Getting started in Macro

[dicklaxt]

I have the following equipment,it is all Canon,,,,,,,,,,

Canon 40D

50mm 1.8 IS

18-55mm 3.5-5.6 IS

28-135mm 3.5-5.6 IS

70-300mm 4-5.6 IS

Extension Tube EF25 II

A tripod and release.

Am I good to go or do I need some other goodies?

On social security at 73 years old and a tight budget.

thanks, dick

[LordV]

well you should be able to shoot at up to about 0.8:1 mag (dedicated macro lenses goto 1:1) using the 25mm tube with the 18-55 . Try the 18-55 with the ext tube and focal length set to about 30mm. Using the ext tube with the 50mm lens will give you 0.5:1 max and probably better IQ. Case of sucking it and seeing.
Brian v.

[dicklaxt]

Thanks I have a bit more reading to do and more questions to ask before I get my ducks in a row but all pointers appreciated.

If I can get a ratio of .8:1 with that setup is it worth buying a dedicated 1:1,,,,,,,,,,,,what difference would .2 gain give me and how discernable would it be>I wish I had some images to look at to see just whats what.

dick

[LordV]

Thanks I have a bit more reading to do and more questions to ask before I get my ducks in a row but all pointers appreciated.

If I can get a ratio of .8:1 with that setup is it worth buying a dedicated 1:1,,,,,,,,,,,,what difference would .2 gain give me and how discernable would it be>I wish I had some images to look at to see just whats what.

dick

You'll be losing a bit of IQ with the zoom lens - macro lenses have high resolution optics and a flat field of focus. Whether you can notice the difference is another question :).
As I said above the 50mm with the ext tube will probably give better IQ but lower magnification. You will also not have much working distance in front of the lens compared to a normal macro lens around 100mm.
Brian v.

[dicklaxt]

Once again thanks Brian a great help on that front.

I also have a 52mm filter set with a macro filter that will fit the 50mm1.8 II,do I have any advantages with this or is that just a poor mans thoughts ,smile

dick

[dicklaxt]

Okay ,here is what I have decided after reading and scratching.I will kick this effort off "poor boying it" and using the 18-55 and the 25 II ext. tube I currently have in my arsenal.I forgot to mention I have a filter set for this lens +1,+2,+4 & macro.,,,,can this filter set be used in conjunction with the above to any advantage or at all for that matter.

Now if and when I get my feet wet and find this happens to be better than sliced bread and I opt to upgrade the setup,whats the next step lens? I assume and in reading and staying in the Canon family, I see two lense that seem to stand out,,,65E and 100. They both appear to be in the same ball park, price wise, so which should I pick and don't say I need both?:lol:

Thanks folks for all the help

dick

[Warl0rd]

yes you can use the filters for extra magnification, although they will degrade IQ a bit.

I would get a "normal" macro lens (EF-S 60mm, tamron 90mm, EF 100mm, etc) and take my time to get used to the 1:1 DOF. Then perhaps adding a full set of tubes to get 2:1 and then again get used to the DOF, and by now you will be needing an external flash (ring flash ou normal flash on a bracket with difuser). Then moving to the 65E if you still love macro :p

[dicklaxt]

This has been bugging me ,,,,,,,,,,,,why not use the reversed 50mm with the 70-300mm say set at 150,this would put magnification at 3:1 if I did it right( no tubes),isn't bigger better in this case or are there other sacrifices involved that I don't know about or did not consider.


dick

[J-BO]

i couldnt tell you uch about the reverse macro which you talking about( the flipped 50 on the 70-300! but what i can tell you is if you spend the money on the 100mm macro, you will fall in love. that is until about a year in to it, when you discover that mpe65 that everyone is talking about. i have the 100mm macro with a full set of extension tubes as well, and i tend to get amazingly sharp pictures. if you are able, find a place around you that offers lens rentals, and try out the different lenses to see if you actually like them! best of luck

[LordV]

This has been bugging me ,,,,,,,,,,,,why not use the reversed 50mm with the 70-300mm say set at 150,this would put magnification at 3:1 if I did it right( no tubes),isn't bigger better in this case or are there other sacrifices involved that I don't know about or did not consider.


dick

More magnification is not necessairly better - depends a bit on the subject :)
It's also much harder to handle a high magnification system as the DOF gets extremely thin and obviously any movement is magnified as well.
Normal process is to get used to shooting between 0.5:1 and 1:1 for a while and then try higher mags as you need them.

[dicklaxt]

I'm sure that is excellent advice Brian ,its just "Old Curious George" in me talking and the fact that I am an impatient sort of guy.:lol:


dick

[LordV]

I'm sure that is excellent advice Brian ,its just "Old Curious George" in me talking and the fact that I am an impatient sort of guy.:lol:


dick

:) :)

Quite normal. I started shooting at 1:1 with a sigma 105, then upto 2:1 with a sigma 105 plus ext tube set and then upto 4:1 using a reversed 50mm lens on the front.
Brian v.