Macro mayhem!!!!

Hey guys. I recently acquired a macro lens for my Canon Rebel T1i and I've been having lots of fun with it :) so I thought I'd share some stuff.

Only had it about a month and a half, haven't been able to get out too much yet, but I like what I see so far :D


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Much more to come, weather permitting 8] I love going for walks with my camera.

Eww bugs!

Man, I need one of those... What's the focal length? Did you shoot those handheld?

WOW! Great shots my friend!

Thanks guys! :D for the most part they are on a tripod-- I have a Canon 100mm USM autofocus lens, no IS so a tripod is a must for sharpness. Most of these shots have an aperture of 2.8 to 5.6 :)

Coolio, I'm aiming for the Nikon 105mm when finances permit... How far are you from your subject at closest focus?

Wow. The details are stunning, I especially like the fourth and fifth ones! :thumbup:

It's about 15cm away from the subject, which I was pleasantly surprised with having never used a macro lens before! I thought I'd have to get closer, quite a charm to have some room. Nikon 105mm should be great ;) this one set me back 600 but I got it for 250 dollars less than I would anywhere else!

And thanks Puffin :D

Here's one I just took-- I was amazed at how sharp this can be with the right settings!

http://imageshack.us/m/585/5908/42289037.jpg

Good photos. You should try to do some portrait photography with that thing. It's amazing how good macro lenses are for that.

Definitely looking forward to trying some portraits when I get the chance, I can tell already it'll be great for it :)

I made a really shaky vid of a snail...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YDY_f6Uh7u0

Gorgeous photos. That snail is enjoying a fine meal.

White-lipped snail - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

:cookiemonster:

He sure is :D

Here's some I took today:

https://fbcdn-sphotos-a.akamaihd.net..._3831655_n.jpg
https://fbcdn-sphotos-a.akamaihd.net..._2316427_n.jpg
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https://fbcdn-sphotos-a.akamaihd.net..._2651689_n.jpg
https://fbcdn-sphotos-a.akamaihd.net..._5078591_n.jpg

Today's shots:

http://img191.imageshack.us/img191/5363/img2789o.jpg (Hi res version)
https://fbcdn-sphotos-a.akamaihd.net..._5776842_n.jpg
https://fbcdn-sphotos-a.akamaihd.net..._2897605_n.jpg
https://fbcdn-sphotos-a.akamaihd.net...8_240918_n.jpg
https://fbcdn-sphotos-a.akamaihd.net...6_683035_n.jpg
https://fbcdn-sphotos-a.akamaihd.net..._4717503_n.jpg
https://fbcdn-sphotos-a.akamaihd.net..._5354897_n.jpg
https://fbcdn-sphotos-a.akamaihd.net..._3804433_n.jpg
https://fbcdn-sphotos-a.akamaihd.net..._2898224_n.jpg

Is it constantly raining at your place :P.

Makes for beautiful macro photography

How did you get your flowers to grow so big?

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Originally Posted by Spartiate

Is it constantly raining at your place :P.

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We've had terrible weather, it's been raining every day for the past week and a half :l been taking advantage of it regardless ;) hehe.

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Originally Posted by sloth

How did you get your flowers to grow so big?

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That's the magical illusion of macroland 8]

Big one here:

Spoiler for Big image!:

http://img844.imageshack.us/img844/738/cropjob.jpg

This one's nothing special... I just like how it looks like a polaroid

http://img30.imageshack.us/img30/1479/cj2t.jpg

A big stick got in the way (blah) but oh well-- arachnophobes, beware.

Spoiler for spiders:

http://img834.imageshack.us/img834/7537/cj3v.jpg

Hopefully I can get outside tomorrow... haven't had a day off in ages.

EDIT: Right click > view image to see the full sized versions :/ the compressed ones don't look so nice

Here's some more, took them the other day after a good rain (as always)

http://fc05.deviantart.net/fs71/i/20...er-d3jvetq.jpg
http://fc07.deviantart.net/fs71/i/20...er-d3jve93.jpg
http://fc03.deviantart.net/fs71/i/20...er-d3jvf62.jpg
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https://fbcdn-sphotos-a.akamaihd.net..._8201042_n.jpg
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First three pics are the only ones in this thread I've done colour editing to... even if it's really minor, still >_> the rest are as is.

Man these are really, really good.
And not just a "o kool close-up awesomeness dude!" good.

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Originally Posted by Spenner

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These are awesome, would be good in an exhibition showing the different life forms that all pass by the same flower. (Even if it's not the exact same flower, it looks like it hehe)

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Originally Posted by Spenner

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This one sort of looks like the plant is feeding energy in to the water droplet. Just looks great with the background too.

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Originally Posted by Spenner

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This one looks like some sort of gigantic monster is staring at the poor little snail lol

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Originally Posted by Spenner

http://imageshack.us/m/585/5908/42289037.jpg

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This one's just beautiful :)

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Originally Posted by Spenner

I made a really shaky vid of a snail...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YDY_f6Uh7u0

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I saw this and was about to say "Tara's gonna have an orgasm over this...."
*scrolls down*

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Originally Posted by Tara

Gorgeous photos. That snail is enjoying a fine meal.

White-lipped snail - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

:cookiemonster:

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haha

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Originally Posted by Spenner

/249313_10150208213504030_811769029_7132500_3804433 _n.jpg[/IMG]
https://fbcdn-sphotos-a.akamaihd.net..._2898224_n.jpg

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First one is just awesome, it's like twisted chaos.
Second one is similar, awesome too. AWESOME!

[QUOTE=Spenner;1673405]

Spoiler for Big image!:

http://img844.imageshack.us/img844/738/cropjob.jpg

Love this one too, like it's hiding out in this little spiraling cave.
The fact that it's on the top makes it even cooler.

:D :D thanks Tommo, I enjoyed reading your thoughts on them hehe.

Haven't been out in awhile to shoot some more, working 35 hours a week on average now :/ tomorrow's my day so maybe I can get out there again 8]

Did some today........ damn is it hard to live up to the last set I posted :| oh well.

https://fbcdn-sphotos-a.akamaihd.net..._4213437_n.jpg
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Good as always, is it a big challenge to keep the bugs in focus?

So beautiful. Thank god for the Fibonacci sequence.

Thanks guys :D

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Originally Posted by Spartiate

Good as always, is it a big challenge to keep the bugs in focus?

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YES. From my photo spree today I took about 250 pictures and that was wittled down to around 75 after I deleted all the ones that were out of focus. And even after that I'm left with some versions where, say, the top of the head is in focus rather than the eyes. Shooting at F/8.0 rather than lower apertures is way better, at least the focus isn't too dramatically off if you move the camera slightly or something.

Still trying to challenge myself to get a bug while it's in the air but I'm nowhere near comfortable enough with shutter speeds yet >_>

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This picture is outstanding. I'm amazed those colors weren't achieved through any color manipulation! *_*

Yeah-- I can't believe how metallic and sharp those insects are, and on top of that just made the perfect industrial looking picture for me to shoot IMO :)

Even cropped up it still looks pretty nice, despite some noise :P

http://img11.imageshack.us/img11/5475/64535540.jpg

Such a clean and plastic coated looking insect. Almost machine like. I love it.



Anyhow, I took some stuff as the sun was setting.

https://fbcdn-sphotos-a.akamaihd.net...5_948074_n.jpg

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Nice! The sunset colours look great. There are some really cute bugs in these haha, I love that super close-up fly, and the spiders and snails.

Hehe, yes, some bugs are just cute. The jumping spiders especially-- and how they actually look at the camera and pose for shots :B

Here's some I took after work.

https://fbcdn-sphotos-a.akamaihd.net...2_575227_n.jpg

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Practicing TV (shutter speed) mode in high winds today.

https://fbcdn-sphotos-a.akamaihd.net..._1833919_n.jpg

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https://fbcdn-sphotos-a.akamaihd.net..._2381700_n.jpg
^First pic of an airborne bug I've gotten!!!! :D

https://fbcdn-sphotos-a.akamaihd.net..._4465599_n.jpg

https://fbcdn-sphotos-a.akamaihd.net..._5569535_n.jpg

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It's been a little while, how about some more 8) just took these today.

http://img220.imageshack.us/img220/5963/img4102l.jpg
http://img402.imageshack.us/img402/358/4026c.jpg
http://img26.imageshack.us/img26/4937/img4016mg.jpg
http://img803.imageshack.us/img803/574/img4025l.jpg
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http://img838.imageshack.us/img838/7344/img4057w.jpg
http://img12.imageshack.us/img12/2901/img4062r.jpg
http://img268.imageshack.us/img268/8337/img4092b.jpg
http://img813.imageshack.us/img813/8263/img4066e.jpg

Those insects sure are getting it on.

Wow! I love the third one of the wasp.

Question - how do you find all those different bugs? All I ever see are ants and bees. :c

Yeah, two sets of mating bugs in one brief walk around haha o__o

And @Puffin: I just walk around slooowly and inspect everything closely, I've found bugs I'd never seen before just because I didn't let myself overlook anything. That's why on my photography "walks" I don't get very far, I spend a lot of time looking in the same area. I'm near a forest and it was rather humid today so that must've brought out the weird ones, I've never seen the ones in pic 1, 5 and 8 before.

Ah, cool. I wouldn't think there were that many bugs in one small area. o_O

And... I just noticed that the bug in the second last pic looks like it's grinning at me. xD

You'd be surprised by the amount/ diversity of species out there. I've seen the strangest things while hiking, like bugs that I would never have imagined possible before lol. From my experience they're mostly annoying/ scary but some can be pretty awesome too.

^^^ This. Many times I've been staring in a bush and a giant spider will be looking up at me that I didn't notice beside my head O___O

And these big grotesque flies with stingers with a long body, dunno what they are, but they scare the hell out of me.

Oh yes, thirded.

You just have to look, and you see the strangest things.

One time I watched this gigantic bee/wasp/something.... drag a huntsman in to a hole on a hill. It was super quick too. I've never seen a bee/wasp/whatever that big ever again. At least not in this country. We only have small ones. Except for that one big mother I saw lol

This one is fucking amazing. You got a high-res version of it?
I think I'd pay you for it.

https://fbcdn-sphotos-a.akamaihd.net..._3522463_n.jpg

Heh, unfortunately that wasn't my most sharp shot-- at least, close up ;( IMO it only really looks good zoomed out all the way. Here it is though: (background size would look decent too, just, for printing that one's iffy)

http://img855.imageshack.us/img855/3217/freer.jpg

I'm starting to understand how to capture sharper details better now. I think my last batch was a big improvement in some areas.

Tomorrow I might get out again and explore deeper >:] TV mode is becoming my best friend. What I do now is walk around with TV mode set on, and if I happen to find something completely still I'll switch over to AV mode with F/8.0 set, so I can quickly get the same shot with a lot more detail.

Oh yeah, it is a little blurry. That's a damn shame man. :lol:

It's set as my background now though anyway :D

Oh yeah, it is a little blurry. That's a damn shame man. :lol:

It's set as my background now though anyway :D

Omg these pictures are amazing!
I'm so jealous of your photo-taking abilities.
I think one of my favorites is the one with the bee sitting atop a daisy.

I would definitely pay money for some of these.

Long awaited thank you to Savy :D I'm glad you like them.

Here's a rather weak bump... 2 pics from the last time I went for a walk, I BARELY have time at all, and won't for a long time I think, so yep.

http://img26.imageshack.us/img26/5606/83168213.jpg

http://img835.imageshack.us/img835/5963/81060795.jpg

I really like these ones though. The rest were bleh. They're better in hi-res as well-- probably that's why I like them, they're quite sharp in the larger sizes.

I'm just sitting here like :O as I go through the photos on this thread. These are absolutely brilliant. I wish I could afford a good macro lens.

There is a very seriously needed update to my macro photography thread.

Since using the 100mm f/2.8 canon lens for a year and a bit, i decided I wanted to get closer. Not 1:3 closer, as I might with some extension tubes, but 1:5 with the MP-e 65mm f/2.8 lens. This thing is a TANK

Attachment 4835

Since getting this new toy I've been experimenting with macro scenes that I've constructed with just random scenarios and some carefully built with tweezers :cheeky:

http://fc00.deviantart.net/fs70/f/20...er-d54chja.jpg

First experiment with poppy seeds as characters/subjects. The idea of having a certain spice or certain small object thats consistent as a character in the macro world was alluring to me. I go deeper into this later on.
http://fc09.deviantart.net/fs70/f/20...er-d5oyhxs.jpg

http://fc01.deviantart.net/fs70/f/20...er-d5oymfo.jpg

http://fc08.deviantart.net/fs70/f/20...er-d5oyif5.jpg

I'd love to try a similar setup to these again.
http://fc04.deviantart.net/fs70/f/20...er-d53dvnj.jpg

http://fc03.deviantart.net/fs71/i/20...er-d53dvsy.jpg

Skin on my knuckles
http://fc06.deviantart.net/fs70/f/20...er-d55bype.jpg

http://th06.deviantart.net/fs70/PRE/...er-d5tufk3.jpg

http://fc04.deviantart.net/fs71/f/20...er-d63yho9.jpg

Back to poppy seeds for a bit... this time I wanted to really try hard to illustrate the seeds with an emotional quality, and almost human-like quality at times. I depicted scenes that in my mind were dated around the 1920s.
http://fc05.deviantart.net/fs71/f/20...er-d640j6p.jpg

http://fc03.deviantart.net/fs71/f/20...er-d640jb1.jpg

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http://fc06.deviantart.net/fs70/f/20...er-d643z84.jpg

http://fc01.deviantart.net/fs70/f/20...er-d6441hh.jpg

I have a few more but I won't get around to editing them for awhile. I don't want to overdue it either with the poppy seeds, though they're so much fun to build scenes with!

Also, eyes are cooler.

http://fc04.deviantart.net/fs71/f/20...er-d54m25w.jpg

That's all for now~ :)

Are you growing those poppy seeds solely for photography? :lol:

Also is that gelati in a few of them?

Very cool man. You need to sell your photos!

Thanks Tommo :) I'm sure some of these would actually look really nice above a spice cabinet or in a kitchen, I wouldn't mind getting some good prints just to hang around my room.

They're just cooking poppy seeds, I wish I could grow some poppy pods of my own though ;) would like to someday. Something about poppies, I just really like the hexagonal patterns on the edges of the seeds, and the pods and flowers look beautiful. Love poppies.

In most of the photo they are sitting on coloured marshmallows sometimes dipped in water, which i used to stick the poppies to the edges. For some, I used thin spices like fennel and rosemary and just random spices to see what would adhere the seeds best to them, especially for that one that makes them look like they're hanging.

Also the one where it looks like it's on a bubbly white cloud is on cauliflour.

Ah, ok, I just thought they were sprouting in this one, looks like it is anyway, which is cool.
http://fc08.deviantart.net/fs70/f/20...er-d5oyif5.jpg

:0
Wow these are flippin amazing!!! You really have a good eye!