Recent Macro Photography Articles

Exploring Macro Photography at Home  

Macro photography offers a unique lens through which photographers can explore the minutiae of the world around them, turning the ordinary into the extraordinary. This technique is particularly compelling because it allows for the exploration of texture, color, and detail in subjects that might otherwise be overlooked, all without the need to even leave your home.

A Review of the New Panasonic Lumix S 100mm f/2.8 Macro Lens

The new Panasonic Lumix S 100mm f/2.8 Macro lens is remarkably small and portable for what it offers, making it an intriguing option for macro and portrait work alike. This excellent video review takes a look at the lens and the sort of performance image quality you can expect from it in usage.

Why You Should Try Macro Photography

Macro photography, a realm often overlooked, offers photographers a unique way to transform ordinary subjects into extraordinary images. This niche pushes the boundaries of creativity, turning mundane objects into captivating subjects, and is worth a try by anyone who enjoys the photographic process.

Tips and Ideas for Photographing Mushrooms Without a Macro Lens

When autumn arrives, it's time to photograph mushrooms. Creating something unique can be challenging, but you don't need to use the most expensive or elaborate equipment, nor do you need a macro lens. I have some nice ideas for you when you go out photographing mushrooms.

A macro lens enables you to capture small subjects at a 1:1 size ratio. This means the subject appears the same size on the sensor. If a mushroom is 2.4 cm in height, it will also be 2.4 cm on the sensor. For example, with a full frame sensor measuring 36 x 24 mm, the mushroom fits perfectly within the...

See a New Macro World With the AstrHori f/8 Probe Lens

The AstrHori 18mm f/8 macro 2:1 lens released a few months ago is the nearest competitor to the Laowa Optics probe lens and at half the price, it is something that should be considered by both macro photographers and videographers.

Macro Gone Mobile: We Review SANDMARC Macro 100mm for iPhone

If you've wanted to try macro photography but didn't want to outlay on all the special equipment necessary, you're in luck. If you're an iPhone user, SANDMARC has a 100mm Macro lens you can screw onto your phone, and I put it through its paces.

The Sony 70-200mm f/4 G II Takes a Huge Leap in Evolution: We Review

In a time when older cameras and lenses are getting new updated versions left and right, one of the best things to see is when the piece of gear gets an entirely new purpose. This is definitely something that no one expected from the new Sony f/4 telephoto lens.

A 10-Minute Beginner's Guide to Macro Photography

Macro photography can be a tremendously rewarding pursuit that allows you to see a world that is all around us and yet, invisible to the naked eye. If you are new to the genre and wondering how to get started, check out this helpful video tutorial that features an experienced macro photographer sharing everything you need to know to get underway in just 10 minutes.

Can You Use These Full Frame Lenses on Medium Format Cameras?

Many photographers who get into medium format come to it with large collections of full frame lenses, and as such, it would be great if they could work on their new gear. Two of the best candidates are Canon's TS-E 17mm f/4L Tilt-Shift lens and TS-E 24mm f/3.5L II Tilt-Shift lens, and these helpful videos take a look at how they hold up on a Fujifilm medium format sensor.

Product and Food Photography: This Is the Way

When it comes to product and food photography, lighting is critical and can make or break the final image. Achieving the perfect lighting can be a complex process, even more so if you are just starting out with this type of photography.

Everything You Wanted to Know but Were Too Scared to Ask: Product Photography

In our biggest FAQ about product photography yet, we discuss some of the most common questions a photographer at any skill level might have, from simple ones about settings to complex ones about the type of reflection a leather surface produces under hard light. This article was created to help you create better product images.

Sigma Versus Canon Macro Shoot-off: Can You Tell the Difference?

Once upon a time, Sigma was a brand thought of by many as the compromise lens if you couldn't afford the household names. Times have changed, though, and Sigma has gone beyond offering competitive lenses to making remarkable lenses and even some notable industry firsts. Being a photographer who works heavily in product work, I decided to put the Sigma 70mm f/2.8 DG Macro Art lens in a shoot-off against the Canon EF 100mm f/2.8L Macro, and the results were... well, read on and find out for yourself!

A Beginner's Guide to Macro Photography

The beauty of macro photography is that you do not have to travel, book a model, or do anything involved to produce fantastic and compelling work. We are literally surrounded by potential subjects everywhere we go, and with a little bit of knowledge and patience, you can capture an entirely different world hidden in plain sight. If you are new to macro photography, check out this fantastic video tutorial that will show you everything you need to get started.

How to Photograph Deer and Massive Mushrooms

In this informative video, "The Outsiders," Rob Cottle and Geraint Radford head out into the wilds of South Wales to photograph deer. Along the way, they talk about wildlife photography techniques, the kit they use to get the photos, and dabbling in close-up and macro photography.

5 Helpful Tips to Improve Your Snowflake Macro Photography

Many of us are mired in the cold and snow of winter, but that does not mean our creative juices should stop flowing. In fact, winter offers a vast range of unique photo opportunities, some requiring long trips and some only needing you to step outside your back door. Macro snowflake photography falls into the latter category, and this excellent video tutorial features an experienced photographer giving five tips to help you come away with the best possible images.

Extension Tubes: They May Save You From Spending Thousands

It's a mystery how this little one-inch wonder remained unknown to me for so long. I finally discovered it when — bemoaning my fate to spend over two thousand on a Canon tilt-shift macro — a colleague suggested trying an extension tube.

A Masterclass in Macro Wildlife Photography With Geraint Radford

Did your university lecturer radiate an aura of excitement while crawling through a damp forest, seeking subjects that most of us would not notice? Every school and college should have a Geraint Radford. His skill and enthusiasm have just made me want to buy a macro lens and try the techniques I learned while interviewing him.

We Review the Astrhori 85mm f/2.8 1:1 Macro and Tilt Lens

With shorter daylight hours and longer dark, cold, and wet nights, it's time to think about what to shoot indoors: something new perhaps? For myself, it's going to be trying something new, and that's macro with the Astrhori 85mm f/2.8 Macro Tilt lens.

All Photography Educators Should Have as Much Fun as These Guys

Geraint and Rob are old friends out to have fun with their photography. They are both accomplished photographers and, most importantly, have a lot of fun taking pictures. The genuine joy they find in the creative process is evident and makes this video is worth watching.

Landscape Photography With an 85mm Macro Lens

When it comes to landscape photography, a wide angle lens is usually the tool of choice and for good reason. Nonetheless, you do not have to use wide focal lengths exclusively. In fact, a telephoto lens can be a powerful tool that enables new creative opportunities. This awesome video will show you just what you can accomplish with a telephoto lens, particularly when you use one with macro capabilities.

7 Tips for Better Flower Macro Photography

Flowers are some of the best subjects for macro photography, offering an almost endless range of looks and opportunities to expand your portfolio. If you are interested in your improving your flower macro imagery, check out this excellent video tutorial that will show you seven useful tips sure to put you on the track to better photos.

How to Take Sharp Handheld Macro Photos

Although sharpness is important in just about every genre, it is a particularly strong priority in macro photography. However, it is particularly challenging in macro work, especially when you are not working in a studio where you have complete control over the placement or stabilization of your subject. If you want to shoot on the go without setting up a tripod every time, check out this fantastic video tutorial that will show you some helpful tips for getting sharp images even when shooting handheld.

4 Reasons Why You Should Try Macro Photography

Macro photography is a genre that just about anyone can try, and it can open up an entirely new world of subjects and opportunities all hiding in plain sight. This great video features an experienced macro photographer discussing four reasons why the genre is addictive fun.

Is This a Cheap Way to Get Into Macro Photography?

The wonderful thing about macro photography is that there are always compelling subjects within arm's reach, but on the other hand, it generally requires a dedicated macro lens. If you are interested in macro photography but not ready to invest a lot of money in it, a potentially viable intermediate option is extension tubes. This great video will show you how extension tubes work as well as the pros and cons of using them for macro work.

A Review of the Voigtlander MACRO APO-LANTHAR 65mm f/2 Aspherical Lens

Voigtlander is known for making lenses with rugged build quality and great image quality, and the MACRO APO-LANTHAR 65mm f/2 Aspherical lens is no different. This fantastic image review takes a look at this interesting lens and the sort of image quality and performance you can expect from it in practice.

21 Awesome Macro Photography Ideas You Can Try at Home

The beauty of macro photography is that you do not need to travel anywhere to do it; we are literally surrounded by potential subjects wherever we are. If you are looking for a fun creative project or to expand your portfolio, this great video will show you 21 ideas for macro photography you can find around your home.

The Best Images from GuruShots "Let's See Macro" Challenge

GuruShots is the host of "The World’s Greatest Photo Game” and has released yet another fantastic challenge. Participants submited their best macro photos. The challenge received thousands of entries and millions of votes. Check out the three winners of the challenge as well as hundreds of top rated images below.

5 Great Winter Macro Photography Ideas

Winter is upon us, and if you are anything like me, you will try to avoid going out in the cold whenever possible. The beauty of macro photography is that there are fantastic subjects all around you, meaning you do not necessarily have to trek miles away to get great shots! This excellent video tutorial will show you five fun winter macro photography ideas and offer some tips to help you get the best shots.

Fstoppers Reviews Venus Optic’s 85mm f/5.6 2x Macro Lens: Amazing Magnification From a Tiny Lens

If you’re into macro photography, you might be wondering why so many macro lenses emphasize a wide aperture; f/2.8 is nice to have, but when focused down to 1:1, it’ll leave you with no depth of field. From my point of view, Venus Optics seems to have had the same thought. They built a macro lens with a spec sheet that’s focused on delivering macro results. Is this the new best option for macro photographers?

Helpful Tips and Tricks for Outdoor Macro Photography

The wonderful thing about macro photography is that unlike other landscape photography, you can do it just about anywhere and find compelling subjects. If you are ready to head out and try it out for yourself, check out this helpful video tutorial that will show you a few tips and techniques for taking good macro photos.

Focus Stacking Can Unlock a New Range of Subjects and It’s Now Easier Than Ever

Whether you’re shooting macro subjects like jewelry and flowers or landscapes on the latest high-resolution bodies, controlling depth of field can be essential. Focus stacking, where you combine multiple exposures at different focus points, can completely change the game when it comes to tricky depth of field situations. When you don’t have to worry about stopping down or picking what’s in focus, you can be even more creative. Fortunately, it’s easier than ever to properly focus stack. Check out this guide to the best field and post-production practices.

We Review Nikon’s Z 105mm Macro: Did Nikon Make the Safe Choice?

Announced back in June, Nikon’s first macro lenses for the Z mount appeared to be typical successors to their F mount predecessors, covering 50mm and 100mm focal lengths. The Z 105mm, as before, is a more premium choice, offering a few more features and a more choice designation. I’ve finally gotten my hands on one, and after some thorough testing, I’m ready to share my thoughts on this recent entry to the Z lineup. Whether you’re a macro specialist or Z photographer, you’ll want to check out this review.

10 Tips and Inspiration for Photographing Mushrooms

During autumn, mushrooms are appearing everywhere. These fungi are welcome subjects for the nature photographer and it can be a challenging task to photograph mushrooms in an interesting way. I have gathered some tips that can help and for some inspiration.

Is the Fujifilm X100V a Secret Macro Camera?

Fujifilm’s X100 line has been one of the most popular compact camera choices over the last decade. Even diehard shooters of other brands buy one for their everyday carrying. Starting with the X100 in 2010, the series is now in its fifth iteration with the X100V.

Review of the Canon RF 100mm f/2.8L IS USM Macro Lens

It was only a matter of time before Canon would release a true macro lens for the RF mount. Instead of an RF version of the ever-so-popular EF 100mm macro lens, Canon had a little surprise up its sleeve. I got a chance to review this amazing lens.

How Good Is the Canon RF 100mm f/2.8 Macro for Portraits?

Buying a macro lens is useful for a lot of photographers in a number of different genres, however, it's a difficult purchase to justify if you do not do much macro photography specifically. If it had some other purposes it would be a more palatable purchase, and if you take any portraits, it does have.

The Long Process of Capturing Time-Lapse Footage of Growing Mushrooms

The entire genre of time-lapse photography is a game of patience and preparation, but creating short films involving the life cycle of a mushroom is on an entirely different level. When 24hrs worth of frames can equate to only a few seconds of footage there is not a lot of room for mistakes.

Use Toys to Push Your Creative Photo Editing

As a photojournalist, I often have subconscious blocks against excessive editing that seep even into other genres of photography. That’s why I often try my hand at toy photography when I want to flex my editing muscles.

2x Macro at Half the Price: Fstoppers Reviews Laowa’s 100mm f/2.8 Macro Lens

If you’re looking to get into macro photography, the first party lens options can seem too expensive for a lens with a more niche use, particularly on the latest Z and R mounts. Laowa, however, has a very promising 100mm lens that even exceeds those other 100mm options in one notable way. hould it be the lens you choose when shooting up close?

Which Nikon Macro Lens Is Right for You?

Nikon mirrorless shooters have two new lenses at their disposal, the NIKKOR Z MC 50mm f/2.8 Macro and the NIKKOR Z MC 105mm f/2.8 VR S Macro. While both offer the 1:1 magnification of a true macro lens, there are some major differences between the two. This helpful video review compares both options to show you which is the proper one for your work.

8 Mistakes Beginners Make in Macro Photography

Macro photography has many challenges that are unique to it, but when you can overcome them, you can produce entrancing photos of seemingly mundane things right around you. The learning curve can be a bit steep, though, so if you are new to macro work, be sure to check out this fantastic video tutorial that shows eight mistakes beginners commonly make and how to fix them or avoid them altogether.

Extreme Macro: Pushing Photographic Equipment Beyond Normal Restraints

Original, innovative photography is hard to find. However, Ethan Beckler has excelled. He leads the way in macro photography, pushing camera and lens technology beyond normal limits and creating astounding art at the same time. With great generosity, he shares his techniques with us.

Mighty Fine Macro: Fstoppers Reviews the Venus Optics Laowa 50mm f/2.8 Ultra Macro APO Lens

There’s no shortage of lenses to choose from when it comes to the Micro Four Thirds mount, and so, for one to stand out, it’s got to offer something special. The Venus Optics Laowa 50mm f/2.8 Ultra Macro APO is a lens that just happens to have a few tricks up its sleeve to make a case for itself, namely 2:1 magnification for macro photography and the computer chips to make it play nice with Micro Four Thirds cameras.