Macro Lens - which one?

[JacaRanda]

Heres some shots with the Tamron 90mm F2.8 and Nikon D5100 all handheld

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Holy smokes! Handheld? Well I never.......I sway empty-handed.

 

[cgw]

Could never really see the need for AF in a macro lens. Like the old manual 105/4 Micro Nikkor that does 1:1 with the 52.5mm PN-11 tube.

 

[rodbender]

Heres some shots with the Tamron 90mm F2.8 and Nikon D5100 all handheld

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Holy smokes! Handheld? Well I never.......I sway empty-handed.

You sway which ever way you want these are all handheld

 

[cgipson1]

Heres some shots with the Tamron 90mm F2.8 and Nikon D5100 all handheld

Holy smokes! Handheld? Well I never.......I sway empty-handed.

I shoot all my macro handheld too... even when I do use the focus ring. It is not that hard with practice. I even shoot some simple focus stacking handheld! I only use a tripod for serious focus stacking... and landscapes / moonscapes!

 

[JacaRanda]

I should have simply said that I am impressed with those shots being handheld!


Charlie I do need to practice and use my stands since most or at least many of my macro shots I am holding a flash in my hand.

 

[rodbender]

I should have simply said that I am impressed with those shots being handheld!

Thanks

 

[cgipson1]

I should have simply said that I am impressed with those shots being handheld!


Charlie I do need to practice and use my stands since most or at least many of my macro shots I am holding a flash in my hand.

Flash Bracket... like this one > Kirk Enterprises : Universal - Macro Flash Bracket or get the R1C1 / MT-24 type flashes...

 

[JacaRanda]

Thanks for the suggestion and the link. I showed wifey and she said "Cool". That means it is probably a yes and she is tired of me asking her to hold it.

 

[Danuser]

I picked up a used Nikon 105mm D lens a few months ago and absolutely love it. Not only has macro photography been a ton of fun, but I've found it's the lens I keep on my camera most often. It takes wonderful portraits as others have mentioned, and tends to be my go-to lens in a surprising number of situations.

 

[Tommy_Boy]

First of all - thank you very much for all Your posts they've been very helpful

I've been gathering information about the Nikkor 105mm D, and I find it veeery interesting The difference between this one and the newer version is IMHO cosmetic - the PQ is identical. So putting it all in a nutshell - I'm starting of this Nikkor as my new lens But there is one more issue - financial issue. New Tokina costs ca. 450$, whereas the Nikkor 105mm D [used] - 499$.....


Cheers,
Tommy_Boy

 

[sm4him]

First of all - thank you very much for all Your posts they've been very helpful

I've been gathering information about the Nikkor 105mm D, and I find it veeery interesting The difference between this one and the newer version is IMHO cosmetic - the PQ is identical. So putting it all in a nutshell - I'm starting of this Nikkor as my new lens But there is one more issue - financial issue. New Tokina costs ca. 450$, whereas the Nikkor 105mm D [used] - 499$.....


Cheers,
Tommy_Boy

Just to further muddy the waters, you can get a USED Tokina--keh.com has one for $399 right now, in EX condition. I got mine for considerably less than that, by simply being patient and watching the sites I was willing to buy from, every day--as soon as the right deal came along, I snagged it.

 

[cgipson1]

First of all - thank you very much for all Your posts they've been very helpful

I've been gathering information about the Nikkor 105mm D, and I find it veeery interesting The difference between this one and the newer version is IMHO cosmetic - the PQ is identical. So putting it all in a nutshell - I'm starting of this Nikkor as my new lens But there is one more issue - financial issue. New Tokina costs ca. 450$, whereas the Nikkor 105mm D [used] - 499$.....


Cheers,
Tommy_Boy

The Nikon would still be my first choice... although you would not be disappointed with either!

 

[Struxure]

For Marco lens, one has to look into what they really need to capture the image. I have started with a 105 mm Nikon lens with a minimum focus distance of about 314 mm which find at times need to go closer to the insect. End up getting kenko extension tube, rynox 250 and kenko TC 1.4. Present setup is 105 mm + TC 1.4 and 36 mm extention tube with tripod. Now looking for a 60mm to couple with rynox 250. With this, it can go extreme close .

 

[cgipson1]

For Marco lens, one has to look into what they really need to capture the image. I have started with a 105 mm Nikon lens with a minimum focus distance of about 314 mm which find at times need to go closer to the insect. End up getting kenko extension tube, rynox 250 and kenko TC 1.4. Present setup is 105 mm + TC 1.4 and 36 mm extention tube with tripod. Now looking for a 60mm to couple with rynox 250. With this, it can go extreme close .

and your DOF will be paper thin... and you will almost definitely need to focus stack to get any kind of DOF.

 

[Struxure]

Yes, to over come this I kept the f stop between f18 to f 22 with flash.