CalevPhoto

The 180L vs MP-E 65 Sharpness Test

A number of people have asked me about the sharpness of the Canon 180L.  In general, I find this to be a very sharp lens but that doesn’t help very much.  Therefore, I decided to try a little test.  Unfortunately, given that I do not have a tremendous amount of time, I was not able to take pictures specifically for this test.  Luckily, though, I had some pictures that were of similar subjects taken with both lenses.

Both shots were taken with the MT-24EX mounted and were at 1/200 second at apertures of f/11.  The camera used was the Canon 5D.  One shot was taken with the 180L while the other was taken with the MP-E 65.  With both shots, I took a number of the same subject so I then took the best representative shot from each set.  The following are the two test shots.

I hope it is obvious which shot was taken with the 180L and which was taken with the MP-E 65.

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Macro Photography when Traveling

Macro photography is easily my favorite type of photography.  Given that travel is also one of my great passions, it makes sense to combine the two.  After having taken macro equipment on my last several trips – to Thailand, Israel/Jordan, and Mexico, I have learned a bit about what equipment to bring and what not to bring.

First of all, you have to be very realistic about the place you are going to?  What types of macro pictures will you really take there?  While macro photography can be done anywhere, some types of trips make certain types of macro photography difficult.  For instance, my wife and kids generally will not sit around and wait while I setup a tripod to take a picture of a flower.  While I occasionally use a tripod for my flower pictures in gardens around Seattle, I never use a tripod for macro photography on vacation (I do use one for sunrise/sunset and night shots though).  The following are my experiences on different types of vacations.

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Fun with the new 180L + MT-24EX and stink bugs

Green stink bugs are one of my favorite subjects due to their bright green color.  For more information about stink bugs, see the previous blog I wrote about them.  In particular I often enjoy photographing them against the strong red of the Japanese maple bushes in our front yard, which works out well because that is where I usually find them.

The leaf in this shot is from me.  In a previous shot some commented that the red of the Japanese maple was too strong against the green of the stink bug.  Also, in this case the stink bug wasn’t in a very good spot to photograph so I used the leaf to move it.  One thing I have noticed is that the MT-24EX on the 180L can tend to be a bit too strong.  In this case the front of the stink bug is a bit too strongly lit.  Continue on for a comparison with a similar shot on the MP-E 65 and more stink bug experiments.

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Canon 180mm 3.5L macro first look

This weekend I finally received one of the most coveted lenses remaining on my list – the Canon 180L.  This lens is the second in what I call – “The Holy Trio of Canon Macro Lenses”.  They are the following.

Canon MP-E 65 – The only macro lens capable of going beyond 1x without extenders or extension tubes.

Canon 180L – The longest macro lens available for Canon.  Also considered to be the sharpest and the only one with an L designation.

Canon TS-E 90 – Not truly a macro lens (.33x) but the tilt and shift capabilities make this a very interesting lens.

I almost didn’t get a chance to play with the lens this weekend.  The package needed to be signed by an adult and, though Nelya was home that day, the UPS truck arrived while she was picking the kids up from school.  Luckily I was able to pick it up at the facility that evening, only to find that the order was messed up and I am still working at getting it corrected.  Luckily, the 180L was not one of the items messed up so I opened it immediately.

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