 Likah Rue |
Are Macro & Telephoto Lenses The Same? I have the Nikon D100 with the AF 24-85mm lens. I want to take macro pictures. (I am never satisfied as to how close the 24-85 lens lets me get) So as I'm searching I am finding that Telephoto and Macro lenses are the same? It will say something like: '70-300 f4-5.6 DG Macro Nikon AF Zoom Lens' meaning it is both zoom and macro? You can go far or get super close with one lens? Is that right? Does that mean you have to be far away from the flower you want to get a macro shot of because the lens extends? I'd love to be educated~ I appriciate any and all feedback! Thanks guys! ~Likah
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- Gregory LaGrange Contact Gregory LaGrange Gregory LaGrange's Gallery |
Not the same because they mean two different things, but some telephoto lenses have macro capabilities. True macro lenses allow you to focus close enough to be at least 1/2 life size I think. Tele-macros have a shorter minimum focusing distance. Such as a regular 70-300 tele you can get as close to 8ft to something. But a 70-300 with macro lets you get to 5ft.
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Likah Rue |
So, really if I want to shoot macro and that's the real reason for getting the lens, the Telephoto/Macro lens would not be the best becuase the macro feature on the telephoto lens is more like an added capability than the real art and purpose of the lens. ? Do you agree? Do you have any pictures or know of where I could find some to see what pictures look like, taken with Tele/Macro lenses at the distances you mentioned? Thank you for you reply. I appriciate your help. ~Likah
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- Gregory LaGrange Contact Gregory LaGrange Gregory LaGrange's Gallery |
For the best in doing macro, I'd say get a macro lens, and not a zoom with macro settings. Macros do come in small telephoto focal lengths like 100mm, but they will be better optically than a zoom with macro setting. You can look on Canon's website in their list of lenses and they have sample pictures to look at with each of their lenses.(http://consumer.usa.canon.com/ir/controller?act=ProductCatIndexAct&fcategoryid=155) A macro shot of mine is the onion. The distances I gave in the answer before are just made up as an example. You have to look up on a spec chart for a lenses minimum focus distance. Not all macro's will have the same.
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Sharon Day |
The last two pages of my gallery has some examples of macro with a Sigma 70-300 lens as well as the Nikon 105mm macro lens.
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Justin G. |
don't know how to word this sharon without soundign like a butt, but just out of curiousity, are those the full size images or are they high quality images cropped and enlarged? i'm guessing now on the flower one on the last page b/c of the EXTREMELY shallow DOF, just wondering though. thanks.
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F C |
Thats a good question justin. I have the same lens as Sharon, but I doubt it can get that close. I may be wrong. If it can, GREAT! i will have to try it.,
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Glen Taylor |
I have the Sigma 180mm/3.5 EX IF macro and like it a lot, but it's more of a special-purpose lens.
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John G. Clifford Jr |
Telephoto lenses are lenses with a focal length that is longer than the diagonal measurement of the film/sensor surface. For example, a 35mm negative measures about 43mm from corner to corner, so any lens that is longer than 43mm is a telephoto. Yes, the 'normal' 50mm lens for this format does slightly magnify the image. A macro lens, as another poster pointed out, is a lens that lets you focus closely enough to present a fairly large image on the film/sensor. I've seen 'macro' as the capability to focus closely enough to allow for 1/4 life-size on the surface, i.e., a 1" object covers 1/4" on the sensor. On an APS-sized sensor that is 23mm wide, a 1:2 macro lens would let a 23mm object be 11.5mm wide, or in other words it would cover half the image. That is how people get really big pictures of bugs. Sigma makes some awesome macro lenses in the 50mm, 105mm, 150mm, and 180mm focal lengths. I have a 50mm (effectively 85mm considering my SD10's crop factor) and it is a very sharp lens. Another solution is to buy an inexpensive manual focus lens with a compatible mount, and use extension tubes to increase the lens' close focus capabilities. For instance, I have an M42 mount adapter for my SD10, and I can use a Pentax 50/1.4 lens with an extension tube to focus very closely indeed... better than 1:1 macro (the object is larger on the sensor than it is in real life). IMO, 50mm is really too short for most macro purposes. You don't want to disturb the thing (bug, etc.) you're photographing. That's why the Sigma 150mm and 180mm macro lenses are very appealing to dedicated macro photographers, and they make great prime lenses as well.
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