For the love of Macro

Macro photography opens up a whole new world for the keen photographer.

I am fascinated by plants and I thoroughly enjoy photography. So what better way to combine these loves than with macro photography?

I am now reacquainting myself with the art after I purchased a macro lens last weekend – a Canon EFS 60mm f/2.8 Macro USM to be specific. And I am having a ball discovering the world at the micro level again.

For me, the macro lens is great because it allows me to capture the minute detail of plants that an ordinary 18-55mm lens is never going to capture. As someone who uses a microscope in his daily work, the macro lens is a nice ‘intermediate’ between the detail of a dissecting microscope and an ordinary camera lens.

Back in the days before digital photography, when I was a high school student, I used a Canon EOS 500N for all my photography. Of course I didn’t have the means to pay for a macro lens back then, so I settled for a Kenko tube extension kit. Sitting between the camera body and the standard 18-55mm lens, the effect was to increase the magnification capacity of the camera. It was a good substitute for a macro lens, and I used it frequently to capture the details of plants which was particularly useful during my horticultural studies at university.

Unfortunately, when I purchased my digital SLR, I discovered that the 350D used a slightly different lens attachment to the old camera and so my tube extension kit couldn’t be used any longer. Disappointed, I was determined that I’d buy a new macro lens. Eventually.

Having made the purchase, I am really happy with the Canon 60mm f/2.8 Macro. Such capacity for a high aperture really facilitates sharp photography at a level where the slightest shake will cause motion blur. Nevertheless, it decreases the depth-of-field considerably and so I am learning to adjust my photographic techniques to accommodate this.

The real challenge comes in using an appropriate aperture to increase the depth-of-field without reducing the light levels to make hand-held photography impossible. In some situations, a tripod just isn’t practical. Either way, it’s great fun and I am getting some great results.

Today I went to the Melbourne Conservatory in the Fitzroy Gardens to test out my macro photography. Of course the place was filled with other dSLR users trying to get photos, but I was able to focus on the small ferns, selaginellas and hydrangeas to get some special photos.

I’ll be working on my macro photographic technique in coming months, and of course will be posting to Flickr and Photologium.com.

Friends and family will be wondering what could possibly come next, after purchasing a macro and wide-angle lens? I reckon a fish-eye lens could be interesting….!

Picture details: 1. A marigold (Tagetes erecta cv.); 2. A Honey Bee pollinating a Sedum telephium ‘Autumn Joy’; 3. The flowers of a Hydrangea macrophylla.

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