Quote:
Originally Posted by janef
Hi
I had the same problem as you are. With the macro lens - mine's 100mm - some of the flower would be out of focus, and it was really starting to annoy me. It wasn't until I was chatting to someone who suggested using my standard lens, in this case a Canon EF 17-40mm zoom to take the shot. What a difference, as it enabled me to take the same shot but with the whole bloom in focus, without losing any of the detail. It does mean though getting quite close, but that's no big deal. In these instances I do use a tripod, and a remote shutter - as I'm still trying not to wobble the camera 
I've attached a shot I've done using this lens just to show you what I'm talking about.
I'm no expert, but i'm sure someone will explain in my case why this works! |
This is sort of borderline close-focus and macro. To me, Macro is getting close and letting the DOF "problem" become a sort of magical abstraction. Shooting flower macros 30 years ago taught me a lot about photography. There's no rush,you explore color and texture and form,you find the right light. I generally set my focus close and then kind of lean in or back to get it the way I want.
A flower that's very 3D,like a rose or Iris defies any effort to get ultra close and still focus everything. However....you CAN do an ultra close that has a whole range of sharp and soft and make that work. A shot like this rose is not something you do from 4" away. If you want a rose in full focus you are best odd with a 35 mm wide angle on a small extension at about f 11. A flower that's more 2 dimensional, like a daisy or my favorite, Cinereria, is easier as you can find the angle to get it all into your DOF.
Bugs + bees won't play along with getting too close. I've done macro's with my 300 mm on a bellows. That can get a real up close from more distance---but a long tele won't have much DOF at all,and when you have it on a bellows,it's a bulky beast hard to maneuver on a tripod,but then you are using f 8 to get some DOF and full bellows adds a couple of stops to that.....so it's not a thing you try with a low ASA.
Truth is....I'm really mostly still an old school 35 mm guy. Digital is handy,quick. I WANT a nice Pentax digital SLR,once I can afford it. However....for a great macro,I'd rather use a vintage 70's screw mount match needle 35 mm SLR because I have that hardware and I know what I'm getting.