Macro Photography

Small Porcelain Bear (taken 2009)

Everyone has seen small things that look large in photographs. Macro photography is the art of taking close-up photographs of small subjects. Photographs classified under this kind of photography normally conforms to the 1:1 magnification ratio meaning that the subject’s size in the viewfinder  of the camera is relatively the same size as the subject in real life (Yanik, 2009). 

Orchids in the garden after watering (taken 2010)

There has been much debate however, to what actually counts as a macro shot. Some say that macro shots are supposed to enlarge the subject especially parts of the subject that cannot be seen clearly with the naked eye whereas some say that as long as a small item looks big in the photograph and it fills most of the frame the photograph is considered to be a macro shot.

There are special lenses for macro photography. These lenses are fixed to the standard ratio for taking macro shots. The Canon EF 100mm f/2.8 USM Macro Lens is a good example of a 1:1 ratio lens and is the top choice for beginner macro photographers (“Canon EF 100mm f/2.8 USM Macro Lens Review”, 2012, para.9).  Another good example is The Canon EF-S 60mm f/2.8 Macro USM which happen to be a shorter lens but it gives a sharper photograph result (“Canon EF-S 60mm f/2.8 Macro USM Lens Review”, 2012, para.4).

Stunning white (taken 2010)

However, sadly for those who do not own these special lenses, the range of the type of macro shots are limited. This is because to get the perfect 1:1 ratio the camera will have to be closer to the subject and thus subjects that move and have a life of its own like insects for instance is a tough challenge and nearly impossible to capture. Therefore, as a beginner with a basic 18-55mm lens I stick to non moving subjects such as flowers and any other small inanimate objects for practice. It is also always best to focus with manual focusing rather than auto focusing. This is because the subject needs to be the sharpest in the picture and it is easier to manipulate the focusing on a camera to get an accurate and beautiful shot with less takes  then to let a camera decide and it might inaccurately focus on the background instead of the subject. Thus needing more takes to get a satisfying shot.

My favourite shot out of all (taken 2012)

Reference:

Canon EF-S 60mm f/2.8 Macro USM Lens Review. (2012). Retrieved from http://www.the-digital-picture.com/Reviews/Canon-EF-S-60mm-f-2.8-Macro-USM-Lens-Review.aspx. accessed on 14^th April 2012. 

Canon EF 100mm f/2.8 USM Macro Lens Review. (2012). Retrieved from http://www.the-digital-picture.com/Reviews/Canon-EF-100mm-f-2.8-USM-Macro-Lens-Review.aspx. accessed on 13^th April 2012.

Yanik (2009). Introduction to Macro Photography – Part 1. Retrieved from http://yanikphotoschool.com/tutorials/introduction-to-macro-photography-part-1/. accessed on 13^th April 2012.