How do i start up in macro?

Got many lenses but you cannot get up close.

i just wrote to someone on the net in linked in. Asking the same Question.

This is how i replied. :

Hi. macro can be simple, First , Decide what you want to photography, Do you want to specialise in a subject or just explore macro. looking at things as close as you can get, getting in closer 1-1 or further. ?
next go to the camera shop. As what would be the best affordable way. There are some vast options, To keep it simple and less technical . . You can shoot handheld with the lenses you have, using diopter 1+2+3 close up lenses. Thats how I started. Or use a macro lens, Most lenses today Do have a macro option. most may not be true macro. For some work like 1-1 you will need a tripod. Good lighting, like a diffused flash. Do not fall into the Equipment fetish. it will cost you!
the above as Richard ,Stephen has said, going into super macro , I bought my set of three tubes on E Bay for £3 yes that cheap. Auto tubes may cost over 100 USD then you have the option of reversing a lans, And this can be done by just reversing, resting against the front of the body of the camera. You may need to pre adjust the aperture before. Set the camera to shoot without the lens, canon does this well, however nikon , I tried this the other day with a D300, With out the lens , it would not work. by reversing the lens , you're restricted to focus . Some lenses show a good image like the 22-135 IS USM , others do not.
So there you have it, other then that, its all down to practice, Experimentation, trial and error. And getting Depth. light and impact. please! try not to kill your subjects , just to get the shot. thank you.http://macrophotographyborneo.blogspot.com/

http://photosociety.net


May I just point out clearly , , macro can be taken with any camera. or any lens,  I have taken some amazing macro with compact digital cameras with macro built in. You can take with a phone to day too. With SLR, its as listed in the link, You can even take with a camera with no macro, using a toilet roll tube and a lens or what I did with my first digital. I used a jewellers  / watchmakers magnifier to film a wasp. repairing itself, Yes! they can do that, Scary. Its all good fun!


http://win.cameragiveaways.com/c/1g0a0sb4

Praying mantis

The Praying mantis

Found in most warm countries is the praying mantis. From Spain to Borneo.
never found one in the UK however In Greece, and other warm to hot countries, I have.

An insect of wonder, And character, they seem quite tame and at home, Once you find one, they will stay with you, inquisitive, And even pose for you.

they will happily sit and look around, clean themselves , As soon as they know your not a threat.

At times, You can give them some water and a fly to eat, As you spend time photographing the,

I have yet to get a good focus stack on one, However , For the time they stay still, A long exposure of Flash can be used, Do not do too much fash. or stress may kill it.

You can even get them to drink water from your finger tip. Wow! What an amazing creature.

They turn their head 190 degrees . Sadly they have a down side, when mating.

If the mail does not get out the way fast enough, Like the Black widow spider, He will land up Lunch.
Even when still bonded to the female. the female will start to eat him. his body will still continue to produce sperm to the bitter end. Well Beyond.

Here are some of the photographs i managed to take,. most photographed and released, Some fly into the home with antennae  missing and die , I guess from old age. Or some reason cannot establish where food is.    
One of the most spectacular praying mantis i have yet to find, is the Orchid mantis.

Taken with 400D 60mm macro 2.8 

And a 7D 

7d problem with spot reading

All exposures are with the camera saying the meter reading is correct.

Different subjects. As you can see the exposer are light .


With spot reading. this is what happens most of the time. Camera reading accurately.

using evaluate.

using spot.

using spot. 

                                                    



                                            Using different modes with evaluative Exposure OK.\
                     Im not posting all But i used M /av/Tv/program. All ok. With spot reading not ok.

 over exposed spot reading correct exposure 

 How it should be 

over exposed spot reading correct exposure

Setting up for super macro.

 Buy what is affordable. The canon tubes are pricy, they will make exposures less troublesome. I use a set of simple 1,2and 3 tubes, with a 60mm 2.8 lens. You can stop down the lens by setting it on the camera. pressing the aperture close, for Depth when Un mounting the lens, this locks the aperture in the M
to what F stop you set in the camera. Experiment , You will need a bright light to focus,

I will produce a video on how to do this.  photos to follow.







I will give you a big tip on how to close the diaphragm / aperture on an electronic lens. You will love me for this, just remember me that I showed how its done OK lol.

Right.  This is for canon camera only, tried with nikon, it does not work, hats off to Canon again . love you Canon.
here we Go.  With the lens on the camera. set to AV or M , Set the aperture to your desired setting lets say for good depth F16.  press the stop down button. So when you look through the lans. you can see the depth, OK its going to look dark, For you who have not used the DOF button before, this is located normally by the lens on the body left hand side. Look in your manual!
OK As this is pressed, the aperture is stopped down, At the same time, Press the button to detach the lens , take the lens off. And HaY! presto !  the lens aperture is still stopped down . now you can attach it to the bellows, Extension tubes, IF your not using AUTO tubes, Or reverse lans mount.  Go try it and let me know how you got on. Think I will upload a you tube video on this tonight. have to post this on my macro blog now .

Other marine life photos.

These photos were taken with a canon powershot A680 10 mp 

Macro Everywhere. What the eye does not see.

Macro Everywhere. What the eye does not see.

Macro is just not about taking photos of dragon flies. I will reserve a page just for them.
There is an infinite list of discoveries just waiting to be captured.

Go and explore and be creative.

One of the hardest boundaries in real macro photography is over combatting shallow depth of field.

One reason for keeping focus shallow, is to avoid cluttered backgrounds Depth is good for keeping all the subject in focus, Nowadays you can use photo stacking that allows you to layer photos of the same subject at different focus, Providing the subject is still!