What do you think of this macro lens for Nikon?

[480sparky]

So Sparky how do I know for sure a macro lens is truly a macro lens?
Btw this was hilarious!! [emoji12]

Since there's no official definition, you really don't. However, if the manufacturer supplies a reproduction ratio or magnification figure (1:2 or 0.5x etc), then you'll have an idea what to expect.

1:1, or 1x, would mean a 15.6mm x 23.6mm rectangle will completely fill the viewfinder & perfectly fit the sensor of your DX body.

While we're on the subject of macro what do you think of enlarger lenses?

I know some use them for macro work, but I don't have any experience with them other than using them on an enlarger.

 

[annamaria]

So Sparky how do I know for sure a macro lens is truly a macro lens?
Btw this was hilarious!! [emoji12]

Since there's no official definition, you really don't. However, if the manufacturer supplies a reproduction ratio or magnification figure (1:2 or 0.5x etc), then you'll have an idea what to expect.

1:1, or 1x, would mean a 15.6mm x 23.6mm rectangle will completely fill the viewfinder & perfectly fit the sensor of your DX body.

While we're on the subject of macro what do you think of enlarger lenses?

I know some use them for macro work, but I don't have any experience with them other than using them on an enlarger.

Thanks so much Sparky will jot that info down. You know your stuff.

 

[Dave442]

You start thinking about enlarger lenses and next thing you are going down that never ending path called macro photography.

 

[annamaria]

You start thinking about enlarger lenses and next thing you are going down that never ending path called macro photography.

Macro is so fascinating!!!

 

[480sparky]

You start thinking about enlarger lenses and next thing you are going down that never ending path called macro photography.

One day our little girl is asking about macro lenses. Next thing we know, she's hooked on bellows, geared tripod heads, focus rails and stacking software.
Where did we go wrong? Is there a Betty Ford clinic for photography addiction?

 

[annamaria]

You start thinking about enlarger lenses and next thing you are going down that never ending path called macro photography.

One day our little girl is asking about macro lenses. Next thing we know, she's hooked on bellows, geared tripod heads, focus rails and stacking software.
Where did we go wrong? Is there a Betty Ford clinic for photography addiction?

Oh oh, I'm a shutter addict!! Guys I need intervention! [emoji33] oh no, the funny farm truck just pulled up.

 

[annamaria]

In the 1970's, 35mm SLR photography enjoyed a very good popularity expansion once Canon figured out a way to make a cheaper and lower-priced 35mm SLR than just about anybody else, and by the early 1980's, there was a HUGE explosion of 70-200mm or 70-210mm zoom lenses made by about 15 different Japanese-based lens manufacturing companies, and those lenses were "branded" by various stores, camera chains, and small-time "labels", often under multiple "labels. A famous one was Vivitar. Vivitar never actually manufactured a single lens; they contracted that out, and had many different makers for their multiple lenses. Well, in that era, with so much competition, it was found that adding a Macro mode was a sales feature. Just adding a couple of lines showing the closest focusing zone was enough....fill 'em with orange paint and the word "Macro" also in a colored Paint, and suddenly a lens that focused relatively close could easily be labeled as and marketed as a "macro zoom lens".

A real, true macro lens almost always focuses to at least 1:2, or 1/2 life size. More commonly today, that is improved, and a macro lens will focus to 1:1, or life size. But on macro zooms, the range is usually around 1:10 to 1:5, which is a LOT LESS magnification than 1:1, or even 1:2. So...the words "macro zoom lens" from the 1970's until 2015 means basically a zoom lens that focuses a bit closer than what would be considered normal, but is pretty much not much more than marketing hyperbole. The word "Macro" on the barrel of a zoom lens do not mean much. Think of it more as a close-focusing zoom lens than a real, true, purpose-built macro lens.

One thing: adding a good-quality close-up lens, like the Canon 250D, or the Nikon 5T or 6T, or other high-grade, two-element close-up lenses (screw-in filters, basically, but with two lens elements and good multi coatings), can actually do pretty good macro work with a number of lenses.
An inexpensive 12 to 20mm extension tube, or even a cheapie teleconverter with the glass smashed out with a hammer to MAKE an extension tube, can be used with something like the Nikon D5100. SInce your camera uses only the central image zone, the results can be pretty acceptable to maybe even good. The best close-up lenses, when used with a good zoom, can produce pretty good image quality.

HERE is an inexpensive Nikon mount zoom with a macro focusing mode, constant, perfectly round max aperture of f/5.6, and which works exceptionally well with a reverse-mounted Nikon 6& close-up lens on the front of it. This lens combo is specifically mentioned as being exceptional by Bjorn Rorslett, the Nikon lens expert, on his web site's lens review sections.NIKON 100-300MM F 5.6 AIS MANUAL FOCUS LENS 62 - KEH Camera

AS he wrote: Zoom Lenses For Nikon F Mount Telephoto
"The real surprise of the 100-300, however, comes when you put a close-up lens onto its front threads. I employed my standard Nikon 6T (reverse-mounted) and was absolutely floored by the high quality close-ups produced by this combination. High image sharpness and contrast, perfectly flat field, and virtually no CA are features you associate with an expensive Micro-Nikkor, not a makeshift combination of a achromatic attachment and a consumer zoom lens. Food for some real thoughts"

I acquired a Nikon 6T and reversing ring for it myself...what he wrote is true. On 24 MP FX Nikon, the closeups are staggeringly good from the 100-300 zoom.

So Derrel you're saying that the 100-300 coupled with the 6T would be a good combo for my D5100 right? I have pasted the link of a 6T to see if this is what you're referring to. Might be out of my price range for now, but it's something I can save for in the future. The 6T is around the $100 range, unless I'm looking at the wrong item. I really appreciate the detailed info you gave me. You're good at explaining. Thanks!!!

Nikon Manual Focus 62 CLOSE-UP 6T - KEH Camera

 

[Derrel]

Yes, that is a Nikon 6T. It is a + 2.9 diopter, two-element close-up lens. It has two different kinds of glass, in two separate, multi-coated lens elements. It was designed as part of the Nikon System, and works best on many of their older zoom lenses. See (The New Nikon Compendium Cameras Lenses Accessories Since 1917 - Simon Stafford Rudolf Hillebrand Hans-Joachim Hauschild - Google Books

For a $100 accessory, and an $85 zoom lens, you get a good combination of a long, tele-zoom, and a very high-quality "lifetime grade" close-up lens.

I think part of the success might be the reverse-mounting of the 6T on that specific lens. Again, this is a recommendation from Bjorn Rorslett, one of Norway's preeminent nature and close-up specialists, and a true Nikon system expert of world-wide fame. I was shocked when I tried it. This is high-quality close-up capability, at just under $200.

Is it a great deal for a D5100? Well, you lose the EXIF reporting and the automatic light metering, but in many ways, close-ups like this work almost as well with a speedlight with the user setting the flash to a specific, fractional power setting, and then at X distance, when the focus is achieved by bending over or bending back, once the subject comes into focus, THAT specific flash power delivers the proper exposure level for shot after shot.

In many macro photo situations, if the flash is mounted on the camera, or on a bracket on the side of the camera or side of the lens, the manual, fractional powers, like 1/64 or 1/32, or 1/16, are useful at specific focusing distances, over and over, and over.

Modern speedlights that have powers like 1/64 power Minus 1/3 and then 1/64 power Minus 2/3 EV, then 1/32 power, then 1/32 Minus 1/3 EV, and then 1/32 power Minus 2/3 EV, then 1/16 power, and so on, offer incredibly precise, incremental power adjustment. What that means is that you can test the needed flash setting at say, maximum focusing distance with the 6T, and then minimum distance with the 6T, and note which precise flash power gives the right exposure for 1)a specific focusing distance at 2) a specific f/stop and 3)a specific ISO level.

In much close-up and macro photography, the flash is the source of the lighting. The power of the flash can be set, according to the focusing distance in use. The camera and lens is moved until the subject comes into focus. The photo is shot. Check the histogram, and the exposure is adjusted by changing the flash power, or by a minor ISO adjustment.

 

[annamaria]

So it actually works best on older zooms as opposed to newer digital zooms? I'm assuming zoom lens is different than telephoto correct? Thanks for the article will read it.

 

[480sparky]

There isn't much difference in the optics between 'old' lenses and 'new'. That makes a lens 'digital' is the electronic communication betwixt it and the camera. It would probably work just peachy keen on a brand-spankin'-new zoom.

 

[annamaria]

Yes, that is a Nikon 6T. It is a + 2.9 diopter, two-element close-up lens. It has two different kinds of glass, in two separate, multi-coated lens elements. It was designed as part of the Nikon System, and works best on many of their older zoom lenses. See (The New Nikon Compendium Cameras Lenses Accessories Since 1917 - Simon Stafford Rudolf Hillebrand Hans-Joachim Hauschild - Google Books

For a $100 accessory, and an $85 zoom lens, you get a good combination of a long, tele-zoom, and a very high-quality "lifetime grade" close-up lens.

I think part of the success might be the reverse-mounting of the 6T on that specific lens. Again, this is a recommendation from Bjorn Rorslett, one of Norway's preeminent nature and close-up specialists, and a true Nikon system expert of world-wide fame. I was shocked when I tried it. This is high-quality close-up capability, at just under $200.

Is it a great deal for a D5100? Well, you lose the EXIF reporting and the automatic light metering, but in many ways, close-ups like this work almost as well with a speedlight with the user setting the flash to a specific, fractional power setting, and then at X distance, when the focus is achieved by bending over or bending back, once the subject comes into focus, THAT specific flash power delivers the proper exposure level for shot after shot.

In many macro photo situations, if the flash is mounted on the camera, or on a bracket on the side of the camera or side of the lens, the manual, fractional powers, like 1/64 or 1/32, or 1/16, are useful at specific focusing distances, over and over, and over.

Modern speedlights that have powers like 1/64 power Minus 1/3 and then 1/64 power Minus 2/3 EV, then 1/32 power, then 1/32 Minus 1/3 EV, and then 1/32 power Minus 2/3 EV, then 1/16 power, and so on, offer incredibly precise, incremental power adjustment. What that means is that you can test the needed flash setting at say, maximum focusing distance with the 6T, and then minimum distance with the 6T, and note which precise flash power gives the right exposure for 1)a specific focusing distance at 2) a specific f/stop and 3)a specific ISO level.

In much close-up and macro photography, the flash is the source of the lighting. The power of the flash can be set, according to the focusing distance in use. The camera and lens is moved until the subject comes into focus. The photo is shot. Check the histogram, and the exposure is adjusted by changing the flash power, or by a minor ISO adjustment.

Yes, that is a Nikon 6T. It is a + 2.9 diopter, two-element close-up lens. It has two different kinds of glass, in two separate, multi-coated lens elements. It was designed as part of the Nikon System, and works best on many of their older zoom lenses. See (The New Nikon Compendium Cameras Lenses Accessories Since 1917 - Simon Stafford Rudolf Hillebrand Hans-Joachim Hauschild - Google Books

For a $100 accessory, and an $85 zoom lens, you get a good combination of a long, tele-zoom, and a very high-quality "lifetime grade" close-up lens.

I think part of the success might be the reverse-mounting of the 6T on that specific lens. Again, this is a recommendation from Bjorn Rorslett, one of Norway's preeminent nature and close-up specialists, and a true Nikon system expert of world-wide fame. I was shocked when I tried it. This is high-quality close-up capability, at just under $200.

Is it a great deal for a D5100? Well, you lose the EXIF reporting and the automatic light metering, but in many ways, close-ups like this work almost as well with a speedlight with the user setting the flash to a specific, fractional power setting, and then at X distance, when the focus is achieved by bending over or bending back, once the subject comes into focus, THAT specific flash power delivers the proper exposure level for shot after shot.

In many macro photo situations, if the flash is mounted on the camera, or on a bracket on the side of the camera or side of the lens, the manual, fractional powers, like 1/64 or 1/32, or 1/16, are useful at specific focusing distances, over and over, and over.

Modern speedlights that have powers like 1/64 power Minus 1/3 and then 1/64 power Minus 2/3 EV, then 1/32 power, then 1/32 Minus 1/3 EV, and then 1/32 power Minus 2/3 EV, then 1/16 power, and so on, offer incredibly precise, incremental power adjustment. What that means is that you can test the needed flash setting at say, maximum focusing distance with the 6T, and then minimum distance with the 6T, and note which precise flash power gives the right exposure for 1)a specific focusing distance at 2) a specific f/stop and 3)a specific ISO level.

In much close-up and macro photography, the flash is the source of the lighting. The power of the flash can be set, according to the focusing distance in use. The camera and lens is moved until the subject comes into focus. The photo is shot. Check the histogram, and the exposure is adjusted by changing the flash power, or by a minor ISO adjustment.

Another question. Would the 6T work on the Soligor 70-210 that Sparky gave me?

 

[annamaria]

There isn't much difference in the optics between 'old' lenses and 'new'. That makes a lens 'digital' is the electronic communication betwixt it and the camera. It would probably work just peachy keen on a brand-spankin'-new zoom.

Thanks Sparky and I was wondering if the 6T would work on the Soligor lens you gave me. Hopefully

 

[480sparky]

No reason it shouldn't.

 

[annamaria]

No reason it shouldn't.

Great!!! That's good news.

 

[Derrel]

Thanks Sparky and I was wondering if the 6T would work on the Soligor lens you gave me. Hopefully

The 6T has 62mm filter threads on the back, and the front of it, so, if you need to put it on a lens with a smaller filter thread, you would want a step ring. Fotodiox sells a LOT of different step rings, as well as lens reversing rings. Not sure what filter diameter the Soligor is: 52,55,58mm diameter? Or is it a 62mm filter sized lens?