Beginner Low Budget Macro Setup

Forkbeard

Forkbeard

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Jim
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I want to try a bit of macro photography and am on a pretty small budget. I've been looking at things like the Raynox adaptor lenses and cheap LED type ring flashes to couple with a 55-300 for my D3200. I don't own the lens yet, but was thinking about it as a stopgap for wildlife/ nature shots etc while I save the money for something longer/faster. Will this setup work for delving into macro?
 
I assume you have a kit/standard lens, something around 18 - 55mm? Think about getting a reversing ring and/or extension tubes to use with it, if you want to try macro without spending very much.
 
Another thing you could try is an old manual focus macro lens via a cheap adapter.

I'm not a fan of manual focus with modern DSLR's but close up macro type stuff is ok and you'll be focusing manual so an old manual lens should be ok, if you can find a bargain.
 
The cheapest way to dip your toe in the water is a set of close up filters from Ebay for about £10-£15.

Used on a kit lens with a relatively small filter size they can give surprisingly good results once you get used to the extremely small DOF.

I have used these lenses on a Canon 350D and 450D with the kit lens (18-55mm)

This was taken on the 350D with a +4 Dioptre filter on the kit lens:


So was this:

.
 
Many years before I had macro lenses, I found close up filters allowed me an entry into this genre of photography. Try it, it is better than spending a fortune on a specialist lens and finding that shallow DoF puts you off the whole idea.
 
reversing rings are a good option too - where basically you reverse an old 50mm (about £!0 on ebay) onto the front of your lens and get close to 1:1

I strongly recomend "small things big" by paul harcourt davies as a good guide to these issues
 
do you just need some form of adapter plate with that method then Pete?
 
samp09 said:
do you just need some form of adapter plate with that method then Pete?
Click to expand...

reversing ring is basically two threads it screws on to the filter thread of your lens, then to the filter thread of the one you are reversing (not to be confused ewith reversing adaptors which reverse your lens on your body )

like this http://www.amazon.co.uk/Fotodiox-58mm-Close-up-Anodized-Panasonic/dp/B001G42EIK although you can get them cheaper on ebay - you also have to make sure you've got the right size for your filter threads
 
If you wanted to get the 55-300mm lens, this would work well with a raynox on the end, and may be more useful to you in the long run as it would allow you to try some macro stuff but also the lens can be used by itself for telephoto work with larger wildlife etc.
 
FallOutBoy said:
If you wanted to get the 55-300mm lens, this would work well with a raynox on the end, and may be more useful to you in the long run as it would allow you to try some macro stuff but also the lens can be used by itself for telephoto work with larger wildlife etc.
Click to expand...

Yep, that's what I had in mind. I would more than likely be buying the tele-zoom anyway.
 
big soft moose said:
reversing ring is basically two threads it screws on to the filter thread of your lens, then to the filter thread of the one you are reversing (not to be confused ewith reversing adaptors which reverse your lens on your body )
like this http://www.amazon.co.uk/Fotodiox-58mm-Close-up-Anodized-Panasonic/dp/B001G42EIK although you can get them cheaper on ebay - you also have to make sure you've got the right size for your filter threads
Click to expand...

You're confusing me Pete. I bought my first reversing ring in the late 60s, to mount the lens on the body in reverse. That's how I've always understood it. Don't think I've ever heard of a reversing adapter. Surely the type that connects two lenses is a coupling ring?
 
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