Canon G5 for macro

[--chris--]

Hear me out

 

 

 

Both my parents have been in photography since before i existed. Ive been into it for my whole life, but ive always had other things ive been into more so i have little hands on.

 

My dad is upgrading from his G5 to a G11. He is giving me his G5. Ive used it in the past to photograph my tank, and really liked how easy it was to get accurate rendtions even in macro mode zoomed in. It didnt do extreme macro like i see, but it made 2-3 polyps of something look clear and the color was spot on.

 

Ive been reading about this:

 

http://www.mplonsky.com/photo/article.htm

 

"Poor Mans Macro" or "reversing lenses"

 

Its got me interested in giving it a shot. I however,will only have the camera and very little knowledge of what i will need beyond that. So onto my questions.

 

1) It says a lens adaptor (duh).

- I have been searching for lens adapters today and i have found many. From $12 to $100. Is one brand better?

- How does the lens actually attach to the adapter (I realize there will be some level of "rigging" here)

 

2) What type of lens can i use? Maybe this would be answered if i bought an adapter first, then went hunting for a lens...Ive done some searching for lenses and it seems $100 is about the bottom end for a new-old-stock 50mm canon lens. Any suggestions for another lens to look for that is cheaper?

 

3) What is this?

http://www.amazon.com/Canon-2822A002-58mm-Close-Up-Lens/dp/B0007ZA15M/ref=pd_sxp_f_r

 

 

Again, this is a gifted camera and im looking to improve the macro ability (if only slightly). Im not expecting perfection.

[Lalani]

1) Its hard to tell you if one brand is better than another or how it will work if you don't tell us what you've found.

 

2) The most commonly used lens for reversing is a 50mm, and yes, canon's are $100 at their cheapest new. You can probably find some cheap used ones though canon photography forums and whatnot.

The adapter is probably just the type you screw onto the camera body surrounding the lens, and has a slightly larger thread on the end. If you can find a second adapter that will attach to that one and allow you to attach the reversed 50mm it can work, but its something you might have to rig up.

 

3) Diopter, basically a magnifying glass. That one looks like a +10, but they are crap. I used one for a while. They vingette badly, have a tiny working distance, and distort much of the image.

[ZX6Reefer]

If you don't mind waiting 2-3 weeks for shipping I have found some fun stuff on here to play around with. Definitely try to read reviews as some is, I am sure, junk.

 

I bought a decent-enough-to-play-around-with macro attachment for my camera for like 5 bucks.

 

http://dx.com/s/canon+macro

[Bishop]

If you want to know how your lens will work with a reversal ring, set up a lot of light on a small object on a table. Then take the lens and hold it on the camera backwards. Try to keep light from entering the space between the lens and camera body.

 

Reverse rings are the same whether they cost $3 or $100 so go with the cheapest one you can find to fit the lens you want to reverse. I bought one that came with a couple step down rings so I could use it on both 58mm lenses and 52 mm lenses. Cost about $12 if I remember right. It seemed cool for the first 2 days but I never used it after that.

 

When the lens is reversed, it will only focus within a couple inches at best. You can have fun with it for a few minutes but it's no replacement for a macro lens. The better option would be something like this http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/809469-REG/Opteka_OPT_10X_52_10x_High_Definition_II.html

 

Whatever you do, don't go with something expensive.

 

I haven't tried tubes. Those could be a good option as well.

[--chris--]

Thank you everyone. I ordered up a tripod and some cf cards, should have something to show by next weekend.

 

I'll see what I can do with just the macro mode and some cropping before I try any of these setups.

[Lalani]

http://www.petapixel.com/2013/02/19/snowflake-macro-photos-captured-using-a-canon-powershot-compact-camera/

[d0lph1n]

 

 

1) It says a lens adaptor (duh).

- I have been searching for lens adapters today and i have found many. From $12 to $100. Is one brand better?

- How does the lens actually attach to the adapter (I realize there will be some level of "rigging" here)

 

I've been experimenting with macro via reverse lens and extension tubes for the past week. I'm using Fotodiox adapters on my d5100 +35mm F1.8 lens. I don't think it matters the brand as long as it is made of metal. The reverse lens adaptor is a very simple piece of metal with threads on both ends. The adapter looks like this and you should first find out what filter thread your G5 has and second, the filter thread of the lens you are planning to connect at the end of your G5 lens. Now, theoretically, you should find a way to control the aperture of the reverse mounted lens. If the lens doesn't have an aperture control ring, there are simple and cheap ways of keeping the aperture open (small F number).

 

2) What type of lens can i use? Maybe this would be answered if i bought an adapter first, then went hunting for a lens...Ive done some searching for lenses and it seems $100 is about the bottom end for a new-old-stock 50mm canon lens. Any suggestions for another lens to look for that is cheaper?

 

Ideally fast primes with manual aperture control. I think it's important to know the thread of the lens before purchasing the adaptor.

 

3) What is this?

http://www.amazon.com/Canon-2822A002-58mm-Close-Up-Lens/dp/B0007ZA15M/ref=pd_sxp_f_r

 

The close-up filter allows your lens to focus closer to subject.

 

Try to find somebody who is using an equipment similar with yours, mplonsky's article seems interesting, to produce macro photos that you like and emulate everything. he is also giving a good piece of advice "My advice is to do what I did and go a camera store and try out some lenses. In other words, you have to see for yourself which "optical marriage" will work. For just trying out a lens, you can just handhold it in the reverse position in front of your fixed lens (rather than bothering with the macro coupling ring)." Don't forget to open the aperture on the reverse lens. The focus field will be very close to the lens..inches if not closer and the DOF (depth of field) will be very short. The more you close the aperture the more DOF, less light will enter the sensor and you will have to compensate by increasing the ISO or the time exposure or boosting the light around the subject or all 3. Also, bcz of the shallow DOF, it will probably be very hard to do it handheld. Maybe bcz of your camera sensor size, the DOF won't be that shallow.