Macro Lens vs. a Lens Reversal Ring

[Yahoozy]

any thoughts on the pros and cons of using a lens reversal ring over a traditional macro lens?
i know the ring is cheaper and slightly impractical to use, but i mean is there any real difference in the quality of the photos? assuming i use at least a decent lens with it?

thanks =D

 

[keith204]

Quality of photos? Well, take a 50 f/1.8 and reverse it, you're not adding any glass, the quality should be pretty much the same. The huge down side is lack of aperture control. With Macro, DOF is SUPER shallow, and a smaller aperture is needed more often than you think (even f/11 or so will produce a nice bokeh). So, shooting at f/1.8 is almost unusable in most cases, but still fun to play with!

 

[keith204]

Here's an example...I *think* I took this with a 50mm f/1.8 reversed. You can see how sharp the in-focus part is, but also you can see the crazy shallow DOF.

 

[Yahoozy]

hahah sweet
i got an f/1.4 that'll be really fun to mess with, plus its an old film lens so it has an aperture ring so no problem there either
(*little side note* i love the reversal ring for another reason, as you can use lenses from other manufacturers as long as they have the correct filter thread size. I myself will be using an old Minolta lens =D)

thanks, though that helps =P