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I've developed an interest in macro photography lately, being able to see and show others small things and details that would otherwise go unnoticed has been a lot of fun. I'm creating this thread for anyone that has any macro or close-up photos they would like to share that don't really fit into any of the other threads.

I took these photos last night while experimenting with my new lens, it's still quite cold here so I've been trying to make due with indoor subjects but expect more nature and wildlife photos as the weather improves.

Bubble - 100mm, 1/250s, f/11, ISO 100.


Geode - 100mm, 1/250s, f/11, ISO 100.

Theses are awesome Jimmy! Really enjoying seeing your new focus on these.

JSumm wrote: ↑

Sun Feb 26, 2023 12:18 pm

Theses are awesome Jimmy! Really enjoying seeing your new focus on these.

Thanks! I'm glad you're enjoying them

Nice shots, Rick.
I like to shoot flowers close-up, although I don't have the zoom and focus capabilities that you do. I enjoy discovering structures that aren't visible with the naked eye. The other thing that amuses me are the photobombing bugs. More often than not, when I get the image on my big screen, there will be at least one bug doing his bug things. We're surrounded by other worlds that can only be seen through the use of fancy photography.

RustyIron wrote: ↑

Sun Feb 26, 2023 1:30 pm

Nice shots, Rick.
I like to shoot flowers close-up, although I don't have the zoom and focus capabilities that you do. I enjoy discovering structures that aren't visible with the naked eye. The other thing that amuses me are the photobombing bugs. More often than not, when I get the image on my big screen, there will be at least one bug doing his bug things. We're surrounded by other worlds that can only be seen through the use of fancy photography.

Thank you! and macro photography doesn't have to be fancy or all that expensive, you can get amazing results with an older or entry level dslr or mirrorless and macro lens. The old macro lenses are still really good quality today, they just don't have all the bells and whistles of modern lenses like image stabilization or internal af but those are both pretty worthless for macro anyway. There's lots of used macro lenses out there for $150-250 that are great and provide 1:1 magnification, then if you put something like a Raynox DCR-250 on it, it'll bump it up to somewhere around 2:1. There's even a couple new third party options out there now that you can get new for under $200 now that go to 1.5:1 like the Meike f/1.8 that appear to have great image quality which isn't surprising, it's pretty rare to find a macro lens with poor image quality. There are even cheaper options yet, You can take amazing photos with a ~$100 setup as shown here: https://youtu.be/6hLNFhLnjHY, it just depends on what you're willing to spend and put up with. I already had a really nice DSLR so I decided to splurge and get a Laowa lens because they're excellent quality for the price when compared to modern lenses from the major camera manufacturers, convenient, and are the only macro lenses that focus from infinity to 2:1 that I'm aware of. I hope you contribute to this thread with some of your photos in the future!

Don't know, if it will befit.
Micro Nikkor 40/2.8G is my main lens.

Nice, you use that on a full frame or crop sensor? I almost went with a 60mm lens because I use an aps-c camera but decided I'd rather have the longer working distance and better subject separation from the background that the 100mm provides.

Thanks, but i have no full frame. Used Nikon D3100, D3200, D80, D40

Makunochimaster wrote: ↑

Sun Feb 26, 2023 3:04 pm

Very nice! I do enjoy the perspective the wider angle macro lenses give. If I ever purchase another macro lens it'll probably be the Laowa 15mm f/4, it looks very interesting and fun.

Fly Fishing Rick wrote: ↑

Sun Feb 26, 2023 3:11 pm

the perspective the wider angle macro lenses give

i hate it, but only had enough money for this one

Makunochimaster wrote: ↑

Sun Feb 26, 2023 3:27 pm

Fly Fishing Rick wrote: ↑

Sun Feb 26, 2023 3:11 pm

the perspective the wider angle macro lenses give

i hate it, but i only had enough money for this one

What about it don't you like? A cheap ish upgrade for it that will work on any lens would be the Raynox DCR-250 filter, it will approximately double your magnification on a 1:1 lens without sacrificing any noticeable image quality.

Fly Fishing Rick wrote: ↑

Sun Feb 26, 2023 3:31 pm

What about it don't you like?

Wide perspective. i like from 50 to more.

P.S. this is the only drawback, otherwise the lens is very good, but 60 mm would be ideal)

Makunochimaster wrote: ↑

Sun Feb 26, 2023 3:33 pm

Fly Fishing Rick wrote: ↑

Sun Feb 26, 2023 3:31 pm

What about it don't you like?

Wide perspective. i like from 50 to more

Ah.

Not a pro camera guy myself but i do love viewing all of you guys there pictures!
Beautiful stuff every single one of them.

Cool thread! The colors in that bubble photo are wicked psychedelic!

I’ve wanted to get a macro lens to play around with for a while but there are just too many other things in the way of that at the moment. The desire is still there though so its just a matter of time, I think, I’ll get one eventually. In the meantime, I’ll definitely follow along with this thread.

Mushroom wrote: ↑

Sat Mar 04, 2023 12:00 am

Cool thread! The colors in that bubble photo are wicked psychedelic!

I’ve wanted to get a macro lens to play around with for a while but there are just too many other things in the way of that at the moment. The desire is still there though so its just a matter of time, I think, I’ll get one eventually. In the meantime, I’ll definitely follow along with this thread.

Thank you very much! I'm still learning myself. Have you considered a set of extension tubes for the lens you already have? It's a really cheap way to give macro a shot. Another cheap ish option is a Raynox filter, I haven't tried one but the photos I've seen taken with them look amazing for a $70 filter.

How much zoominess do you need for the shot to be considered a "macro?" Here's a shot of a little flower. I like the way it came out.

RustyIron wrote: ↑

Mon Mar 06, 2023 4:09 pm

How much zoominess do you need for the shot to be considered a "macro?" Here's a shot of a little flower. I like the way it came out.

IMG_0175 2.jpeg

Great shot! A macro lens is any lens that projects an image onto your camera sensor as life size or 1:1 aspect or greater. That simply means that a subject that's 1cm in length will be projected onto the image sensor as 1cm as well. The image sensor on a full frame camera is 24x36mm so if you shot something 18mm long it would take up approximately half of the photo if that makes sense. The sensor in my camera isn't full frame and is 15.6x23.6mm so the same subject shot with the same lens on my camera will appear to be about 50% larger while still being 1:1 or macro. You can find the aspect ratio for most DSLR lenses printed on the front of the lens near the filter threads.