Day1+2 with sigma 70-300

[eggbutt]

Ive just bought a sigma apo 70-300mm lens for my 350d.Im new to macro photography.On the first day i didnt know what i was doing really but after a few attempts i managed to get an ok pic(i think).After reviewing my pics and looking at the setting for each one i had a better idiea of how to get sharp shots.On day 2 i was able to get quite a few ok pics quite easly.Im very pleased with my new lens.
Best pic from day 1=top pic the other from day 2.
Any tips and advice is very welcome,Thanks,Eggbutt.
P.s. sorry for the small pics.can anyone give some tips on how to keep the image quality but reduce the file size for posting here?

[eccles]

Not bad for starters, but I feel that composition needs a little work. The fly would be better if it wasn't partially obscured by the thistle, and I would try to get a lower angle on the bee. Be aware that even the best macro photographers shoot an awful lot of pics to get a few good ones. The difference between them and lesser photographers is that we don't get to see the bad ones. ;)

As for picture size I just use an old version of Paintshop to resample at 800 pixels longest length then check the filesize is below 100kbytes and it seems to work for me.

HTH

[asylumxl]

in photoshop, resize to about 640x427, use some sort of (subtle) sharpening filter and save them as jpegs at something over 10 out of 12 quality and progressive.