Weevil drinking maple syrup (pic)

[Ecooper]

This past winter I bought a Nikkor 50mm F2.8 enlarger lens off eBay for a whole $20.00. This lens has a reputation as a good sharp macro lens when reversed on a bellows. So using a couple of $2.00 adaptors (also off eBay) I tried mounting the lens (reversed) on a vintage OM telescopic auto extension tube 65-116 on my OM-D EM-5 body. The result was magnification of almost 2:1 with the auto extension tube collapsed, and almost 3:1 with it fully extended. Surprisingly, the working distance is very respectable at 6.5cm (collapsed) and 5.5cm (extended).

The photo below is the best result of my first test of the lens. All-in-all I’m reasonably satisfied. I expected some loss of resolution due to the extension, but it didn’t turn out too bad. The image has higher contrast and more muted colours than what I get when I shoot with my Zuiko 35mm macro. So this set-up definitively doesn’t produce images as nice as the Zuiko, but the price was certainly right; and I was able to photograph a tiny insect taking a drink from a drop of syrup...and that’s pretty cool!

Cheers,

EC

www.macrocritters.wordpress.com

[SIZE=7.5pt] [/SIZE]

[SIZE=7.5pt]P6170326 edit 2 weevil drop copyright ernie cooper 2013 b_filtered by ernie.cooper, on Flickr[/SIZE]

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[SIZE=7.5pt]nikkor on collapsable labelled copy by ernie.cooper, on Flickr[/SIZE]

 

[hibiscusmile]

• eeeeee!

 

[ScienceGirl]

Wow - very cool!

I don't understand all the camera talk... My grandma is really into that stuff, and I have a friend that loves photography, too. I just have never had the patience to learn it yet. I'd rather be hiking a trail or working my bee hives.

 

[sally]

Very nice

 

[Paradoxica]

Nice shot. So what is the total cost for all the adapters/extentionslenses?

 

[Ecooper]

Nice shot. So what is the total cost for all the adapters/extentionslenses?

The lens and adapters to reverse the lens were cheap...under $25 from eBay. The telescopic auto extension tube 65-116 I have had for 20 years; they sell for $200-$300 on eBay. The MF-1 and MMF-3 adapters were bought new--they sell for about $100 each, but you can get cheap knock-offs for a fraction of that. So it would have been a bit of an investment if I'd had to put it all together from scratch. But I already had the auto extension tube

MF-1 and MMF-3.

EC

Cheers,

www.macrocritters.wordpress.com