Macro Macro photography

lkwokon · 06-28-2017, 10:17 PM

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Hi all

Macro photography is a interesting thing. You can capture the action of tiny animals. Can anyone give me a suggestions about which macro lens is more suitable for K-5 ii body? I bought K-5 ii kit with 18-55mm len.

**othar** · 06-29-2017, 01:26 AM

If you are interested in photographing insects you probably will be better off with a longer lens like a 100mm macro lens, with shorter focal lengths like the 35mm or 50mm you can admittedly achieve fabulouse results too but your working distance might be too short for some species (e.g. dragonflys). If you just wanna try macro photography and you aren't shure if it really suits you, you can get some extension tubes and a K/M/A 50mm f/2 or f/1.7 lens for a reasonable price.
Depending on the extension tubes you get you will probably need an aperture ring on the lens or you are limited to the smallest aperture ~f/22 which will be too dark if you don't have a ring flash or similar lightning equipment.
AF is nice to have but in my opinion not needed for macro photography.
(If you buy an extension tube with a non-conductive lens mount you have to either remove the paint to enable stopping down of the lens or put a piece of tinfoil or similar between the lens and camera, otherwise you only can shoot with the lens wide open.)
As for the magnification pay attention what a lens can achieve, especially zoom lenses are often named macro lenses although they are in reality just close focus lenses with magnifications of 1:4, prime lenses with the name macro are usually 1:2 or 1:1 depending on the lens.

Wild Mark · 06-29-2017, 04:16 AM

Welcome ikwokon

You will probably get a fair variety of recommendations, because, there are so many ways to do macro. Recommendations will range from cheap to expense, easy to implement to hard.

The camera you have is very capable. I would be thinking about the camera first before the lens. Firstly, the ISO performance is good, but not as good as current models. Shooting at up to iso 800 is ok with the sweet spot being about iso 400. I suggest this as it is a good compromise between noise and speed (light will be an enemy in macro as you will come to learn).

The onboard flash is ok. A cheap upgrade is the acquisition of a hotshoe mounted diffuser to soften the flash light - this will vastly improve your flash macro work. Alternatively, you can get a really good mounted flash such as a Metz 58 II .... but the expense is high and perhaps too much for your stage.

So now to what mode to use. That will partly depend on what lens you get (manual, AF, 'A' contacts or not, M42 ...). Without confusing the matter you are probably best going for a K mount with 'A' contacts at the very least - AF is not essential in macro so don't sweat it on that level. This means you can control the aperture with the camera body. More advanced is a fully manual lens where you will have to use the 'green button' (ps unless you are familiar with this I suggest not thinking about this at this stage). If you get a 'A' lens then you can use P or Av mode with ease.

Now for the lens. Assuming you are using a 'A' lens then you need to contemplate focal length. Insects are fussy and react to lenses taht need to be close to the subject. So, othar's recommendation is very sound. If you have a spare $400 then go for the best - I suggest here a Tokina (aka bokina) 90mm 2.8 with 1:1 adapter. NICE. A Tamron 90mm f2.8, with different optical formaular is also very good at a slightly smaller price (say $250). Alternatively you could go for the Pentax A 100mm f4 - not a bad option but it is not a true macro (2:1). Another very fine lens is the Vivitar Macro 'series one' A 105mm 2.5 for about $300. In any case you are probably looking at about $300 for a very good quality manual 'A' lens. Otherwise, you could buy a FA100/2.8 macro for a similar price or even less - a marvellous lens with the added feature of AF.

Anyway, you really can't go wrong with any of the lenses mentioned above, it will just depend on your price point.

Have fun

---------- Post added 29-06-17 at 09:22 PM ----------

very capable lens

[EXCELENT+++++] Pentax SMC FA 100mm f/2.8 Macro from Japan P012 | eBay

**aslyfox** · 06-29-2017, 04:36 AM

welcome

some folks have luck with Raynox add ons

MACRO Conversion Lens for D-SLR and High Definition camcorders

here is a thread showing results:

https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/122-lens-clubs/74221-raynox-macro-club.html

________________________________________________

I went another route

I picked up a used SMC Pentax-D FA 100mm F2.8 Macro - the non WR version - from the forum's market place. I like it a lot, it gets 1:1

https://www.pentaxforums.com/lensreviews/SMC-Pentax-DFA-100mm-F2.8-Macro-Lens.html

[ don't forget to check out the marketplace when you decide to start looking for equipment ]

https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/24-photographic-equipment-sale/

I also have an older Tamron 70 - 300 mm macro zoom which can get me 1:2 at the 300 mm focal length

https://www.pentaxforums.com/userreviews/tamron-af-70-300mm-f-4-5-6-ld-tele-...odel-772d.html

you can find those reasonably priced used generally

____________________________________________

I do "in the field" macro when I try it, in other words, I don't have a studio set up

if interested in macro, you might like this thread

PentaxForums.com → Photo Sharing and Galleries → Mini-Challenges, Games, and Photo Stories → Thematic Pollinators in action

Read more at: Pollinators in action - PentaxForums.com

some of the posters have posted incredible images

Last edited by aslyfox; 06-29-2017 at 08:04 AM.

smf · 06-29-2017, 06:00 AM

Here are two websites you might find valuable in the future and perhaps also now:

Extreme Macro Photography

Tinylandscapes.com

Best wishes.

**WPRESTO** · 06-29-2017, 06:34 AM

By far the easiest. simplest, least expensive way to start experimenting with macro is to get Raynox achromatic close-up filters. I would recommend the two-lens kit which includes the 150 achromatic close-up lens (reduces front-of-lens-to-subject distance to 8 inches with lens set to infinity); the 250 achromatic close-up lens (subject distance reduced to 4 inches) plus a quick-mount holder that will attach the Raynox units to any lens with filer threads of 52mm to 67mm. The kit costs about $120 from either B&H or Adorama. I would suggest using your present zoom @ its maximum focal length = 55mm. There is a thread here on PF for posting images taken with the Raynox units. Find it and look at the detail that can be captured by attaching these inexpensive filters to a wide variety of lenses.

Na Horuk · 06-29-2017, 06:43 AM

DFA 100mm macro WR is amazing lens. Can recommend. It is fairly priced - you get a WR, pro level lens.
DFA 50mm macro is good from what I read, but I think 100mm is the better one to start with

wsteffey · 06-29-2017, 08:23 AM

True MACRO photography is a rewarding, but very demanding, photography niche. I like the RAYNOX ideas above because the investment is not so great that you cannot shelf the concept like I did and feel bad about the money spent. I enjoy being outdoors and found that true MACRO outdoors is more than difficult, it may be impossible most days. The DOF is so small that even a breeze that you cannot feel can move the plant subject in and out of focus constantly. Unless one has a long MACRO lens it is too easy to scare small animals before you can get close enough. I found that what I really enjoy is close focus lens, in my case a Sigma 70-300 APO DG. Set to MACRO and 200 to 300mm I can very nice photos of lizards and snakes down to about 2" long from as close as 4 feet. New similar lens cost about $200 new, and less that $100 used.

**aslyfox** · 06-29-2017, 09:38 AM

Originally posted by wsteffey

True MACRO photography is a rewarding, but very demanding, photography niche. . . . I enjoy being outdoors and found that true MACRO outdoors is more than difficult, it may be impossible most days. The DOF is so small that even a breeze that you cannot feel can move the plant subject in and out of focus constantly. Unless one has a long MACRO lens it is too easy to scare small animals before you can get close enough. . . . .

yes, macro in the field isn't easy, especially for beginners like me

however, that is how you learn, try, try, try again just like my other photographic efforts

at least now, I don't have to have print the attempt to determine whether or not I was successful.

one of the reasons I went with the SMC Pentax-D FA 100mm F2.8 Macro was that it was useable in areas other than macro photography, as a short telephoto and a "speedy" lens

I also will experiment with my Tamron AF 70-300mm F/4-5.6 LD Tele-Macro [1:2] (Model 772D) set at 300 mm it is supposed to give me a 1:2 result

tryphon4 · 06-29-2017, 12:45 PM

Originally posted by lkwokon

Can anyone give me a suggestions about which macro lens is more suitable for K-5 ii body?

Any macro lens, in Pentax K mount, could do the job.

The questions are: What is your budget and what macro power do you need (1:2; 1:1; 2:1 or more?)

Thagomizer · 06-29-2017, 02:00 PM

Lots of useful tips here:

CHEAP MACRO -- Buying or exploiting a lens for ultraclose work - PentaxForums.com

One of the things that really helped to improve my macro shots was a flash diffuser. Here's a cheap and easy one to add to your on-board flash:

DIY TTL Macro Flash! - PentaxForums.com

The same idea can also be used with add-on flashes:

DIY Macro Lighting Diffuser - cheaper than you can imagine(0$)!!! | DiyPhotographyStuff

Na Horuk · 06-29-2017, 02:39 PM

Originally posted by Na Horuk

DFA 100mm macro WR is amazing lens. Can recommend. It is fairly priced - you get a WR, pro level lens.
DFA 50mm macro is good from what I read, but I think 100mm is the better one to start with

Btw, these are great lenses for macro as well as non-macro purposes! You can do product photos, telephoto landscapes, abstracts, portraits.. these are very versatile lenses and they work well on K-5II. Since they are DFA they also work well on film cameras and full frame like K-1, if you ever decide to try FF cameras

Tamron 90mm macro is a slightly more affordable lens that has nearly the same optical quality as the DFA 100mm, just the barrel build is not so amazing.

**goatsNdonkey** · 06-29-2017, 07:08 PM

If you get a set of extension tubes, first learn the ropes of using them by using the slimmest one. It won't give as much magnification, but it also will steal the least light.

lkwokon · 06-29-2017, 11:39 PM

Originally posted by othar

If you are interested in photographing insects you probably will be better off with a longer lens like a 100mm macro lens, with shorter focal lengths like the 35mm or 50mm you can admittedly achieve fabulouse results too but your working distance might be too short for some species (e.g. dragonflys). If you just wanna try macro photography and you aren't shure if it really suits you, you can get some extension tubes and a K/M/A 50mm f/2 or f/1.7 lens for a reasonable price.
Depending on the extension tubes you get you will probably need an aperture ring on the lens or you are limited to the smallest aperture ~f/22 which will be too dark if you don't have a ring flash or similar lightning equipment.
AF is nice to have but in my opinion not needed for macro photography.
(If you buy an extension tube with a non-conductive lens mount you have to either remove the paint to enable stopping down of the lens or put a piece of tinfoil or similar between the lens and camera, otherwise you only can shoot with the lens wide open.)
As for the magnification pay attention what a lens can achieve, especially zoom lenses are often named macro lenses although they are in reality just close focus lenses with magnifications of 1:4, prime lenses with the name macro are usually 1:2 or 1:1 depending on the lens.

How about the laowa macro lens with wide angle 15mm f/4?

lkwokon · 06-29-2017, 11:40 PM

Originally posted by Thagomizer

Lots of useful tips here:

CHEAP MACRO -- Buying or exploiting a lens for ultraclose work - PentaxForums.com

One of the things that really helped to improve my macro shots was a flash diffuser. Here's a cheap and easy one to add to your on-board flash:

DIY TTL Macro Flash! - PentaxForums.com

The same idea can also be used with add-on flashes:

DIY Macro Lighting Diffuser - cheaper than you can imagine(0$)!!! | DiyPhotographyStuff

How about the laowa macro lens with wide angle 15mm f/4?

06-28-2017, 10:17 PM	#1
lkwokon New Member Join Date: Jun 2017 Location: Yuen Long Posts: 7	Macro photography Staff note: This post may contain affiliate links, which means Pentax Forums may earn a small commission if a visitor clicks through and makes a purchase. If you would like to support the forum directly, you may also make a donation here. Hi all Macro photography is a interesting thing. You can capture the action of tiny animals. Can anyone give me a suggestions about which macro lens is more suitable for K-5 ii body? I bought K-5 ii kit with 18-55mm len.

06-29-2017, 01:26 AM	#2
othar Site Supporter Join Date: May 2014 Location: Linz Photos: Albums Posts: 3,098	If you are interested in photographing insects you probably will be better off with a longer lens like a 100mm macro lens, with shorter focal lengths like the 35mm or 50mm you can admittedly achieve fabulouse results too but your working distance might be too short for some species (e.g. dragonflys). If you just wanna try macro photography and you aren't shure if it really suits you, you can get some extension tubes and a K/M/A 50mm f/2 or f/1.7 lens for a reasonable price. Depending on the extension tubes you get you will probably need an aperture ring on the lens or you are limited to the smallest aperture ~f/22 which will be too dark if you don't have a ring flash or similar lightning equipment. AF is nice to have but in my opinion not needed for macro photography. (If you buy an extension tube with a non-conductive lens mount you have to either remove the paint to enable stopping down of the lens or put a piece of tinfoil or similar between the lens and camera, otherwise you only can shoot with the lens wide open.) As for the magnification pay attention what a lens can achieve, especially zoom lenses are often named macro lenses although they are in reality just close focus lenses with magnifications of 1:4, prime lenses with the name macro are usually 1:2 or 1:1 depending on the lens. Last edited by othar; 06-29-2017 at 05:02 AM.

06-29-2017, 06:34 AM	#6
WPRESTO Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Aug 2010 Location: Massachusetts Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 59,094	By far the easiest. simplest, least expensive way to start experimenting with macro is to get Raynox achromatic close-up filters. I would recommend the two-lens kit which includes the 150 achromatic close-up lens (reduces front-of-lens-to-subject distance to 8 inches with lens set to infinity); the 250 achromatic close-up lens (subject distance reduced to 4 inches) plus a quick-mount holder that will attach the Raynox units to any lens with filer threads of 52mm to 67mm. The kit costs about $120 from either B&H or Adorama. I would suggest using your present zoom @ its maximum focal length = 55mm. There is a thread here on PF for posting images taken with the Raynox units. Find it and look at the detail that can be captured by attaching these inexpensive filters to a wide variety of lenses. Last edited by WPRESTO; 06-29-2017 at 06:58 AM.

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06-29-2017, 04:16 AM	#3
Wild Mark Veteran Member Join Date: Jun 2013 Location: Newcastle Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 1,954	Welcome ikwokon You will probably get a fair variety of recommendations, because, there are so many ways to do macro. Recommendations will range from cheap to expense, easy to implement to hard. The camera you have is very capable. I would be thinking about the camera first before the lens. Firstly, the ISO performance is good, but not as good as current models. Shooting at up to iso 800 is ok with the sweet spot being about iso 400. I suggest this as it is a good compromise between noise and speed (light will be an enemy in macro as you will come to learn). The onboard flash is ok. A cheap upgrade is the acquisition of a hotshoe mounted diffuser to soften the flash light - this will vastly improve your flash macro work. Alternatively, you can get a really good mounted flash such as a Metz 58 II .... but the expense is high and perhaps too much for your stage. So now to what mode to use. That will partly depend on what lens you get (manual, AF, 'A' contacts or not, M42 ...). Without confusing the matter you are probably best going for a K mount with 'A' contacts at the very least - AF is not essential in macro so don't sweat it on that level. This means you can control the aperture with the camera body. More advanced is a fully manual lens where you will have to use the 'green button' (ps unless you are familiar with this I suggest not thinking about this at this stage). If you get a 'A' lens then you can use P or Av mode with ease. Now for the lens. Assuming you are using a 'A' lens then you need to contemplate focal length. Insects are fussy and react to lenses taht need to be close to the subject. So, othar's recommendation is very sound. If you have a spare $400 then go for the best - I suggest here a Tokina (aka bokina) 90mm 2.8 with 1:1 adapter. NICE. A Tamron 90mm f2.8, with different optical formaular is also very good at a slightly smaller price (say $250). Alternatively you could go for the Pentax A 100mm f4 - not a bad option but it is not a true macro (2:1). Another very fine lens is the Vivitar Macro 'series one' A 105mm 2.5 for about $300. In any case you are probably looking at about $300 for a very good quality manual 'A' lens. Otherwise, you could buy a FA100/2.8 macro for a similar price or even less - a marvellous lens with the added feature of AF. Anyway, you really can't go wrong with any of the lenses mentioned above, it will just depend on your price point. Have fun ---------- Post added 29-06-17 at 09:22 PM ---------- very capable lens [EXCELENT+++++] Pentax SMC FA 100mm f/2.8 Macro from Japan P012 \| eBay

06-29-2017, 04:36 AM	#4
aslyfox Seeker of Knowledge Join Date: Aug 2016 Location: Topeka, Kansas Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 24,581	welcome some folks have luck with Raynox add ons MACRO Conversion Lens for D-SLR and High Definition camcorders here is a thread showing results: https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/122-lens-clubs/74221-raynox-macro-club.html ________________________________________________ I went another route I picked up a used SMC Pentax-D FA 100mm F2.8 Macro - the non WR version - from the forum's market place. I like it a lot, it gets 1:1 https://www.pentaxforums.com/lensreviews/SMC-Pentax-DFA-100mm-F2.8-Macro-Lens.html [ don't forget to check out the marketplace when you decide to start looking for equipment ] https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/24-photographic-equipment-sale/ I also have an older Tamron 70 - 300 mm macro zoom which can get me 1:2 at the 300 mm focal length https://www.pentaxforums.com/userreviews/tamron-af-70-300mm-f-4-5-6-ld-tele-...odel-772d.html you can find those reasonably priced used generally ____________________________________________ I do "in the field" macro when I try it, in other words, I don't have a studio set up if interested in macro, you might like this thread PentaxForums.com → Photo Sharing and Galleries → Mini-Challenges, Games, and Photo Stories → Thematic Pollinators in action Read more at: Pollinators in action - PentaxForums.com some of the posters have posted incredible images Last edited by aslyfox; 06-29-2017 at 08:04 AM.

06-29-2017, 06:00 AM	#5
smf Pentaxian Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Midland, MI Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 4,083	Here are two websites you might find valuable in the future and perhaps also now: Extreme Macro Photography Tinylandscapes.com Best wishes.

06-29-2017, 06:43 AM	#7
Na Horuk Veteran Member Join Date: Feb 2012 Location: Slovenia, probably Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 11,186	DFA 100mm macro WR is amazing lens. Can recommend. It is fairly priced - you get a WR, pro level lens. DFA 50mm macro is good from what I read, but I think 100mm is the better one to start with

06-29-2017, 09:38 AM	#9
aslyfox Seeker of Knowledge Join Date: Aug 2016 Location: Topeka, Kansas Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 24,581	Originally posted by wsteffey True MACRO photography is a rewarding, but very demanding, photography niche. . . . I enjoy being outdoors and found that true MACRO outdoors is more than difficult, it may be impossible most days. The DOF is so small that even a breeze that you cannot feel can move the plant subject in and out of focus constantly. Unless one has a long MACRO lens it is too easy to scare small animals before you can get close enough. . . . . yes, macro in the field isn't easy, especially for beginners like me however, that is how you learn, try, try, try again just like my other photographic efforts at least now, I don't have to have print the attempt to determine whether or not I was successful. one of the reasons I went with the SMC Pentax-D FA 100mm F2.8 Macro was that it was useable in areas other than macro photography, as a short telephoto and a "speedy" lens I also will experiment with my Tamron AF 70-300mm F/4-5.6 LD Tele-Macro [1:2] (Model 772D) set at 300 mm it is supposed to give me a 1:2 result

06-29-2017, 12:45 PM	#10
tryphon4 Pentaxian Join Date: Apr 2011 Location: Drome, France Posts: 301	Originally posted by lkwokon Can anyone give me a suggestions about which macro lens is more suitable for K-5 ii body? Any macro lens, in Pentax K mount, could do the job. The questions are: What is your budget and what macro power do you need (1:2; 1:1; 2:1 or more?)

06-29-2017, 02:00 PM	#11
Thagomizer Pentaxian Join Date: Jun 2014 Location: London Ontario Posts: 2,068	Lots of useful tips here: CHEAP MACRO -- Buying or exploiting a lens for ultraclose work - PentaxForums.com One of the things that really helped to improve my macro shots was a flash diffuser. Here's a cheap and easy one to add to your on-board flash: DIY TTL Macro Flash! - PentaxForums.com The same idea can also be used with add-on flashes: DIY Macro Lighting Diffuser - cheaper than you can imagine(0$)!!! \| DiyPhotographyStuff

06-29-2017, 02:39 PM	#12
Na Horuk Veteran Member Join Date: Feb 2012 Location: Slovenia, probably Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 11,186	Originally posted by Na Horuk DFA 100mm macro WR is amazing lens. Can recommend. It is fairly priced - you get a WR, pro level lens. DFA 50mm macro is good from what I read, but I think 100mm is the better one to start with Btw, these are great lenses for macro as well as non-macro purposes! You can do product photos, telephoto landscapes, abstracts, portraits.. these are very versatile lenses and they work well on K-5II. Since they are DFA they also work well on film cameras and full frame like K-1, if you ever decide to try FF cameras Tamron 90mm macro is a slightly more affordable lens that has nearly the same optical quality as the DFA 100mm, just the barrel build is not so amazing.

06-29-2017, 07:08 PM	#13
goatsNdonkey Site Supporter Join Date: Jan 2016 Location: Fulton County, Illinois Posts: 3,727	If you get a set of extension tubes, first learn the ropes of using them by using the slimmest one. It won't give as much magnification, but it also will steal the least light.

06-29-2017, 11:39 PM	#14
lkwokon New Member Join Date: Jun 2017 Location: Yuen Long Posts: 7 Original Poster	Originally posted by othar If you are interested in photographing insects you probably will be better off with a longer lens like a 100mm macro lens, with shorter focal lengths like the 35mm or 50mm you can admittedly achieve fabulouse results too but your working distance might be too short for some species (e.g. dragonflys). If you just wanna try macro photography and you aren't shure if it really suits you, you can get some extension tubes and a K/M/A 50mm f/2 or f/1.7 lens for a reasonable price. Depending on the extension tubes you get you will probably need an aperture ring on the lens or you are limited to the smallest aperture ~f/22 which will be too dark if you don't have a ring flash or similar lightning equipment. AF is nice to have but in my opinion not needed for macro photography. (If you buy an extension tube with a non-conductive lens mount you have to either remove the paint to enable stopping down of the lens or put a piece of tinfoil or similar between the lens and camera, otherwise you only can shoot with the lens wide open.) As for the magnification pay attention what a lens can achieve, especially zoom lenses are often named macro lenses although they are in reality just close focus lenses with magnifications of 1:4, prime lenses with the name macro are usually 1:2 or 1:1 depending on the lens. How about the laowa macro lens with wide angle 15mm f/4?

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06-29-2017, 11:40 PM	#15
lkwokon New Member Join Date: Jun 2017 Location: Yuen Long Posts: 7 Original Poster	Originally posted by Thagomizer Lots of useful tips here: CHEAP MACRO -- Buying or exploiting a lens for ultraclose work - PentaxForums.com One of the things that really helped to improve my macro shots was a flash diffuser. Here's a cheap and easy one to add to your on-board flash: DIY TTL Macro Flash! - PentaxForums.com The same idea can also be used with add-on flashes: DIY Macro Lighting Diffuser - cheaper than you can imagine(0$)!!! \| DiyPhotographyStuff How about the laowa macro lens with wide angle 15mm f/4?