Testing out the new macro/telephoto lens

[jpenna]

Just got a Sigma 70-300 macro/telephoto lens

Here's me goofing around with it:





I wanted to put the halo of bokeh behind the leaf, but there was a trunk in the way...




Any C&C's?

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[kundalini]

Beautiful colors on #2. Crop may be a bit tight at the top though.

What's with the cankers on #3?

[invisible]

Wow, is that baby sharp! Congrats!

[jpenna]

Beautiful colors on #2. Crop may be a bit tight at the top though.

What's with the cankers on #3?

Fixed the croppage on #2 -- uploaded the original... thanks!
That's what I'm wondering on #3. My uncle knows a bit about plants and he thinks they're either fungi or the plant's reaction to a virus.

Wow, is that baby sharp! Congrats!

Thanks! I found that I have to keep it really, really still on a tripod and use the self-timer. You get ghosting with the tiniest movement...

[Overread]

!!!!
Very nice results - espcially the second shot - very sharp! I see you like the bokah (background) that you can get from the 300mm macro

Out of interest please please say this is the APO version of the simga 70-300 - and please share how you got these shots (and if it is not the APO I am going to hide my head in shame)

[kundalini]

Much better on #2 now.

The only thing left is to get rid of now is the dust spots. One at 9 o'clock about 1/8th in from the left (in the very light magenta) and 2 small ones about 4 o'clock from the first.

Is APO a Sigma thing for IS (Canon) or VR (Nikkor)?

[jpenna]

Out of interest please please say this is the APO version of the simga 70-300

Nope, not the APO version.

Is APO a Sigma thing for IS (Canon) or VR (Nikkor)?

"APO zoom lenses minimize color aberration." ~Sigma

The only thing left is to get rid of now is the dust spots.

Oh wow, I see that... I hope that's on the lens, not the sensor.

and please share how you got these shots

These were all taken on my Nikon D50 shooting RAW.
All on a tripod.
All ISO 400.
All on the self-timer because pressing the shutter made the picture too jittery at 100%. That was annoying because of the 2-second delay -- I missed a cool ladybug shot because of that. Note to self: buy an IR remote.

PP: Some were sharpened on Photoshop only once, but it doesn't make a difference unless viewing it "Large" on flickr.

1:
Exposure: 1/100
Exposure Program: Aperture priority
Aperture: f/5.6
Focal Length: 200mm (macro)

This is an orchid (I think) in front of my neighbor's driveway. I had to set up my tripod on a hill, so I was almost falling over.


2:
Exposure: 1/60
Exposure Program: Aperture priority
Aperture: f/5.6
Focal Length: 300mm (macro)

This one's from a flower shop nearby. I took a few shots where the ant is more visible on the"little brother", but I prefer the bokeh on this one. Like you said, I really like the super-soft bokeh on this lens, so I found a streak of purple for the background and turned the flower pot accordingly.

3:
Exposure: 0.033 sec (1/30)
Exposure Program: Manual
Aperture: f/5.6
Focal Length: 200mm (macro)

Not a fan of this shot, but I put it up anyways to see if anyone knows what the thingies are. Like I said, I wanted to put the halo of bokeh behind the leaf, but there was a trunk in the way. Used the flash on this to get a darker background and some more contrast.

4:
Exposure: 1/30
Exposure Program: Aperture priority
Aperture: f/5.6
Focal Length: 120mm

Also not too fond of this shot, but I put it up anyways. For this, I cranked my tripod up as far as it would go, took a picture, cranked it back down, saw the result, adjusted the settings accordingly, and repeated until I got something with decent composition and focus.

[Overread]

Thanks for the responce!
When I have done my macro with flowers (which I think is the strongest area for this lens) I have used f16 for a greater depth of field, yet you have had good success with a very wide aperture at f5.6, works really well in the second shot!

[jpenna]

Ay, there's the rub.

Bigger F number = smaller aperture = not-shallow DOF

You want the littlest number possible. That's why lenses like the 50mm F1.4 ones have super shallow depth of fields.
That's why I was shooting with Aperture Priority -- so I can keep it at 5.6 (the widest this lens goes) for teh awezoms bokeh.


P.S. What's the opposite of "shallow"?

[Overread]

deep

hmm yes you do get that really nice bokeh from the sigma with the wider aperture, but then again you can get that quite a bit of the time with f16 - but you do need to pay attention to backgrounds though.
The only downside to f5.6 and macro is that you can often not get enough of the shot infocus - I have recently been trying photostacking so I can have f5.6, wonderful bokeh and get all the depth of a shot in

[jpenna]

Ah, okay: I misunderstood what you were saying at first... thought you were thinking that a bigger F number meant a shallower DoF.

Yeah, it's a trial-and-error thing. On my 2nd shot, the "young bud" is a bit out of focus. Maybe I could've closed up the aperture a bit and gotten that in better focus. I wonder what that would've done to the background...

Macro... check. Now, on to the zoo to test out the telephotiness...

[Overread]

5-6m is about the limit I have found for me with the zoom -I have got shots longer than that, but not by too much and that is shooting from tripod (take a cheap one and its light enough to carry attached to camera all day without any worries - and with your hands on the camera all the time anyway you won't have much stability risk).

Have good fun at the zoo -