Canon EF 100mm f/2.8 Macro USM

chopperdave wrote in post #14635437
I grabbed a refurb from the online sale canon did. Waiting for it to show up, tomorrow looks like the day. I have put off getting a macro for a long time, I can't wait to play with it. I am also curious to do some studio work on the 5d III with it.

Indeed, I love this lens because it is useful for a lot of things besides macro. It's helpful for those of us who don't have a f/2.8 telephoto zoom, or the faster primes that are often used for portraits.

took this a couple of days ago with the macro
was bored and applied a crazy edit to it in post haha

IMAGE LINK: http://www.flickr.com/​photos/phant0mv87/7437​120536/

chopperdave wrote in post #14635437
I grabbed a refurb from the online sale canon did. Waiting for it to show up, tomorrow looks like the day. I have put off getting a macro for a long time, I can't wait to play with it. I am also curious to do some studio work on the 5d III with it.

Ooo, quoting myself. haha.

So yeah, the lens was a day early, and I was lucky to get it. The box it was in was pretty much half open, haha. This Sunday I will shoot in a studio with it, but for today, I had to do what is expected with it. Point it at flowers.

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Ngaio

2 shots from this weekend :

IMAGE LINK: http://www.flickr.com …/38472352@N06/7​451475076/

IMAGE LINK: http://www.flickr.com …/38472352@N06/7​451344078/

Sun dog

Ricardo222 wrote in post #14659404
Sun dog

I like the way it reflects in the water.

Madweasel wrote in post #14664440
I like the way it reflects in the water.

Thanks Mark. We don't often see sun-dogs in this area...they depend on ice particles in the atmosphere I believe, and certainly I haven't seen one this bright before.

Still new to macros. Haven't tried using flash yet but I tried a couple this weekend with natural light. I have a question though. What kind of aperture values are you guys using for these? I know about focus stacking but haven't tried it yet. Additionally, that requires a subject sitting still long enough to get a tripod set up in a way you can slide it toward the subject in tiny increments. Also, while reading about lenses, it always seems the farther toward the extremes of the aperture values, the IQ will always soften. Is that the case with this lens or did Canon work some of that out as it is designed as a dedicated macro?

Here are some pics I snapped yesterday, monopod, natural light.

ISO640 F6.3 1/160th

PKmode wrote in post #14673493
...So what can I do to get sharper images and increase DoF? Am I now restricted to using a tripod, trigger and macro flash? What say you POTNers?

Tips are welcome and appreciated.

This is not really the thread for macro advice, but I try to be helpful... You've already found out why most insect macro work is done with a flash. Yes, you can find successful natural light shots, but if you want sharpness and decent depth of focus then you'll find it hard without flash. Although the macro flash options are good, they're not essential. You can use a standard flash like the 430EX, but you'll want it off camera, either held in the other hand (not easy) or mounted on a bracket attached to the camera. There are a few on the market. You then need to trigger the flash with either an off-camera cord, or the Speedlite Trigger, or the built-in unit if you're using one of the latest bodies.

Softness at very small apertures is down to the laws of physics (diffraction) and therefore beyond the scope of lens design to overcome. A good compromise for most working distances is around f/11. With the flash quite close to the subject, you'll then have plenty of light so can keep ISO right down. Results look much better with the flash light diffused. Many people make their own diffusers, using white muslin or even paper towel. Have a look at the macro forum for more detailed advice. Good luck!

PKmode wrote in post #14673493
Still new to macros. Haven't tried using flash yet but I tried a couple this weekend with natural light. I have a question though. What kind of aperture values are you guys using for these? I know about focus stacking but haven't tried it yet. Additionally, that requires a subject sitting still long enough to get a tripod set up in a way you can slide it toward the subject in tiny increments. Also, while reading about lenses, it always seems the farther toward the extremes of the aperture values, the IQ will always soften. Is that the case with this lens or did Canon work some of that out as it is designed as a dedicated macro?

Here are some pics I snapped yesterday, monopod, natural light.

ISO640 F6.3 1/160th

So I stepped down to F11. Hoping to still hit the sweet spot in the Av range.
ISO 3200 !!! F11 1/80th

Once I saw the ISO was that high, and considering I was using a monopod instead of tripod, I didn't think I could lengthen time of the exposure. 1/80 is already breaking the rule of thumb for Time/Focal Length.

One other example where I was hitting the ISO wall. This was handheld as I needed to get really close to the ground.

Huge bumble bee was dead tired. I was chasing him trying to get a shot and he finally just laid there for a minute or so.
ISO 3200 F7.1 1/125th


So what can I do to get sharper images and increase DoF? Am I now restricted to using a tripod, trigger and macro flash? What say you POTNers?

Tips are welcome and appreciated.

Unfortunately, there is only one thing you can do: add more light.

You can do that by shooting on really bright sunny days, or by adding a flash. Your shots look like they were taken with some cloud cover (no harsh shadows). In full sunlight you'd be able to get a faster shutter, or apply a higher aperture.

Unfortunately (or fortunately, depending on your needs/technique), a macro lens at MFD is going to have a very narrow DoF even at "normal" apertures of f/7.1. It will be razor thin at f/2.8, of course. To maximize your DoF you need to push the optics as far as they will go, usually around f/16 to f/22. At some point the diffraction effects of such high apertures cause image quality to get "noisy", so you have to balance that with the desired DoF.

e.g. for the 100mm at f/2.8, the DoF around MFD (31cm) is about a millimeter (<1/16" for you non-metric users). At f/8 that widens out to a whole 2mm. At f/22, around 6mm (~1/4"). I assume the bumblebee was pretty close to MFD.

For your dragonfly shots, I would guess you were at a focal distance of 1m (~3ft). At that distance, the DoF at f/2.8 is 1cm. At f/8 almost 3cm, and at f/22 it is 8cm.

So with gobs of light and pushing aperture to f/22, you can get the whole dragonfly in focus if the body is mostly aligned with your focal plane (and the the wings will be the opposite). At f/8, you have to be almost perfectly aligned, and at f/2.8 you will probably see one side of the body with different focus than the other even if perfectly aligned along your focal plane.

And since dragonflies are interesting from that front-flank angle...you will never get the whole thing in focus.

It's just the way optics are...

btw, the DoF calculator I used was:

http://www.cambridgein​colour.com/tutorials/d​of-calculator.htm

There are others out there (I'd not used this one before, I don't think, but it works for my needs).

shinksma

If the subject stays still, like the bee which looks a bit terminal, you could try focus stacking.

Loved this lens for a few years but the time has come to focus on my main photo uses. Motorsport photography. I just posted my 100 for sale if anyone is interested. Enjoyed the last few pages of work... going to miss it