Canon macro lenses

B

Beelzebrush

Active member
Nice! I was just about to post to see if you\'d got your lens yet!!

You\'ll have to post some pics... It should be great for nature stuff. As mentioned.... a shorter focal length is definitely more convenient for mini photos :)
 
M

Modderrhu

New member
Alright, alright! Let me have some fun with it first, dammit! :p Seriously, this lense necessitates a better tripod, so I\'ve ordered a new one. And I\'m still waiting for the ring flash, so I\'m still mounting one on the camera. The only trouble I\'m having with the lense is its very long focus range, makes the 400D\'s auto-focus splutter horridly when I\'m trying to follow a quick-moving little critter.

First, the ubiquitous mini. f32, 8 second shutter, ISO100, natural light. Untouched except for sizing to fit nicely on this page.
Clip5.jpg



A very co-operative moth. f14, 1/200 shutter, ISO400, with flash. Untouched except resizing.
Clip6.jpg


Some wing detail of the moth. A 100% crop.
Clip3-1.jpg


And some head detail for that same moth, 80% crop. A little over-exposed to eke out some detail.
Clip4.jpg


A honey bee. These bastards move a little too quickly for the 100mm macro\'s auto-focus. f9, 1/160 shutter, ISO400. Untouched, except for resizing.
IMG_1955.jpg
 
B

Beelzebrush

Active member
The detail on the moth is ace! I\'ll have to dig out some close-in stuff too...

Here\'s a pic I took earlier with my Tamron lens, while it\'s not really a close up macro type affair I quite like it - I did increase the saturation slightly though :)


2237363153_aa03eb0117_o.jpg
 
L

Legacy Account

Active member
Come on then, what tripod you ordered?

I need a new one, but a decent carbon fibre one small & light enough to strap to my bag costs a packet. Anyone got any suggestions?
 
M

Modderrhu

New member
Getting a Manfrotto 055XPROB. The others I was looking at are the 055MF3 (carbon fibre, but twice the price) and the 458B NEOTEC. Best all-round compromise, it bends into all sorts of positions (nice for macro), it goes low (also nice for macro), and it goes high enough that I don\'t have to hurt my back or go down on one knee to look through the viewfinder (my primary concern). And it suits the 390 head that suits me. All-in-all a comparitively cheap bit of kit that\'s pretty much what I want.

Aye, carbon fibre does cost a packet. More than twice the cost of an aluminium \'pod. Would a monopod work for you, Munkie? I\'ve seen a couple of tricks that stabilise them nicely.

This macro lense has revealed that my 400D has a bit of back-focus. :( Kinda explains why I\'ve always had trouble getting in-focus shots with wide-open apertures. ffs Time to send it in for some adjustment. ffs :mad::cussing:
 
L

Legacy Account

Active member
Been looking at those Manfrottos myself. Nice pieces of gear for sure. Still not sure what to get and how much to spend. Dunno whether the amount I use a tripod warrants blowing over £300 on a CF model....???:duh:

Canon should sort out that back focussing problem. Bitch having to send it away though. Read about quite a few problems with that on many makes and models. Wonder if volume of sales is playing a part in a drop off in QC....
 
M

Modderrhu

New member
Even if you get a CF \'pod, you\'ve still got to add a head to it. And that\'s another 0.5Kg at least.

I got the 055 because it\'s a tall \'pod - my back used to hurt with my old \'pod when I was peering through the viewfinder for a period of time. But seriously, the thing\'s a monster. It\'s rock solid, and I trust it completely, but it\'s heavy. Keep thinking to myself that I should\'ve gotten the 190 instead, then I remember my poor aching back.

Manfrotto have >>this<< cute little \'configurator\' jobbie. Maybe that\'ll give you an idea or two.
 
L

Legacy Account

Active member
Problem solved!

Stumbled on a camera shop in Hong Kong and bought one of these:

Benro A-250EX
With one of these heads.....

It came in a nice bag with a toolkit and is built like a tank. Heard rumours that they rip off Gitzo gear, and the build quality would suggest that to be the case - far in excess of anything coming remotely close to what I paid - £45!

Folds up to around 40cm and weighs just over a kilo. Stands around 140cm fully extended with the head on it. An absolute bargain and highly recommended if you can find them.
 
Dragonsreach

Dragonsreach

Super Moderator
Staff member
Scott:
I say this with feeling:--
You Spawny Git :D lol

The gitzo is very similar to a BENBO tripod I was loaned way back in the 80\'s and fell in love with, just could never afford.

Enjoy and use well.:D
 
R

Roger Bunting

New member
I think my question may be apt to this thread so I\'ll hijack it for a moment. I\'ve recently received a little extra cash and the thought occured to me that I might be able to afford a dslr (I\'ll be finally buying a camera, probably in March or April). Before this I was going for a compact, something like the Canon A650is, and I may yet still. Okay, so my question is what would I really need, for general use and taking pics of minis? All this talk of macro lenses implies that it would be a good idea to get one for the mini shots, but are they necessary? My photo-fu is lacking, only really having had very limited experience with a 35mm slr and that was just the basic stuff, no special lenses or whatever.
 
L

Legacy Account

Active member
7 Day Shop are selling off Canon EOS 350Ds with an 18-55mm kit lens for £299. That is an absolute bargain - I bought one for the mrs and she loves it!

I still thoroughly recommend the Canon EF 50mm Compact Macro as a fantastic quality and comparatively cheap macro lens that you can use for many other things as well.

You could obviously also go with Nikon. Their D40 looks good value with a decent kit lens included - just make sure your lenses have an AF motor built in as the body doesn\'t. I believe there\'s a great value Tamron 90mm macro that\'s supposed to be a cracker - ask Beelzebrush, I think he\'s got one!

@DR: My dad has had a Benbo for more than 20 years. It\'s had the crap smashed out of it - there\'s almost no paint left on the thing - and he still uses it as his main support. The things are utterly indestructable. They\'re a bit like wrestling an octopuss at times mind. I once saw a chap smash an expensive Nikon lens to bits through poor Benbo skills! :D
 
B

Beelzebrush

Active member
Roger... I\'d probably get the D40x instead of the D40 if I went for a Nikon... it\'s a little more future proof and they are supposed to be good cameras - the only drawback is that they don\'t have an auto focus motor, so your lens will have to be compatible (unless you don\'t mind manually focusing). You won\'t go far wrong with the canon 350d either or for a little more money the 400d.

I\'ve not tried the kit lens for taking pics of minis but I reckon you\'ll end up needing a macro lens... the Tamron that Scott mentioned is a nice lens for both macro and portraits. I think mine cost about £260.00 from memory. So bear this in mind for your budget when you get your dslr.

I reckon that if I was going to buy a compact I\'d get the canon G9
 
R

Roger Bunting

New member
Okay, so it looks as the 7 day shop either doesn\'t have the 350D in stock or no longer sell it. I googled it and a few of the other shops don\'t have it either. They do have the 400D plus a macro lense at about £529.

It seems a similar story for the Nikon D40x. I guess that\'s probably due to the release of the D60 which is replacing it. I\'ll have to see how much the price drops once it is released (in a couple of days) as £529 plus macro lens would probably be a bit more than I\'m prepared to spend at the moment, considering I\'ll be needing a tripod and all the other gubbins as well.
 
L

Legacy Account

Active member
Roger - don\'t be afraid of using Ebay for buying lenses. You can pick up some of the older or less well used models quite cheaply. I\'ve had several bargains including a 28-105mm that was almost unused for 70 quid - they\'re around 200 new. Turned out to be a cracking low budget candid and portrait lens. Managed to get my Tamron 17-50mm for cheap as well and it was pretty much brand new.

Well worth keeping an eye on listings for a bargain!
 
L

Legacy Account

Active member
Just vet your seller really well - I\'ve bought plenty of expensive gear off Ebay and I aint had a dud yet.

Private sellers are your best bet for lenses. Don\'t think I\'d buy a camera off Ebay mind....
 
W

War Griffon

New member
Originally posted by Beelzebrush
Roger... I\'d probably get the D40x instead of the D40 if I went for a Nikon... it\'s a little more future proof and they are supposed to be good cameras - the only drawback is that they don\'t have an auto focus motor, so your lens will have to be compatible (unless you don\'t mind manually focusing). You won\'t go far wrong with the canon 350d either or for a little more money the 400d.
Click to expand...

You might want to check out this guy as well for cameras, I just bought a Nikon D80 kit from them and was very pleased with what I got for my money he also does a lot of trade with Cannon stuff as well. LINK
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back To Top
Top