Macro; Lens Vs Attachment Vs Extension Tubes...

Hazio123

Hazio123

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Hi all,

First post in this forum and hopfully not my last! I have a question which I'm hoping some of you may be able to shed some light on.

I'm relativly new to the photography world and am looking to take some real good close up shots. I've got myself a Canon EOS 300d (EFS 18-55mm lens) which is proving to be a very nice bit of kit and I'm getting some really good shots, however, I want to go closer.

I've been out today and had a look at specific macro lenses, (canon and sigma) and whilst they look good, they cost about £300.

What do you guys think about macro attachments? (see below)

1) http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/58mm-MACRO-CL...NameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem#ShippingPayment

2) http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Pro-Wide-Angl...ryZ30070QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

3) http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Ultra-WideAng...ryZ30070QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

Obviously I'm not expecting the image quality to be anywhere near as good as the specifically designed macro lens but I keep wondering if they're worth a go?

Anybody who could shed any advice, things they have, where to find them, reccomendations etc. would be greatly appriciated!

Thanks.
 
scraggs said:
I personally wouldn't go for any of them, you are putting more glass of unknown quality in the shot, the cheapest and best way to get into macro imho is with extension tubes, but get the auto tubes to make life easier.
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Kenko-Macro-Extension-Tube-Rings-for-Canon-EF-12-25-II_W0QQitemZ260171530326QQihZ016QQcategoryZ30070QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem
I got mine s/h from ebay for £40, and you can still use them if you get a macro lens to get closer.
Click to expand...

The whole cheap glass thing makes sense...

I found on the macro lenses this morning the auto-focus actually stuggled to pick up on my desired object. So is it really worth spending the extra £30-£40 for the auto-focus feature as apposed to these for instance?

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Macro-extensi...ryZ30059QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

Thanks for the reply :)
 
The problem with manual tubes is you dont only lose AF you also have to mess around to set or change the apperture aswell.
 
Hazio:

I have used the macro attachments but the quality is not great. They are a cheap way of getting into macro photography but on the kit lens you have, you are right on top of the subject. This is not good if you are taking insects as the likelyhood is you'll scare them away.:bang:

I got a Sigma 105mm EX DG Macro (Canon fit, I have the 350D) last week and its a great lens. So much clearer than the lens attachments. It also allows me to be 7 - 8 inches from the subject at full 1:1 magnification. It cost me £235 of Ebay (Deniser_ Camera). I'm conscious of not giving free advertising on here but if you want to PM me I'll let you know about their service.

If you can afford a dedicated Macro lens, go for it. You'll not be disapointed.:thumbs:
 
scraggs said:
The problem with manual tubes is you dont only lose AF you also have to mess around to set or change the apperture aswell.
Of course...didn't think of that! And unlike using maual focus, altering the apperture is a pain.

BRASH said:
I got a Sigma 105mm EX DG Macro (Canon fit, I have the 350D) last week and its a great lens. So much clearer than the lens attachments.
Click to expand...

This was one of the lenses I looked at this morning. I noticed you could be further away from your subject and still get a great shot with alot of depth. Of course, I was only in the camera shop mind you!

Looking back at my pics I took this morning, the best ones seemed to come from the Sigma 105mm macro and the Cannon 100mm f2.8 macro.

So has anyone else had any previous experience with Auto extension tubes? These seem to be the cheapest, half decent quality alternative?!
Click to expand...
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There is one other way of doing macro that has not been mentioned here, and that is reverse mounting. You can get a filter attachment to reverse mount lenses to give you a macro effect. This can give you very high magnification, and can be a cheap way of getting into macro (get a cheap used 50mm lens and reverse mounting filter attachment.

But the best way to go is with a dedicated macro lens. I have both the auto extension tubes and a canon 100 F2.8 macro. The reason to get the canon is that with USM you don't have to keep switching it in and out of AF mode when you wan to manual focus (like you have to with the Sigma).

As others have said, the main reason to own auto extension tubes is for the auto apiture.
 
FranchiseJuan said:
There is one other way of doing macro that has not been mentioned here, and that is reverse mounting. You can get a filter attachment to reverse mount lenses to give you a macro effect. This can give you very high magnification, and can be a cheap way of getting into macro (get a cheap used 50mm lens and reverse mounting filter attachment.

But the best way to go is with a dedicated macro lens. I have both the auto extension tubes and a canon 100 F2.8 macro. The reason to get the canon is that with USM you don't have to keep switching it in and out of AF mode when you wan to manual focus (like you have to with the Sigma).

As others have said, the main reason to own auto extension tubes is for the auto apiture.
Click to expand...

FJ

Pretty much agree though the Canon is a lot more expensive than the Sigma for similar IQ. I tend to use manual focus when doing 1:1 and most Macro lenses will hunt on AF, particularly at 1:1 or in low light. I've only used non auto tubes and have not tried the reverse adaptors so cannot comment on these modes.
 
Hazio,

To get the best advice, I think it's important to know what you want to shoot and what you consider to be close up shots.
Macro is defined as 1:1 but you may not actually mean shooting 1:1, just that you want to get closer. Shots of a fly at 1:1 will require something more expensive and dedicated that getting focus close enough to shoot flowers..or something of thata size.

In a nutshell, do you need to get closer focus or do you want true macro images.

Either way, as has been said, avoid the gimmicky things you posted links to.

Bob
 
Canon Bob said:
To get the best advice, I think it's important to know what you want to shoot and what you consider to be close up shots.

In a nutshell, do you need to get closer focus or do you want true macro images.
Click to expand...

Like I said in my first post, I'm still pretty new to all this and I'm literally taking pictures of everything. So specifiying exactly what I want to take pics of probably isnt that easy...but I guess it would include both insects, plants and so on.

I particulary like this guys macro stuff... http://www.flickr.com/photos/navdeepraj/with/1469113072/

Canon Bob said:
Either way, as has been said, avoid the gimmicky things you posted links to.
Click to expand...

I'm not surprised you've said that and to be honest, its the advice I was looking for. I was just wondering if anybody has come up trumps with the cheap stuff...

If you want to see some of the stuff I've done to date its here... (downsized low res stuff) http://www.hazio.co.uk/picture.html
 
Hazio,
The majority of what I see in the link you post would be achieved with a normal lens and reduced minimum focus distance and not require a dedicated macro lens. The quality and range of the lens used will obviously affect the results but I would guess that your best start would be to get a set of Kenko DG tubes to try with your current lens...about 50 quid give or take.

I have used this Ebay seller on a couple of occasions and had the stuff within 10 days
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Kenko-Auto-Ma...ryZ30070QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

Bob
 
Well, I've purchased a set of Auto Extension tubes, I'll let you know how good/bad they are when I get them.

Sorry mav, already purchased them!

If they're crap, I'll chuck them up on ebay and spash out on a macro lens.

Cheers for all your help guys/girls... I'll post some pics soon for anybody else whos in the same boat!
 
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