# I don't normally do a lot of macro....



## itsnotmeyouknow (Apr 5, 2012)

...but I like the sharpness of macro lenses. I have been playing with my new 100mmL macro though:

I'm finding macro work quite fascinating. None of these are technical masterpieces or anything but just me getting to know it a little better:

Canon 5D mk III EF 100 f/2.8L macro at f/7.1 1/640 ISO 250 handheld




forget-me-nits-with-raindrops by singingsnapper, on Flickr

Same camera/lens, f/8 1/200 ISO 800 handheld




forget-me-nots! by singingsnapper, on Flickr

I found sand particularly fascinating!

f/16 1/40 Handheld ISO 250




sand! by singingsnapper, on Flickr


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## itsnotmeyouknow (Apr 5, 2012)

Here's some coffee to bring you round!

Canon 5D mk III EF 100 f/2.8L Macro at f/20 1.6 secs tripod natural light (I moved my coffee grinder outside in the yard and shot from above, removing the hood to avoid shadows) 1:1 magnification




Wake-up-and-smell-the-coffee! by singingsnapper, on Flickr


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## Wideopen (Apr 8, 2012)

Very beautiful! I'm planning to get into macro also. Those pictures are amazing!


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## Orion (Apr 13, 2012)

I do LOTS of macro . . . here is my latest using 100mm f/2.8 +36mm ext (Kenko) + 5DmkIII

this otherwise tiny flower is only about 6-8mm from petal to petal








All rights reserved by Valentino Antonio Photography


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## phixional ninja (Apr 13, 2012)

Yay for the 100mm L! I got mine back in January, and I'm so excited that there are finally flowers and bugs to shoot! A couple of cherry blossoms from the other day:


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## Marsu42 (Apr 13, 2012)

Wideopen said:


> Very beautiful! I'm planning to get into macro also. Those pictures are amazing!



... it gets even more amazing when using focus stacking which combines the lens' sharpness with a larger dof.


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## itsnotmeyouknow (Apr 14, 2012)

I'll have to figure out focus stacking. Have never done it before


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## Marsu42 (Apr 14, 2012)

itsnotmeyouknow said:


> I'll have to figure out focus stacking. Have never done it before



I've done it with either Helicon Remote (needs a attached laptop) or Magic Lantern which does the same thing, is free and just needs the camera & a tripod. Assemble with Helicon Focus.

However there's one catch, the reason for which there are macro slides: When doing focus stacks from a stationary tripod, the field of view / magnification changes with the focus - so when assembling there's missing data you cannot conjure up later when an object is far up front of the focus zone, this shows as a blur around this object. You can postprocess-coverup this, but only to some extent.


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## Orion (Apr 16, 2012)

more flower power (No PS. . . . used handheld light)


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## itsnotmeyouknow (Apr 16, 2012)

A few more this time from the lake district:

Canon 5D mk III EF 100L macro f/14 1/125 ISO 250 handheld




bluebells by singingsnapper, on Flickr

and a flower close by with insect tried to get closer but it flew away!

Canon 5D mk III EF 100L f/18 1/200 ISO 250




insect-on-small-flowerElterwater-woods by singingsnapper, on Flickr


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## itsnotmeyouknow (Apr 23, 2012)

Just come back from a weekend in Dubai. Unfortunately there were sandstorms no opportunity to take photographs of the skyline, even at night except last night when we had no time before our flight home. 

We spent a few hours making the most of the sun and heat (33 degrees) at the Sheraton resort at Jumeirah Beach. I only brought the one lens with me (my 24 - 70L) and spotted this Red Veined darter on one of the sunbeds taking in the rays. I regretted not having my macro with me but as we were originally returning to our hotel 36km away in Deira for a safari trip I elected to take only 1 lens with me to the beach. I think the 24 - 70 proved a very useful tool even so, and the dragonfly was a willing model. 

Canon 5D mk III EF 24 - 70L @ f/13 and 70mm ISO 250 1/640




Dubai-critter-enjoying-the-sun by singingsnapper, on Flickr


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## Jettatore (Apr 23, 2012)

Really nice shots. I quite like the coffee beans, the flower posted directly under that shot and the Dragon Fly shot on the 24-70. Awesome.


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## Kernuak (Apr 23, 2012)

itsnotmeyouknow said:


> ...but I like the sharpness of macro lenses. I have been playing with my new 100mmL macro though:
> 
> I'm finding macro work quite fascinating. None of these are technical masterpieces or anything but just me getting to know it a little better:
> 
> ...


One thing I like about macro, is that you are often surprised at the small details that you wouldn't normally see. Insects are especially surprising, because you don't normally get the chance to seee them while they are still, but even flowers show up tiny details you would normally overlook and some everyday images can make striking abstracts. I like to use selective focus, rather than worry about the lack of depth of field, I often embrace it to try to be more creative. I've even used the 135mm at near 1:1 and f/2 (using extension tubes) on wood sorrel, where the depth of field is about the thickness of one of the petals. I haven't had a chance to try some more like that, but I intend to.


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## marekjoz (Apr 23, 2012)

Something what has happened last weekend, unfortunately without true macro lenses + ca 50% crop of it


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## marekjoz (Apr 23, 2012)

And yet another approach...


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## itsnotmeyouknow (Apr 25, 2012)

One from Dubai, some lillies in a square in the Deira district:

canon 5D mk III EF 100 L macro f/13 1/100 ISO 1000




dubai-lillies by singingsnapper, on Flickr


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## itsnotmeyouknow (May 5, 2012)

One from Korea, a kind of Beetle that i saw on the steps of a temple

Canon 5D mk III EF 100L macro f/11 1/80 ISO 1000




Korea-creature by singingsnapper, on Flickr


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## itsnotmeyouknow (May 14, 2012)

While in Seoul, I went to the main camera shop area of the city, and had a look for lenses that would be of interest. I found a few examples of the EF 180L macro around at various ages and prices, and also had a look at the tamron 180 f/3.5 macro, which although it was very sharp, the focussing motor was pretty loud on it. The price was a little more than the second hand 180L I bought in the end. This was my first real shoot using it as a macro lens:

Canon EF 180mm f/3.5L macro. f/16 1/250 ISO 800




fly-in-the-garden by singingsnapper, on Flickr


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## knkedlaya (May 14, 2012)

I do lot of macro. Glass is super sharp. Saw erratic behavior when I use 25mm extension tube(local made) under low light. It just focuses to something automatically even if it is set to manual mode.


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## JasonATL (May 14, 2012)

I don't do a lot of macro either. Since these cameras have video functions, I'd thought I'd share my first ever macro with the Canon 5D Mark III, 70-200mm IS 2.8L, and Kenko extension tube. It is also appropriate for a Monday morning. The video is less than 1 minute long:

Some Days...


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## itsnotmeyouknow (May 14, 2012)

JasonATL said:


> I don't do a lot of macro either. Since these cameras have video functions, I'd thought I'd share my first ever macro with the Canon 5D Mark III, 70-200mm IS 2.8L, and Kenko extension tube. It is also appropriate for a Monday morning. The video is less than 1 minute long:
> 
> Some Days...



thanks for that enjoyed it!


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## Jamesy (May 14, 2012)

LMAO ;D


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## itsnotmeyouknow (May 16, 2012)

A few more:

Spent some time in the garden finding macro subjects:

Daisies:

Canon 5D mk III EF 180 mm L macro f/13 1/200 ISO 400




daisy-with-larvae by singingsnapper, on Flickr

Same camera/lens f/16 1/800 ISO 320




hello-ant! by singingsnapper, on Flickr


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## itsnotmeyouknow (May 16, 2012)

Another from the garden:

Canon 5D mk III EF 180 f/3.5L Macro at f/16 1/200 ISO 200




small-flower-in-garden by singingsnapper, on Flickr


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## itsnotmeyouknow (May 19, 2012)

Arrived back in the Lake district again. Short walk out and grabbed this shot of a fly enjoying some nectar from a buttercup

Canon 5D mk III EF 180 f/3.5L at f/11 1/200 ISO 800 Manual focus handheld




fly-on-buttercup by singingsnapper, on Flickr


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## arcanej (May 20, 2012)

The 100L is a lot of fun. 




GS0C1301.jpg by Evan's Pix, on Flickr


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## itsnotmeyouknow (May 22, 2012)

Used the 180 macro almost exclusively around Rydal

Canon 5D mk III EF 180 f/3.5L macro 1/200 ISO 200




daisy by singingsnapper, on Flickr




daisy1 by singingsnapper, on Flickr

and a roadside flower (don't know name)

f/3.5 1/400 ISO 200




little-roadside-flower-2 by singingsnapper, on Flickr

f/11 1/200 ISO 500




little-roadside-flower by singingsnapper, on Flickr


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## itsnotmeyouknow (May 23, 2012)

Had another look at the third shot as quite a lot of noise in the darkest area as I'd pushed the levels up a bit. Selected the flower then inversed the selection to exclude it then reduced the exposure of the background by 4 stops to keep some colour in the left part of the shot




flower-edit by singingsnapper, on Flickr


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## Wideopen (May 25, 2012)

Youre macros are very beaufiful! Thankyou for posting them.


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## Marsu42 (May 25, 2012)

itsnotmeyouknow said:


> Used the 180 macro almost exclusively around Rydal



I like the first one because of the bokeh background. However, your last two shots show what I'm experiencing with my 60d (!) too and why the 5d3 at low iso has been criticized: The noise/dr at low iso is not very good, and if you raise shadows too much you're getting distracting pattern noise in the background. If the flower isn't moving and you're using a tripod, you'd better use hdr (exposure fusion) on this.


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## itsnotmeyouknow (Jun 10, 2012)

A macro shot while I was on the hill:

Canon 5D mk III EF 180 f/3.5L macro at f/9 1/400 ISO 800




insect-on-butterfly by singingsnapper, on Flickr


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