macro with or without zooming

[doto]

when shooting in macro, without a special macro lens, is it better to put the lens as near as possible to the object, or to zoom om it from a little further away?

[xhan]

I've always said zoom is evil so Id put the lens as close as possible.

[xxpinballxx]

Depending on the lens if you tke it out to the longest it will go your image will tend to get a bit soft....so if you are using a 70-300mm macro at 300mm it will be a bit softer than at 275mm. I don't use a zoom lens for macro but I can say i definitely would not go all the way out. I say do a series of test shots.
Set up the tripod and lock it in and then the subject. Take shots at all along the focal length and see what gives you the best results. I would suggest doing this inside too so wind or ny other factors dont play into the test set.

[FrankenPengie]

My camera doesn't do zoom and macro well at the same time. It has trouble focusing.

[mysticeyesx]

using manual focus instead of af can help with that

[wulf]

Originally Posted by doto

when shooting in macro, without a special macro lens, is it better to put the lens as near as possible to the object, or to zoom om it from a little further away?

How do you mean "shooting macro without a special macro lens"? Are you using a normal lens but with some kind of adapter / filter or just switching into what the camera calls macro mode?

It would help to know a bit more about the equipment you are using although, ultimately, the answer is still likely to be "try different options and see what gets results you like".

Wulf

[doto]

I mean just using the superzoom on my panasonic fz8, a superb zoom by the way

[wulf]

Which makes the subject bigger in the resulting photo? What are the side effects (for example, smaller depth of field when you zoom?). The best thing to do is to take a series of shots exploring the parameters and make your decision on that.

Wulf

[FrankenPengie]

My camera is the FZ5, the older, smaller brother to yours with the same Leica lens. If I try to zoom in on anything close in any mode, the focus fails. I recommend 55mm close-up diopters to put in the lens hood.