Raynox 250

[crystal1993]

Hi,

Due to some personal reasons i don't have the funds to get the 60mm macro anymore so i'm looking for a cheaper alternative.

I'm currently looking at the raynox 250 but one thing that really bugs me is that some people complained that they can't autofocus when using it.

Is it true or in only certain situations?

Thanks in advance!


P/S: I will be using it with my Canon 550d/Rebel t2i and 18-55 kit lens.

P/P/S: Someone told me that they can't use AF because of the auto AF selection points. However with my shooting style, i set my AF point to the center point only meaning it will only focus at the center AF point. Thus i won't have the 'can't-AF-problem' right?

 

[NateS]

Hi,

Due to some personal reasons i don't have the funds to get the 60mm macro anymore so i'm looking for a cheaper alternative.

I'm currently looking at the raynox 250 but one thing that really bugs me is that some people complained that they can't autofocus when using it.

Is it true or in only certain situations?

Thanks in advance!


P/S: I will be using it with my Canon 550d/Rebel t2i and 18-55 kit lens.

P/P/S: Someone told me that they can't use AF because of the auto AF selection points. However with my shooting style, i set my AF point to the center point only meaning it will only focus at the center AF point. Thus i won't have the 'can't-AF-problem' right?

You will not use AF on a 1:1 dedicated macro lens either. It is just so much easier to focus by setting it at 1:1 and focus by moving in and out of the focal plane with your body/camera.

I have a dedicated macro lens and also use a 50mm w/ tubes and I have never used AF for macros yet....and have never wanted to.

 

[Overread]

+1 to what NateS said regarding auto focus vs manual focus with regard to macro photography.


In addition you might want to look at a set of Kenko AF Extension Tubes instead of the Raynox DCR250 - with the 18-55mm lens you'll get more magnification out of a set of extension tubes than you will from the addition of the close up lens. Close up lenses/diopters work better (give more magnification) when used on longer focal length lenses, whilst extension tubes give more on shorter focal length lenses.

 

[NateS]

Have you ever tried the tubes with an 18-55 overread? Only asking because I tried the tubes with my Tamron 17-50 f2.8 and it didn't work. Adding tubes reduced the MFD so much that it was actually "inside" the lens. I could only use one or two tubes and even then it didn't get it all that close for magnification. I'm thinking it might be similar on the 18-55 which is why people recommend using a shorter/mid prime.

That said, a mid prime (50mm 1.8) and a reversal ring would cost less than the Raynox and would probably make the 18-55 shoot a fairly high mag. (this is just a guess of course....again, I've never reversed a lens on the 18-55.

 

[Overread]

Hmm I know if you do add too much tube length you can end up with the focal point inside the lens - though I would expect that with the lens set to its 55mm length it should be fine with a set of tubes since it should then perform like the 50mm f1.8 lens. I'll give it a full test sometime this evening

 

[Derrel]

Yes, short zooms like 18-55,18-70,28-70,etc do not work very well with normal extension tubes like 12mm to 25mm tubes...the MFD will quyite often be inside the lens itself, except at the very long end of the range with a "normal" extension tube...some of the old, ultra-thin Nikon extension rings can be very helpful for this...yet still, the 18-55 type focal length range isn;t all that handy for 'most' close-up applications.

I had an old Tokina 28-70 f/2.6~2.8 model... I used it one day with a 12mm tube to see how it worked...it was really a PITA...the MFD was inside the lens, so that most of the zoom range was unusable....could not focus...

 

[crystal1993]

Yeah i do know that most people use MF for macro but i'm just wondering is AF still available as i'm still learning how to MF.

 

[NateS]

Yeah i do know that most people use MF for macro but i'm just wondering is AF still available as i'm still learning how to MF.

Macro is a whole different world. I can't manually focus a normal lens for the life of me, but I'm excellent at macros (meaan that modestly btw). You don't need to learn MF, you need to learn Macros...and to learn macros, the easiest way is to set the lens and focus by moving your body (you yourself w/ camera, not just the camera body).

 

[crystal1993]

Yeah i do know that most people use MF for macro but i'm just wondering is AF still available as i'm still learning how to MF.

Macro is a whole different world. I can't manually focus a normal lens for the life of me, but I'm excellent at macros (meaan that modestly btw). You don't need to learn MF, you need to learn Macros...and to learn macros, the easiest way is to set the lens and focus by moving your body (you yourself w/ camera, not just the camera body).

Meaning i don't really have to touch the manual focus ring? All i have to do is move in front or backwards to focus?

 

[Overread]

Exactly - you set the magnification on the lens by adjusting the manual focusing wheel and then spend the rest of the time moving the camera+lens closer and further to get focus on the subject. Sometimes you will need to make small adjustments to account for a subject that is too big to fit into a higher magnification and vis versa

 

[crystal1993]

Exactly - you set the magnification on the lens by adjusting the manual focusing wheel and then spend the rest of the time moving the camera+lens closer and further to get focus on the subject. Sometimes you will need to make small adjustments to account for a subject that is too big to fit into a higher magnification and vis versa

Ahh now i get it.
Thanks a lot for all the great help! Gonna collect my raynox 250 tomorrow. Do expect to see some pics and hopefully give some critiques to me!

 

[NateS]

Exactly - you set the magnification on the lens by adjusting the manual focusing wheel and then spend the rest of the time moving the camera+lens closer and further to get focus on the subject. Sometimes you will need to make small adjustments to account for a subject that is too big to fit into a higher magnification and vis versa

Ahh now i get it.
Thanks a lot for all the great help! Gonna collect my raynox 250 tomorrow. Do expect to see some pics and hopefully give some critiques to me!

Glad we could help and I look forward to seeing your pics.

 

[crystal1993]

Exactly - you set the magnification on the lens by adjusting the manual focusing wheel and then spend the rest of the time moving the camera+lens closer and further to get focus on the subject. Sometimes you will need to make small adjustments to account for a subject that is too big to fit into a higher magnification and vis versa

Ahh now i get it.
Thanks a lot for all the great help! Gonna collect my raynox 250 tomorrow. Do expect to see some pics and hopefully give some critiques to me!

Glad we could help and I look forward to seeing your pics.

Btw last question.
Can i mount a ring flash on with the raynox?

 

[Overread]

Have you ever tried the tubes with an 18-55 overread? Only asking because I tried the tubes with my Tamron 17-50 f2.8 and it didn't work. Adding tubes reduced the MFD so much that it was actually "inside" the lens. I could only use one or two tubes and even then it didn't get it all that close for magnification. I'm thinking it might be similar on the 18-55 which is why people recommend using a shorter/mid prime.

Just tried out the combo - an 18-55mm canon with a full set of kenko extension tubes. At the 55mm end you get a good level of magnification (just over 1:1) and about just over an inch of working distance. Clearly if you set the focus shorter you'll quickly end up with the point of focus moving inside the lens. I tested this against a 50mm f1.8 very roughly and both give similar performance magnification and working distance wise.