.

Question 3

How long does it take before I can receive my dome?

Accepted Answer

Although for custom-built dome the precise delay can change, you can expect shipment within a month for regular systems. For ready-to ship domes (coming soon), they'll ship within a week.

Question 4

Can I use the same controller on different domes?

Accepted Answer

Technically, you can in some instances, provided they have the same number of LEDs and are of similar LED type. Neverthless, we recommend using the controller orginally provided with a dome to avoid issues.

Question 5

Besides an RTI Dome, what equipement is necessary to do RTI?"

Accepted Answer

Most importantly, you need a camera which can be triggered by our system. We support all major DSLR Brands (Canon, Nikon, Sony etc.). See the dedicaded article for a more complete list.
Camera mount/tripod! Usually, the dome is placed over the subject and pictures are taken by above, but nothing prevents using it in any direction, given how light it is, fixing it is normally not an issue. We can provide special clamps to accomodate your needs.
Reflective spheres / hemispheres. When using the rti-builder software, having one or two reflective spheres / hemisphere is crutial. This allows the software to know where lights were for each shot.

Question 6

Can I use the Dome with Macro lenses?

Accepted Answer

Generally yes! And many users are doing this. 
Nevertheless, it is important to keep in mind some limitations that can arise.

Basically, the first thing is that the dome is made so most lenses can protrude into it as much as possible as you can see on the following image.

At some point, with a longer and more protruding lens, the lens will block out the light of the first ring, then also of the second ring, and eventually of the last ring. In our experience, not using the first ring (top one) is fine and in fact, we have settings in the dome controller to skip it.

The important aspect in choosing a Macro-lens, in particular if it has a fixed focal length (and most do) is to ensure you'll still be able to use 2 rings.

To determine if a given lens will "work", here is a little diagram. The important parameters are the lens diameter and the minimal working distance.

Let's take two example to see how this computation can be done:
The Canon EF 100mm f/2.8 USM Macro has a lens diameter of about 7cm and a minimal working distance of 15cm at 1:1
So the maximal incidence angle will be arctan(15/7)=64,9°.
Therefore, with that lens, you should even be able to use the top ring (our schematic is a bit conservative) and have a lot of margin to use two rings (64,9°>> 40°).
The Canon MP-E 65mm f/2.8 1–5x Macro in 1:1 mode has a working distance a little over 10cm. The lens diameter is about 7cm so the maximal incidence angle will be arctan(10/7)=55° 
Here, we see that the ring 1 will be blocked, but rings 2 and 3 are still fine.
The Canon MP-E 65mm f/2.8 1–5x Macro in 2:1 mode, has its working distance shrinking to 65mm. The maximal incidence angle will be arctan(6.5/7)=42.9°
This is still > 40° and so the ring 2 (and obviously ring 3) can still be used. But using the even higher magnifications factors from the MP-E 65mm (3x, 4x or 5x) won't allow to use several RTI.

RTI made accessible

FAQ