# Need a New Lens, Anyone Used These Before??



## agent A (Nov 18, 2012)

ok soi have a cannon EOS Rebel XS camera

and this is my current macro lens

http://www.cameta.com/Tamron-70-300mm-f-4-5-6-Di-LD-Macro-1-2-Zoom-Lens-for-Canon-EOS-Cameras-20355.cfm

i HATE it!!! it's so hard to focus properlly with and i have to stand far away from the subject

warpdrive recommended this one:

http://www.cameta.com/Canon-EF-S-60mm-f-2-8-Macro-USM-Lens-11041.cfm

but tammy says i need a 100mm

anyone have any tips? i really need to know what to ask for for xmas and i really want a new macro lens

thanx


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## twolfe (Nov 18, 2012)

Alex, I didn't say that you needed 100mm. I just said that more macro photographers doing indoor photography use the 100mm than the 60mm, and that I don't know anyone personally who is using it. Part of the reason why is that it's not compatible with the camera bodies that most of the people I photograph with use nowadays. And as I mentioned in chat, it's not compatible with either of the camera bodies that I use. I like to buy the best glass that I can afford because I use lenses for several years, but camera bodies wear out or become obsolete.

I looked at the reviews on B &amp; H Photo for the 60mm lens, and it's highly rated. I like the minimum focus distance. With the 100mm lens, if you are photographing a smaller mantis, you can use an extension tube to reduce the focusing distance if you want to get closer to the mantis to fill the frame. Keep in mind that lighting can be a challenge when you get that close to a mantis if you aren't using a special macro flash or a way to angle your regular flash. 

Is there a rental place where you can rent the lens to test it out for a while? No matter what lens you get, I'm sure you'll find it easier to make macro images than what you are using right now. 

If anyone on the forum is using this lens, I hope they will give you some advice.


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## agent A (Nov 18, 2012)

what i dont get is how you say i need a long extension tube to get closer, when my really long telemacro lens requires me to actually be farther away

and from a distance it's hard to determine what to focus on before snapping the pic

i'll have my sis shoot a vid of me photographing something to demonstrate what i mean...


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## twolfe (Nov 18, 2012)

http://www.fredmiranda.com/reviews/showproduct.php?product=293


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## agent A (Nov 18, 2012)

Tammy Wolfe said:


> http://www.fredmiran...php?product=293


thanx

please explain what IS means though

thanx


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## twolfe (Nov 18, 2012)

agent A said:


> what i dont get is how you say i need a long extension tube to get closer, when my really long telemacro lens requires me to actually be farther away
> 
> and from a distance it's hard to determine what to focus on before snapping the pic
> 
> i'll have my sis shoot a vid of me photographing something to demonstrate what i mean...


A, the minimum focus distance for the Canon 100mm lens is 1 foot. That means that I need to be a foot away from my subject in order to focus on it. You can reduce that amount if you attach an extension tube to the 100mm lens. I generally don't use an extension tube for making portraits of larger mantids, but I do use it when I need to get closer to smaller subjects.


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## twolfe (Nov 18, 2012)

Since we're talking about Canon lenses, I'll let Canon explain what IS (image stabilzation is).

http://www.usa.canon.com/cusa/consumer/standard_display/Lens_Advantage_IS


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## Mime454 (Nov 18, 2012)

Why is everything in photography so expensive?


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## Digger (Nov 18, 2012)

Hi Agent. Tammy's right on, and think she's given "focused" advice. I've shot professionally for years - but never had any macro experience. Did a lot of macro research and ended up with the Canon 100mm f2.8. It's fast (allows you to shoot with a little less light), has extremely fine optics (very sharp and distortion-free) for the price. The longer focal length also gives you more room to maneuver with your subjects. The shorter the FL, the closer your focus range (and your mantis will end up climbing on the front of the lens). Tammy has a great idea, I think, regarding bellows. I started my macro experiments with a $40 bellows and my "nifty fifty" Canon 50mm f/1.8. The combination is very low cost. This arrangement also gives you experience on working at VERY close range and learning how to deal with microscopic depth of field.

Fotodiox bellows is here: http://www.amazon.com/Fotodiox-macro-bellows-Canon-Cameras/dp/B003EDTG8W/ref=sr_1_1?s=photo&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1353300077&amp;sr=1-1&amp;keywords=camera+bellows

Follow Tammy's links for lens information.

And here is a snapshot taken of Nikki Mantis with my new Canon 100mm macro :


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## Digger (Nov 19, 2012)

Hey Agent - My opinion, Tammy's right on. I've done photography semi-professionally for many years, but never delved into macro. After doing a lot of research on the subject, and discussing with macro enthusiasts (food photogs, and entomologists) - I decided to buy a cheap bellows to use with my existing Canon equipment. I hooked up my Canon "nifty fifity" 50mm f/1.8 with a $40 Fotodiox bellows. Bellows will get you very close to the subject (physically), so you need a lot of light, a good rock-steady tripod, and a lot of patience. This setup also shortens your depth of field to micrometers, but I think that's a great way to learn some of the macro technique.

The bellows I bought can be found here ------&gt;  http://www.amazon.com/Fotodiox-macro-bellows-Canon-Cameras/dp/B003EDTG8W/ref=sr_1_1?s=photo&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1353300077&amp;sr=1-1&amp;keywords=camera+bellows

Further talks with macro photographers led me to recently purchase the Canon 100mm f/2.8. The 60mm is great glass too. But the longer lens allows me to work slightly farther from my subject, giving me more maneuverability and less trouble with lighting. The 100mm can often be found on ebay - if you're willing to buy lenses that way. Tammy's got some great links to lens sites.

Here's a snapshot of Nikki Mantis taken with the Canon 100mm yesterday. 1/40 @ f/11 (handheld!).


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## Digger (Nov 19, 2012)

sorry for the double post. i'm old. i'm senile. i keep bugs for pets............and talk to them :wheelchair:


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## GhostYeahX (Nov 19, 2012)

my lens is also canon 100mm !! it is great!


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## OctoberRainne (Nov 19, 2012)

The 100mm macro will be great for macro,and you'd be able to add on tubes ect. if you wanted closer,shame you don't use nikon,I'm still trying to get rid of old macro lenses


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## Digger (Nov 19, 2012)

October - I really admire your studio work! Matching vibrant colors with fun, right-sized props. Wonderful results! Hard work and patience, I'll bet. Do you use light stands? Ringflash? Speedlights?


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## agent A (Nov 19, 2012)

i have a ring light


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## OctoberRainne (Nov 21, 2012)

Digger said:


> October - I really admire your studio work! Matching vibrant colors with fun, right-sized props. Wonderful results! Hard work and patience, I'll bet. Do you use light stands? Ringflash? Speedlights?


I use 3 of those big hardware metal spot lights clamped on sticks and sometimes even on my tripod and sometimes a big LED flash light as an under light on the mantids when we actually shoot on my desk with bakdrops,the thing is to use those really blue white bulbs that don't shine yellow,I do use a giant yellow bulb as well sometimes though if the mantis is already a warm color,but I don't have a ring flash yet,its on my list with an external flash as well,in the middle of having to replace a lens and my cam right now so may take a while,you can get really good shots with low budget stuff,most of what I use comes from walmart and the dollar store or craft stores like Michaels. Just using on cam flash toned down and diffused right now,mostly with paper backdrops


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## twolfe (Nov 21, 2012)

OctoberRainne said:


> I use 3 of those big hardware metal spot lights clamped on sticks and sometimes even on my tripod and sometimes a big LED flash light as an under light on the mantids when we actually shoot on my desk with bakdrops,the thing is to use those really blue white bulbs that don't shine yellow,I do use a giant yellow bulb as well sometimes though if the mantis is already a warm color,but I don't have a ring flash yet,its on my list with an external flash as well,in the middle of having to replace a lens and my cam right now so may take a while,you can get really good shots with low budget stuff,most of what I use comes from walmart and the dollar store or craft stores like Michaels. Just using on cam flash toned down and diffused right now,mostly with paper backdrops


OctoberRainne, thanks for explaining your method for lighting when you photograph your mantids. We should probably start a thread on this sometime.


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## OctoberRainne (Nov 23, 2012)

NP, I'm still in the process of seeing what works best and always trying to add in gear and more lights,I have pics of how I tend to shoot just tends to look really small,its a good 3+ feet deep though,and always doing things as cheap as possible,so looks like ###### but it works lol





Thats my macro lens,extension tubes,clamp,the box has the raynox filter in it,I have white paper and black paper which I made myself out of black wrapping paper,the other spotlight is clamped to my tripod,I use the one giant orange outdoor bulb,and then two indoor swirl cool blue lights in the other two,some duct tape tweezers and Zeiss whipes lol excuse the mess everyone


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## Digger (Nov 23, 2012)

October - thank you for the description, and especially for the photo of your set up. Love the double-duty of the extension tubes! Tammy, I agree --- starting a thread on micro studio lighting, backdrops, lens choices, animal management (posing, etc) would be fun and helpful.


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