CalevPhoto

So you want to get started in photography

I am a very biased and opinionated person on all subjects I care about - so it is especially true for photography.  I really have not published a ‘beginners photography’ blog because there are so many of them out there already.  However, after seeing a number that I sharply disagree with, I thought I would post my own.

I will not talk about specific camera models or Nikon vs. Canon here.  This is for those who want to become photographers - not equipment collectors.  Therefore, the following are my recommendations for people who want to get into photography.

What should I do first?

This is simple, do not buy anything? Huh!? Before buying any equipment, I strongly recommend you go to the bookstore/library and get one or two books on the type of photography you are interested in.  I do not recommend the general photography books as those aren’t very helpful.  Get books from photographers known for their work.  The book I started out with is John Shaw’s Nature Photography Field Guide - though if you’re into portrait photography you’ll probably want a different book.

The point is you need to understand some things before you buy.  Unless you understand what an SLR does for you and what the differences are between different lenses, you’ll be unlikely to make an informed decision.

Continue Reading…

Canon 500D or Macro Lens

On a recent post I received a question over how the Canon 500D diopter compares with a true macro lens.  When I first bought my camera, I knew I wanted to do macro but I didn’t have the money for a true macro lens.  I wound up purchasing the Sigma 80-400 4.5-5.6 OS lens along with the 500D diopter.  I quickly fell in love with macro photography and saved up for a true macro lens and once I had one I eventually sold the 500D.  The following is a shot I took with the 500D when visiting the zoo with my kids.

However, let’s get more specific on the differences between a diopter and a true macro lens.

Continue Reading…

Macro photography lighting

Of all the equipment necessary for macro photography, it seems like lighting is the most controversial. I think lighting in general is considered an “unnecessary evil” by many photographers. After all, few photographers would argue about putting down the money for a good 70-200 or 24-70 2.8 lens (assuming they have that much). However, I constantly hear of attempts to make cheap lighting solutions – such as building a simple diffuser for $5 rather than buy a real one for $30 or buy a faulty remote switch for $10 off Ebay rather than buy Canon’s for $60. The fact is, in many situations lighting is more important than the lens. The true pros have known this for a long time – just take a look at what Profoto lights cost. With portrait photography, lighting can make or break a shot.

Here’s the ugly truth, for the majority of macro photographs natural light simply won’t cut it. Yes, there are exceptions of course. I once had a discussion with another photographer on whether the MT-24EX (or the MR-14EX) is necessary when using the MP-E 65. His answer was that he does abstract photography at F2.8. Well, if you want to take blurry pictures at F2.8 (and I must admit that his look quite nice) then you do not need lighting. If you object is stationary, you can use a tripod and macro rail and unnatural lighting may not be necessary – though you will probably find some reflectors and diffusers helpful. For insects and flowers bouncing in the wind though, you will need some lighting.

There are a variety of lighting solutions you can use and there are even more custom solutions out there. The key gotcha in macro is that your standard on-camera flash will not work. It has to do with the angle between the flash and your lens. Because you are getting very close to the subject, your lens will block some of the light. In a number of situations you will also need the light to be powerful – meaning almost right on your subject. On camera flash simply cannot do this. Note that by “on-camera” I mean both the popup flashes you find on some camera models and the hot-shoe flashes (such as the Canon 580EX) that you can buy. There is a difference though. While the popup flash is practically useless for macro, a hot shoe flash can be made useful if you can direct the light better to your subject or get the flash off the camera.

To get the flash off the camera, simply buy an extension cord. They are not very expensive and are well worth it. If you follow strobists, you can also use his techniques for off camera. Another solution is to create a reflective “tunnel” that goes from the flash mounted to the hot shoe to the front of the lens.

When I first started in macro photography, I would manually hold the flash off the camera. I used a tripod to hold the camera and I held the flash and the remote trigger. This took decent photos, but eventually I wanted more. “More”, meant a solution specifically for macro.

Canon happens to sell two different lighting solutions for macro. Nikon also has solutions, but I am not as familiar with them. At the low end is the MR-14EX, which is basically a ring flash. At the high end is the twin flash MT-24EX. There is, of course, debate on which is better. Those who favor the MR-14EX say the MT-24EX is too harsh (the flashes are bare vs. the MR-14EX diffused) and they prefer the effect of the MR-14EX. Those who favor the MT-24EX like its increased versatility and feel the light from the MR-14EX is too flat, too with MR-14EX favorers respond that this can be fixed through settings. Personally, I strongly prefer the MT-24EX. It is true that out of the box the lights are too harsh – but this is easily corrected with diffusers. I prefer this mainly because I can reposition the lights as needed and try more interesting effects – such as changing the direction and angles of the lights.

In terms of what type of lighting you will get, this mainly has to do with money. If you can afford it, and you are serious about macro, get the $650 MT-24EX. If you don’t know how much you’ll get into macro, get an extension cord for your hot shoe flash. For an end today, I will show two photos of somewhat similar subjects to show how lighting (and lenses) can make a difference.

The first was taken with a Canon 500D diopter on a Sigma 80-400mm lens with a 580EX flash off the camera. Notice the shadows and poor details.

This one was taken with the Canon MP-E 65 and the MT-24EX.

Macro photography lenses

In my last post, I started discussing what is necessary to get started in macro photography. I started with the basics – extension tubes and diopters. Eventually though, once you get sufficiently addicted to macro photography you will want to buy a macro lens. So which macro lens should you buy? While I cannot answer this question for other SLR platforms, it is easy to answer for Canon.

The Canon 100mm 2.8 lens.

Before I start discussing the individual lenses, I will mention what you should look for in a macro lens. The following are very important when dealing with macro lenses.

1. Magnification. Most macro lenses are 1:1, though the MP-E 65 and the Canon 50mm are not.
2. Focal length. The longer the focal length, the more distant you can be from your subject. For some types of insects, this is critical.
3. Weight. Some lenses, such as the Canon 180mm, are quite heavy. It is up to you what weight you feel comfortable with.
4. Sharpness. Obviously you want as sharp as possible. Sharpness is more critical for macro then it is for most other types of photography.
5. Color contrast. You don’t want to spend all of your time in Photoshop.

What you should not care about is autofocus. Very often I have seen in the reviews of particular macro lenses that they do not autofocus well. This is partly to do with the fact that macro lenses focus closer than normal lenses, so there is more distance the AF must follow. However the truth is serious macro photographers almost never use AF. In a future blog I will cover how to focus, but whenever you read a review trashing a macro for its poor AF performance you should consider the writer a novice in macro photography.

Canon, Tamron, and Sigma all offer several macro lenses each. I will now discuss each of these macro lenses that exist at this time. Please note that all macro lenses are currently primes (with the possible exception of the MP-E 65). A number of zoom lenses claim to have “macro” capabilities but none offer 1:1 magnification. All true macro lenses will have at least 1:1 magnification (actually all but the MP-E 65 are 1:1).

Canon 100mm 2.8 – This is simply the best choice to start out with for macro photography. This focal length is ideal for most types of macro photography and this is one very sharp lens. Unlike many other macro lenses, this lens also makes a decent portrait lens. This lens is also very reasonably priced for the quality you get.

Canon 180mm F/3.5L – If you have the money, this is the lens to go for. It offers the best length for the Canon macro lenses and has the best color contrast. It is also the most expensive macro lens available.

Canon 50mm F/2.5 Compact – This isn’t a true macro, as you need to buy the life size converter to get its magnification to macro levels. It’s also a bit too close for most macro work. I would recommend staying away from it unless you have a specific situation where it is necessary.

Canon MP-E 65 – This is a very unique macro lens capable of very high magnification. I will cover this lens in detail in future posts but for now keep in mind that this is a very difficult lens to use and will take a lot of practice to get good shots. Also, this lens usually requires high end lighting to get good shots.

Canon EF-S 60mm F/2.8 – This lens only works on cropped sensors, so it will not work on the 5D or 1D series. 60mm is also a bit on the short end for macros. The 100mm Canon is a much better buy.

Sigma 150mm F/2.8 – Generally I am not very crazy about Sigma. In my experience Sigma lenses tend to lag behind their Canon counterparts in image sharpness and other matters. Sigma lenses also tend to have poor resale values. However, for the price this lens is certainly worth a look. I know of one individual who swears by this lens.

Sigma 180mm F/3.5 – The reviews I have seen compare this lens favorably with the Canon 180mm, though individuals who have used both almost unilaterally prefer the Canon. This lens costs quite a bit less than its Canon equivalent so it is worth consideration.

Sigma 105mm F/2.8 – This lens compares favorably with the Canon, but at near the price why take the hit with resale value? Just buy the Canon.

Sigma 50mm F/2.8 – For most situations, 50mm is simply too close. The 100mm macro is a much better working distance.

Tamron also makes lenses in a number of these focal lengths. In my experience, while Tamron generally makes good lenses, the resale values are even lower than the Sigma equivalents. Still, most of their lenses, like the Sigmas, are priced a bit lower than the Canon equivalents and are worth a look.

I will end today by posting one of my macro shots that I took of a fly (now that I have figured out how to post images). In future blog posts I will detail further how I took this shot and ones similar to it.

How to get started in macro photography

Macro photography is unique from other types of photography in that equipment does make a serious difference. With landscape and people photography a wide variety of lenses can be useful. While certain lenses are obviously better than others, the truth is a top notch photographer can create interesting pictures with even substandard lenses. This is not the case for macro photography. The simple fact is macro photography requires specific equipment in order to be successful.

Macro photography equipment falls into two categories.

1. Optics – most people realize this. Standard lenses simply cannot take macro pictures. You need either a macro lens or an adapter for an existing lens. I will discuss this in more detail shortly.
2. Lighting – most people do not realize that proper lighting is vitally important for many types of macro shots. I will discuss when lighting is necessary and what types of lighting are available shortly.

Before I get into the different types of equipment you can buy, I need to mention what is meant by 1:1 when discussing macro photography. Basically, when you take a picture at 1:1, this means that your photograph fills the space equal to the size of your sensor. So, if you have a Canon 5D camera with a 35mm sensor, a 35mm object will fill the entire frame when taking a picture at 1:1. At 1:2, a 70mm object will fill the entire frame and at 2:1 a 17.5mm object will fill the entire frame. When people speak about macro photography, they generally mean photography close to or exceeding 1:1.

The first thing you will need to do is purchase the optics that enable you to take macro shots. There are two choices you have – either buy a macro lens or buy an adapter for an existing lens. If you are not sure how much you will get into macro photography, the latter is probably where you will want to start. There are two types of adapters that you can purchase.

1. Extension tubes – basically extension tubes are hollow tubes that increase the distance between the front lens element and the back of the camera. To determine the magnification using extension tubes, divide the length of the lens by the length of the extension tubes and add the original magnification of the lens (available in the specifications of the lens). So, if you have a 50mm lens that by default has .25x magnification (1:4) and you add 25mm of extension, the final magnification will be .75x. (25/50) + .25 = .75. From this information it is evident that extension tubes work best on short lenses. In order to achieve 1:1 magnification with a 400mm lens you would need almost 400mm of extension! Extension tubes are rather inexpensive and I recommend those made by Kenko. The set comes with 12mm, 20mm, and 36mm extension tubes and costs only $169.
2. Diopters – basically these look like a thick filter that is placed at the end of the lens. The formula for determining the resulting magnification is complicated and depends on the inner optics of the lens, but in general diopters work best on long lenses. Using a diopter you can achieve close to 1x magnification on a 300mm or a 400mm lens. Some photographers do not like diopters as much as extension tubes though because there is a loss of optical quality, as you are adding optical elements. An ideal diopter to purchase is the Canon 500D. Although it is made by Canon, it will work with all SLRs – including Nikon. The price of the 500D depends on the size you need but a 77mm 500D costs about $140.

   This picture of a spider was taken with the Canon 500D on a Sigma 80-400mm lens on the Canon 5D.

   Tomorrow I will continue this discussion with information about macro lenses.