To take macro photos of wild herbs at the World War II German army ammunition plant and depot MUNA Hohenbrunn (MUNA stands for Munitionsanstalt), I joined a guided wild herb tour led by a certified herbal educator. The tour started at today’s Main entrance of the abandoned MUNA Hohenbrunn which was built by the Nazi regime in 1938 and subsequently used by the American army from 1945 and the Bundeswehr from 1958 until 2007.
The sprawling grounds of the former MUNA, once a secret and heavily guarded ammunition depot, now offer a unique habitat for numerous plant species. Since the area was little used for decades and was largely left to its own, a remarkable diversity of plant life has been preserved here. At MUNA, we discover unique wild herbs that fascinate us because of their rarity and properties.
I was eager to take some nice macro photos of the wild herbs and test out my new budget macro photography technique which I learned from a YouTube Video by Christina from Photosprouts.
Before we take a look at the macro photos of the wild herbs in the MUNA, let’s familiarize ourselves with the shooting location and the tragic history of MUNA Hohenbrunn.
MUNA Hohenbrunn Location Photos
When you click on an image in the galleries, following buttons will allow you to select some features. Use Original-size to watch the photo in full resolution:
Slideshow | Fullscreen | Image-Info | Original-size
I took all the photos, except for the macro shots, with my Pixel 8 Pro smartphone camera because I didn’t want to continuously remove and reattach the extension rings from my full-frame camera.
MUNA Hohenbrunn Overview Map
Deep in the German forests, approximately 10 km southeast of Munich, lies the abandoned site of a former World War II German Army ammunition plant and depot, historically known as MUNA Hohenbrunn (MUNA = Munitionsanstalt). The facility originally covered an area of approximately 1.8 km² (180 ha / 445 acres), an area equivalent to more than half the size of New York City’s Central Park. This specific site holds a dark history, having relied heavily on more than 750 forced labors from Ukraine, Russia, Poland, France, Italy and other occupied countries, to produce ammunition.
Sources: Hohenbrunn im Nationalsozialismus: Die Ortsgeschichte von 1933 bis 1945 by Annemone Christians and Florian Wimmer and https://de.wikipedia.org
The fates of around 750 of these individuals can be verified by name through records in the Arolsen Archives.
Remains of Forced Laborers’ Children Were Discovered in 2011
In 2011, the skeletal remains of 21 children (aged approximately 6–10) were identified after bones were found by kids at a gravel deposit near the former MUNA Hohenbrunn. Historical investigations and forensic examinations concluded that the children were Ukrainian or Russian and belonged to families of forced laborers who had been brought to work at the MUNA Hohenbrunn. Historians had long suspected the existence of a grave associated with the camp, although the exact circumstances of the children’s deaths remain unclear.
Source: MĂĽnchner Merkur, Grusel-Fund: Kinder-Knochen in Kiesgrube entdeckt 30.09.2011
The MUNA Hohenbrunn Memorial Was Unveiled in 2015
FROM 1938 TO 1945, THE ARMY AMMUNITION PLANT OF THE GERMAN WEHRMACHT (MUNA) WAS LOCATED ON THESE GROUNDS.
HOHENBRUNN REMEMBERS THE GERMAN AND FOREIGN FORCED LABORERS DEPLOYED HERE UNDER INHUMAN CONDITIONS.
ENTIRE FAMILIES OF EASTERN WORKERS (OSTARBEITER) WERE DEPORTED HERE, AND CHILDREN WERE INTERNED IN THE CAMP SEPARATED FROM THEIR RELATIVES.
FROM TEN-YEAR-OLD CHILDREN TO ELDERLY WOMEN, THESE PEOPLE WERE FORCED TO WORK IN THE AMMUNITION FACTORY.
MANY DID NOT SURVIVE THE CAMP; CHILDREN STARVED TO DEATH. EXPLOITATION AND RACISM PROFOUNDLY VIOLATED HUMAN DIGNITY.
Source: Inscription on the MUNA (Munitionsanstalt) memorial
Where is the cemetery for the forced laborers of MUNA Hohenbrunn?
As of the time of this blogpost’s writing, the location of the MUNA forced-labor cemetery in Hohenbrunn remains unknown to the public. The cemetery’s existence has been confirmed; in official documents from the Hohenbrunn municipal administration dating from 1946, it is referred to as the “Russian Cemetery” (Russenfriedhof) and these documents contain detailed information about people buried there.
Source: Arolsen Archives
Macro photos of the wild herbs at the World War II lost place of MUNA Hohenbrunn
When you click on an image in the galleries, following buttons will allow you to select some features. Use Original-size to watch the photo in full resolution:
Slideshow | Fullscreen | Image-Info | Original-size
I am quite satisfied with the macro photos. Using the Viltrox APO lens with apochromatic correction was probably a good decision. It was also very helpful that I didn’t need to get too close to the herbs because of my lens.
My Gear: 7 Essentials and selecting the Right Lens
Before the guided tour, I did the following homework: I tested all my better lenses using extension tubes to see which one provided the best magnification, as close to a macro factor of 1:1 as possible.
In my case, the relatively new Viltrox 55mm f/1.8 APO (apochromatic) lens with the extension tubes surprisingly turned out to provide the best macro factor of my lenses. I didn’t expect this, as the minimum focus distance of this lens without extension tubes is a high 43 cm.
How can I test the macro factor of my lenses?
To test out the macro factor of the Viltrox 55mm f1.8 APO (apochromatic) lens with the Meike extension tubes, I did photograph a old folding ruler from as close as possible while still delivering a sharp image from left to right.
To calculate the magnification ratio (macro factor) of my setup, I simply compare the actual width of the photographed object with the width of my camera sensor that it is projected onto. My Sony a7Cii camera features a full-frame sensor with a width of 36 mm.
The formula is:
Plugging in my values:
Macro Factor of my lens and extension tube setup
My setup utilizing the Viltrox 55mm f/1.8 APO (apochromatic) and the Meike extension tubes achieves a magnification ratio of 1:1.39 (or rounded to 0.72:1). Lets say, my setup has a macro factor of approx. 1:1.4
What does this mean in practice? A “true macro” standard is considered to be 1:1 (where a 36 mm long object fills the full-format sensor exactly). With my extension tube setup, I am incredibly close to that benchmark. An object is projected onto my sensor at roughly 72% of its real-world size. For the vast majority of wild herbs and details at the MUNA site, this magnification ratio is more than enough to capture fine wild herb structures with razor-sharp detail.
With a macro factor of 1:1.4, the Viltrox 55mm f/1.8 APO (apochromatic) lens provides a surprisingly comfortable distance from the object, making it easy to position the IT32 off-camera flash to shape the light from the side.
Here are my shooting method steps which I followed to shoot the wild herbs
- Things to take with in my camera bag: A mirrorless camera; extension tubes; a variable ND filter with a range of approx. ND2 to ND32; a small off-camera wireless flash and trigger; and a short holding stick with a 1/4″ screw to which the flash magnetic holding shoe is mounted.
- Place both extension tubes between the camera and the lens.
- Set my camera to manual mode and minimum sync speed. I try to avoid high-speed sync (HSS) whenever possible for a stronger flash power. For my Sony α7Cii, this is a shutter speed of 1/160 s.
- Set the lens aperture to a higher value like f/11 to achieve a deeper area of sharp focus.
- Set my ISO and variable ND filter to adjust my manual settings for a dark ambient light photo without flash. Set a dark background while still making the objects in the background a little bit visible with a beautiful bokeh.
- Take some test photos to check my manual camera settings for the ambient light.
- Focus manually on the wild herb using focus peaking, then start flashing from the left or right side onto the herb with the wireless flash, initially set to manual 1/64 power. Take some test photos while adjusting the manual flash power setting until the herb is illuminated correctly.
- Take photos of all my wild herbs. I did not need to adjust my manual camera or flash settings while photographing all herbs.
Why is this macro technique on a budget?
You probably don’t need to buy an expensive macro lens because you can often use the lenses you already own with inexpensive extension tubes (I got my extension tubes for approx. EUR 30). In addition: Using an approx. EUR 100 off-camera wireless flash allows you to create your “perfect” lighting of the macro object in focus.
“Macro Photo Technique on a Budget” by Christina from Photosprouts in San Francisco, California
Thank you to Christina for sharing her budget macro photography technique using a small wireless flash and extension tubes!
Google Maps location of the MUNA memorial
Google Maps location of the MUNA Hohenbrunn memorial:Â Â https://maps.app.goo.gl
Don’t hesitate to leave a comment below
Do you have ideas what was stored in the two large so-called Pershing Bunkers, which seems to have been built during the Bundeswehr era after 1958? In my view, it is extremely unlikely that the American army has given Pershing Rockets out of their hands, so it must have been something else.
Do you know where the “Russian graveyard” (Russenfriedhof) of the MUNA Hohenbrunn forced laborers could be located?
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