Macro adapters?

[AaronLLockhart]

Has anyone used these things before? Are they worth it, or should I just buy a macro lens?

 

[cgipson1]

Has anyone used these things before? Are they worth it, or should I just buy a macro lens?

If you are talking about the cheap screw on adapters.. they are a waste of money.

If you want something that will do a good job (glass lens, good optics) that will attach to the end of an existing lens.. look at the Raynox DCR-150 or DCR-250. They do a pretty good job with minimal IQ loss. On a 35mm or 50mm lens, they work very well!
Amazon.com: Raynox DCR-250 2.5x Super Macro Lens: Camera & Photo These also have the advantage of working with a real macro lens if you ever get one.. and can up the magnification to over 2:1

Like this:

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Jumping Spider - Close Up by CGipson Photography, on Flickr[/URL]

If you want to get serious about macro.. then a true macro lens is the best way to go. There are a variety of lengths out there.. if you plan on shooting bugs, I don't recommend less than 85 mm to 90mm.. and 100/105 is better. These will give you a longer minimum focusing distance to the subject than say a 40 mm or 60mm macro (so the bugs don't get scared and leave!)

Hope that helps!

 

[SCraig]

Has anyone used these things before? Are they worth it, or should I just buy a macro lens?

Presumably you are talking about the kind that screw on the end of the lens and not extension tubes. As Charlie said those are a waste of money. Extension tubes, that go between the camera and body, are a different story and work very well. They come in varying thicknesses. I have This Set plus a 25mm tube and they can be mixed and matched to provide some pretty significant magnification without any loss of automatic function in the lens.

 

[Dao]

Besides the Raynox, I read that the Canon 500D also pretty decent.

 

[cgipson1]

Besides the Raynox, I read that the Canon 500D also pretty decent.

for $400.00 dollars.. I sure hope so!! lol! Amazon.com: Canon 500D 77mm Close Up Lens: Camera & Photo

Pretty expensive screw on lens! You can find a used Tokina 100 macro for that....


EDIT.. ok.. I did find one on Ebay for a lot less... http://www.ebay.com/ctg/Canon-500D-...pcategid=78997&_dmpt=Camera_Lenses&_dashexp=1

 

[AaronLLockhart]

Has anyone used these things before? Are they worth it, or should I just buy a macro lens?

Presumably you are talking about the kind that screw on the end of the lens and not extension tubes. As Charlie said those are a waste of money. Extension tubes, that go between the camera and body, are a different story and work very well. They come in varying thicknesses. I have This Set plus a 25mm tube and they can be mixed and matched to provide some pretty significant magnification without any loss of automatic function in the lens.

The extension tubes are exactly what I'm talking about. Pretty much anything that screws on to the end of the lens, I try to avoid. However, I figured that if the extension tubes work... Scott, I saw a few of them for about $29.99, would you avoid these of lesser value? Does the price really make a difference?

 

[480sparky]

........... Does the price really make a difference?

Depends on if they have both the contacts in them to maintain communication between your lens & body, as well as the mechanical linkage to hold the aperture open until you actuate the shutter. Lack of either really puts a crimp on the work.

Since there's no glass involved, the only other issue is mechanical. Is the material used stury? How 'solid' are the mechanisms and the mounts? If you get a set of 3, and stack them, will the weight of the lens be too much for the rings?

 

[SCraig]

The extension tubes are exactly what I'm talking about. Pretty much anything that screws on to the end of the lens, I try to avoid. However, I figured that if the extension tubes work... Scott, I saw a few of them for about $29.99, would you avoid these of lesser value? Does the price really make a difference?

What Sparky said. The cheap ones generally don't have the electronics to maintain communications between your lens and camera. They also have to be well made so that both mounting surfaces are exactly parallel to each other and they are sturdy enough to support whatever lens you want to put on them.

If you're shooting with a Nikon I'll loan you one of mine to see if they will do what you want.

 

[AaronLLockhart]

Depends on if they have both the contacts in them to maintain communication between your lens & body, as well as the mechanical linkage to hold the aperture open until you actuate the shutter. Lack of either really puts a crimp on the work.

Since there's no glass involved, the only other issue is mechanical. Is the material used stury? How 'solid' are the mechanisms and the mounts? If you get a set of 3, and stack them, will the weight of the lens be too much for the rings?

Thanks for the insight! I'll definitely avoid the cheaper tubes!

If you're shooting with a Nikon I'll loan you one of mine to see if they will do what you want.

I would love that! Did you ever get in touch with the other Nashville member to see if she is good for next Saturday?

 

[SCraig]

I would love that! Did you ever get in touch with the other Nashville member to see if she is good for next Saturday?

I sent her a PM but haven't heard anything back.

 

[EDL]

Don't rule out a reversing adapter either. It allows you to mount your lens backwards, either directly to the body, or to the end of another lens. According to what I read, reversing the 18-55mm Canon kits lens on the body of the camera, for example, yields about 3:1.

The down side is you have to shoot in manual and have to tape the aperture lever to hold the aperture open to the setting you want. A little fiddly, but shouldn't be too difficult with a little practice. Another option is a different brand of lens with an aperture ring for easier control.

I just ordered a reversing adaptor for my Canon T3i and will see what results I get with the kit lens. I ordered it from Adorama for $9.95.

The second thing you want, especially if you go into higher magnification is a good light source. Quite a few use a small softbox mounted to a hotshoe flash. You can buy the softbox or make your own, there's plenty of how-to's here and around the net. I'm building my own softbox to fit an old Vivitar 285HV flash I have.

You can get a bellows too, but they are pricey unless you find a good deal on used. You can combine tubes and rings and reversed lenses and bellows in lots of combinations. Check out 480Sparky's Uber Macro Rig here: http://www.thephotoforum.com/forum/...-my-new-ubermacro-rig-caution-nikon-porn.html for an example.

Then, as mentioned, if you want to spend the money you can get a dedicated macro lens. Canon's MP-E65 is probably the best example available right now for such a lens (it does 5:1), but it's $1,000. You can also get crazy with macro flashes too, the Canon MT-24, for example, is around $800.

 

[AaronLLockhart]

The second thing you want, especially if you go into higher magnification is a good light source. Quite a few use a small softbox mounted to a hotshoe flash. You can buy the softbox or make your own, there's plenty of how-to's here and around the net. I'm building my own softbox to fit an old Vivitar 285HV flash I have.

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