Ruddy darter again

Today, this ruddy darter was a little more accommodating than of late, and I was able to make an interesting comparison. The first shot was taken with a 75-300 zoom with a Canon 500D close up lens attached. The second was taken with a Sigma 105 macro. The second shot is definitely more detailed especially when looking at the originals at 100%, but the first has a warmer feel to it with nicer saturation. It also has a less busy background although playing with the aperture with the second shot could have fixed that. But what could be a crucial difference is that the first shot was taken at least a foot away, whereas the second shot was at the most half that distance away and at a distance that will often spook an insect.
C&C appreciated.

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Interesting comparison eccles.

Did you leave the camera to determine the white balance? If so, it would probably explain the warmth of the first shot.

The subject-to-camera distance is a good point. I have missed several shots by trying for just that inch or two closer.

I have tried macro using my 75-300, but the extra quality of the 100mm macro is easily apparent, even to my untrained eyes.

My view is I can tweak the white balance/saturation on the PC, but I cannot add detail. The extra working distance doesn't offer me enough of an advantage.

Now, if I could afford that 100-400, or even a 70-200 L, perhaps I'd think differently.

difference in resolution is not that apparent at this size. Better to have a slightly less detailed image than no image at all, ideally one would carry a tele and shorter macro for different subjects.

Both lovely shots. Dalentech has been singing the praises of a 500D on a telephoto zoom for exactly the reasons you mention
Brian V.

Thanks for the comments, all. The nice thing about the 500D is that it's something that I was able to carry over from the compact camera and still find it useful. It's a nice bit of glass, doesn't take up much room in the camera bag and you don't have to change lenses to use it. As Autumn approaches I'll be switching more to birds as my main subject but I'll still carry the 500D just in case.
@Dreamline, yes I have the camera set to AWB, although both shots were processed from raw. Would that bypass white balance?Minolta lenses have a reputation for warm colours.

Nice shots eccles. I think the exposure is about -1/3 on the first shot.

Interesting comparison Eccles, I can't decide which I perfer though as I like bits from both

eccles wrote in post #3948108
...@Dreamline, yes I have the camera set to AWB, although both shots were processed from raw. Would that bypass white balance?Minolta lenses have a reputation for warm colours.

Yes, the camera will adjust the colour temp to what it thinks is the correct WB. Adjusting the temp in RAW should make the 2 pics identical.