Macro lens recommendation?

Big Rob

Big Rob

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Robin
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I have got into reptile keeping in the last few months,i have a cornsnake and 2 crested gecko's. Can anyone please recommend a reasonably cheap macro lens that will enable me to take some half decent shots of my reptiles. My budget is between £100 and £150 so obviously I'm going to be looking at pre-owned stuff. Thanks in advance,Robin.
If anyone has got one for sale then please get in touch. Oh and its for a Canon 60D.:D
 
I love the sigma 105 but might be a bit pricey for you, not sure of second hand prices
You could try extension tubes or reversing rings as a budget option
I keep hoping I bump into someone with lizards or snakes as fancy trying to shoot them. Whatever way you go, it'll be fun
 
I use a 60mm macro for mine (on FF), I'm not interested in macro as such, just close up as it were. Not sure what is available for Canon (I shoot Nikon), but the Tamron 60mm f2 is very good though may be out of your budget.
BruceMo said:
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I keep hoping I bump into someone with lizards or snakes as fancy trying to shoot them. Whatever way you go, it'll be fun
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Should have gone to the megameet then, we took snakes and lizards and other stuff to be photographed ;)
 
You could probably pick up a canon EF 50 f2.5 macro lens for the upper end of your budget secondhand. It's a great little lens and doubles up as a good portrait lens too. Just a suggestion but it is a great lens and very sharp as well. If you could stretch it a bit more, the EF-s 60mm macro lens is pretty good too.
 
PaulButler said:
I use a 60mm macro for mine (on FF), I'm not interested in macro as such, just close up as it were. Not sure what is available for Canon (I shoot Nikon), but the Tamron 60mm f2 is very good though may be out of your budget.
Should have gone to the megameet then, we took snakes and lizards and other stuff to be photographed ;)
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Where was that? Not many meets up my way
I'm hoping to talk someone into bringing to studio or set up lights at theirs if they have room. Just one of many things to do on my list
 
BruceMo said:
Where was that? Not many meets up my way
I'm hoping to talk someone into bringing to studio or set up lights at theirs if they have room. Just one of many things to do on my list
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Dunstable I think, near the zoo. If you are anywhere near North Devon you are welcome to shoot mine
 
I have a 105 canon fit but the second hand price seems to be obove yer budget. Dunno if we're allowed to transact out with the classifieds section anyhow.
 
BRASH said:
I have a 105 canon fit but the second hand price seems to be obove yer budget. Dunno if we're allowed to transact out with the classifieds section anyhow.
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There's one way to rectify the out of my budget problem Brash,LOWER YOUR PRICE! ;)
I've no idea about sales restrictions,sorry.
 
Big Rob said:
There's one way to rectify the out of my budget problem Brash,LOWER YOUR PRICE! ;)
I've no idea about sales restrictions,sorry.
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I'm afraid, seeing as you have a Robin as your avatar, I cannot deal with you. (My hatred of Robin pics is legendary);)
 
BruceMo said:
We are all dead posh here noo. Getting a new museum and everything haha
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I do visit now and again. A mate of mine runs a Skinhead Reggae night at the Braes Bar every few months. I sometimes go to that.
 
Another possibility is the Tamron 90mm F2.8 Macro, I use one on my Canon, the lens gives a reasonable working distance to the subject matter and it is typically between £150-200 secondhand. LCE has two secondhand Canon mount lenses available and MPB has four. It's a very good lens , if not quite in the Sigma 105mm league, hence the typically lower prices.
 
BRASH said:
I do visit now and again. A mate of mine runs a Skinhead Reggae night at the Braes Bar every few months. I sometimes go to that.
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Give me a shout next one, might pop down for a beer and a mini meet :beer:
 
BruceMo said:
Give me a shout next one, might pop down for a beer and a mini meet :beer:
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Next one is in February I believe. Tickets have all gone but I'm sure I'd manage to get a spare one.
 
BRASH said:
You have changed your avatar to a worse picture. I'm not talking to you.
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Yes yes I realise my face is nowhere near as cool as your planets I borrowed...they will go back, you know I change my avatar all the time
 
HarveyM said:
Another possibility is the Tamron 90mm F2.8 Macro, I use one on my Canon, the lens gives a reasonable working distance to the subject matter and it is typically between £150-200 secondhand. LCE has two secondhand Canon mount lenses available and MPB has four. It's a very good lens , if not quite in the Sigma 105mm league, hence the typically lower prices.
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I'd second that - it works well with teleconverters or tubes too if you later want more magnification (course if your budget won't stretch if you have a 50mm already you can do a lot with just tubes , or a reversing ring and another old 50mm ... a lot of people do good stuff with the raynox suplementary lenses too,)
 
Extension tubes but you'll want contacts to control Aperture unless you go for an older manual lens. Depends how much you'll use it and also if you'll use it for non macro in which case you may be better going for a newer lens with AF etc
 
I think for your budget, i'd second the extension tubes. A set of kenko tubes with af will be around £80 ish if i remember correctly. Coupled with your 50mm, you should be good to go. I have the tubes and the Sigma 105mm, but as others have said, that lens still holds it's price well.
 
Big Rob said:
Ooops,Sorry. :(
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Its fine to say I want it, Brash start a sale thread for me.
Also you can't leave feedback for anything other than a sales thread either.
 
smr said:
Just jumping in here, love macro photography, it looks like loads of fun so I've been looking at lenses last night, dithering over the Sigma 105mm or wondering whether it'd be worth paying almost double for the Canon 100mm. Anyone got either or both and care to shed any light? (no pun intended :p)
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I have the Sigma 105 but not tried the Canon. The general consensus is the Sigma is sharper than the Canon. I have no proof of that but the Sigma is one sharp lens.
 
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Gah I don't know what to doooo!! I have had my heart set on a 100-400 mk2 Canon, and I will get one but I may put it on hold - the past couple of days I've been reading and researching about Macro lenses, looking at flickr pools etc. and it looks like so much fun! So close to buying the Sigma off Amazon tonight for £330, but I could HDEW the Canon 2.8L 100mm - which I would prefer, for £500. In the end the difference is only £170 which I could easily justify because it'll be a lens to own and use for a long time... but the Canon is a grey import, or as people on here say, pale grey with HDEW - I don't mind buying from them having read their customer service and other happy customer's thoughts on here... but now I'm wondering whether to get a macro, and wait until a couple of months into the new year to get the 100-400 mk2, or get the 100-400 now (and no macro), and then I guess I'm STILL deciding on whether to get the Canon or the Sigma Macro - the Canon seems to have faster AF, it's weather sealed, sharpness isn't a problem as they are as sharp as each other really, but the Canon I've read does produce more contrast and looking and comparing hte flickr pools for both lenses it does appear to be the case.... hmm decisions decisions !

I suppose the one thing which would make sense to buy a macro is that hte weather has been appalling here recently, and I couldn't really see myself venturing out much with a 100-400 lens anyway, the macro however has endless possibilities, indoors and outdoors.
 
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The 100-400 mkii has a good close focus distance, less than 1 metre and with the IS capability would probably suffice for close photography until you save up again for the Canon 100. I have both, they are both fantastic lenses but I've found I've been using the 100-400 a lot more than the true macro lens of late.
I would grab the zoom and wait to see if it will cope with your needs then add a dedicated macro lens later if you feel you need it. Only my opinion but the mkii Canon is an amazing and very flexible lens.
 
wardy07 said:
The 100-400 mkii has a good close focus distance, less than 1 metre and with the IS capability would probably suffice for close photography until you save up again for the Canon 100. I have both, they are both fantastic lenses but I've found I've been using the 100-400 a lot more than the true macro lens of late.
I would grab the zoom and wait to see if it will cope with your needs then add a dedicated macro lens later if you feel you need it. Only my opinion but the mkii Canon is an amazing and very flexible lens.
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.... x 2 on the excellence of the Canon 100-400mm L II and it being a very practical and high quality all-rounder with a minimum focussing distance of ~3ft. But for proper macro shots I use the Canon 100mm f/2.8L IS Macro. HDEW are long established and based with premises (office, not shop) in the UK and offer extremely good prices and also with solid warranties - I have bought three times from them and also experienced their excellent aftersales service.

Check out my Flickr page if you want to see some examples of images taken with these two lenses.
 
There are plenty of options out there a set of close up filters or extension tubes can be had for £25 or less from eBay the tubes can work well with your existing lenses as well.
Ultra close up on the cheap is a reversing ring or if you search around camera fairs ebay charity shops you may well drop on a couple of old lenses I've: a 135mm and a wide angle reversed on the front using a coupling ring does a great job. I have a couple of macro lenses 60mm and 105mm but rarely use them now as my 70-200mm with 2x and crop sensor body usually gets me close enough for what I want to shoot.
Sigma old and new are usually very sharp as are the Tamron and Tokina and older Canon macro can be picked up at very good prices with a bit of shopping around.
 
Almost forgot the Sigma Apo 70-300mm gives you 1/2 life size on full frame or 1.1 with there close up filter.
I believe Tamron also do a similar spec lens that can be had for well under a £100 :)
 
I bought the Sigma, DXO scores this and the Canon 2.8L as basically the same, it'll be my first time doing macro so if I get on with the macro and the lens I'll keep it, if I get on with macro but not the lens I'll go for the Canon.... but the Sigma sounds superb from all the reviews I've read, and paying £326 for it means I can get the Canon 100-400 2 pretty soon as well.
 
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