Garden tiger moth, and a macro setup.

Photographed with extension tubes, a 105 mm macro lens, and a macro flash.


I have enjoyed making macro photos for over 40 years now, first with my Nikon FE2 and 55 mm macro lens and later with my Nikon D-series cameras, 105 mm macro lens, and SB200 macro flashes.  Somewhere along the way, I discovered that adding an extension tube to my 105 and using a crop-sensor camera added to the system's magnification.

I recently switched over to a mirrorless system, so my camera of choice for macro is a crop-sensor Zfc body and Nikon's Z105 mm lens.  I also use extension tubes, about 25 mm, which allows me to focus a bit closer.  Of course, this means that I can't focus at infinity anymore, but I can live with that, as I rarely need it when my mind is set on macro mode.  Of course, I can always pull the extension tubes off if I'm in a pinch.

Although you can do macro photography without a flash, my best photos are done with a dedicated macro flash.  There are lots of them available; the best, in my opinion, are TTL metered macro flashes that sync with the camera.  My current macro flash for my Z system is a manual setup, a non-TT unit, that fits on the end of my 105 mm lens.  I have to vary the flash's output depending on how close (magnification) the subject is and the lens's aperture.  

I wrote a 15-part series on macro photography (click here for the index) last year which is well worth the read if you have the time and inclination.

I found the garden tiger moth on my trailer's steps one morning a few weeks ago and photographed it later that night.  I kept it in the fridge to make it docile and got a few minutes of cooperation from it before it warmed up.  The image is partly cropped, but I could make an awesome 16x20 print from it given the 24 mp sensor and the image's size.  Not that many people want such an image hanging in their house, but in theory, it would work.

I am always amazed by the wonderful things I find when shooting macro.  Such diversity of living things.  

Thanks for reading.

Eric Svendsen     www.ericspix.com
 

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