Macro Photography
In layman’s terms, macro photography is often considered the same as close- up photography, though technically speaking, there is a difference. Close- up photography starts at a reproduction ratio of about 1: 20 ( on the film / digital sensor), and goes up to 1: 1 ( life size). Macro photography starts at a reproduction ratio of 1: 1 ( life size) on the film / digital sensor and goes up to about 25x magnification.
Note: Since the early macro lenses only went up to half life size ( 1: 2), many consider a reproduction ratio of 1: 2 also as macro.
What is 1:1, 1:2, 1:4? What is 2:1, 4:1 etc?
If a subject 1cm long is recorded as 1cm on the film / sensor, the reproduction ratio is 1: 1 or life- size ( Magnification 1x). If that same 1cm long subject is recorded as 1/ 2cm, then the reproduction ratio is 1: 2 ( half life size). If it is recorded as 1/ 4cm, the reproduction ratio is 1: 4 ( quarter life size). Going the other way around, if a subject 1cm long is recorded as 2cm on the film / sensor, the reproduction ratio is 2: 1 ( Magnification 2x); 4: 1 would mean that a subject is recorded on film / sensor, 4 times as large as the original. Macro photography opens up a new world, so to say. Things which we cannot see with our naked eyes, details which we cannot imagine, nuances of colour that we cannot even think of, can be shown with the help of macro photography. The best part is that we don’t have to travel long distances to reach a particular forest to do macro photography. You can get ample subjects right in
your balcony garden. And there is no specific season for macro, you can enjoy macro photography all year around. By getting your lens very close to your subject, you can fill the frame with a very tiny subject or greatly magnify details on a larger subject. But most camera lenses don’t let you get very close to a subject ( every lens has a Minimum Focusing Distance or MFD) unless you have a specially designed lens. Such lenses that allow you to focus extremely close, are called ‘Macro’ lenses. Keep in mind that Nikon labels its macro lenses as ‘Micro’ lenses.
Note: Some lenses have a ‘macro mode’, marked by the letter ‘M’. While these allow you to focus closer than other lenses, they are not true macro lenses as they ( in most cases) offer a reproduction ratio of around 1: 4 ( quarter life size). In the context of this article, the term ‘close- up’ will be used for anything up to almost life- size reproductions on film / sensor and the term ‘macro’ will refer to reproductions of 1: 1 and beyond, using specialized close- up attachments.
Note: Macro photography is often confused with another form of very- high- magnification photography. In the scientific world, a further sub- division of macro photography is created for close- up work done with the aid of microscopes, and is called ‘Photomicrography’. This technique, using microscopes and stereo- microscopes with trinocular tubes or complex scanning electron microscopes, can achieve magnifications of 40x and higher ( a 1mm object can be recorded as 40mm or even larger on the film/ sensor). Canon calls its ‘macro’ lenses as ‘macro’, so why does Nikon call its ‘macro’ lenses as ‘micro’? The word ‘macro’ means big, whereas the word ‘micro’ means small. So how can these two terms be used for the same purpose? If the subject you are photographing is small and you want to make it look big, you end up with a ‘macro’ view of a ‘micro’ subject. So probably, Nikon, while giving the term, was considering photographing of very small subjects while Canon was considering the idea of making a small subject look much larger!
Can we distinguish between ‘macro’ and ‘closeup’ photography?
Capturing the most intricate detail is one of the main differences between macro and close- up photography and macro lenses allow the photographer to capture finer detail ( and easily too) than would have been possible using a non- macro lens or by using most other close- up attachments. Consider these two photographs as an example. The first image is a very good example of a close up photograph. The second photograph is a macro shot, with greater magnification and finer detail.
Macro lenses are available in various focal lengths. Which one should one go in for?
For nature photography, it’s preferable to go in for the longest focal length macro lens that you can afford, though a macro lens of a lower focal length would be cheaper and lighter in weight too. With a lower focal length macro lens, at any given magnification, you will be much closer to your subject, which could not only disturb your subject but could even put your life at risk. Consider using a 50/ 60mm macro lens to photograph a scorpion or a tarantula. At 1: 1 magnification, the front of the lens may be around 4- 5 inches from the subject. The subject may flee or fight! If it flees, you have another chance at photographing it but if it fights ( attacks you), you could be in serious trouble. Under the same shooting conditions, a 200mm macro lens for example, could have a working distance ( the distance between the front of the lens and the subject) of say 8- 10 inches, making it safer for you.
One more reason for the choice of longer focal length macro lens is the amount you cover behind the subject. A longer lens will show less of a confusing background and thus improve the overall picture. With a shorter focal length lens though, there’s no escaping whatever is back there. And yet another important reason in favour of the longer lens is that you will have a better chance of lighting the subject. To give you an idea of the difference in magnification between focal lengths, a 100mm macro lens used at approximately 45cm from the subject will have the same magnification as a 50mm macro lens used at only 23cm from the subject. However, if you want to do table- top or product photography, a 50/ 60 mm macro lens can be considered. So, are there any downsides to longer focal length lenses for macro? Well, yes. They tend to be more expensive and bigger in size than their shorter focal length counterparts. This can be a real concern since we have to carry all this gear around, and we all work under a strict budget.
Other means of achieving higher magnifications
1. Close- up lenses ( filters) A close up lens attaches to the filter thread of your primary lens, and allows the combination to focus closer. This is likely the least expensive way to start shooting macro but make sure that you use a good quality close- up filter. Another factor that has to be looked at is the type of camera lens you will be using. A high quality prime lens plus a high quality close- up filter can produce very good results, while a zoom lens with the same close- up filter will
generally produce less than stellar results. Keep in mind though that a dedicated macro lens generally produces overall sharper results. The biggest advantage of the closeup filters is that they are very light in weight and inexpensive.
2. Extension Tubes/ Bellows
Extension Tubes and Bellows are pieces of equipment that put space between the camera body and the lens thus allowing the lens to focus closer. An extension tube has a fixed dimension whereas bellows vary in the amount of extension they can offer. They work well with certain lenses. If you have a 50mm prime lens, this might be a good option to get into macro work at an affordable cost, using extension tubes or bellows. Extension tubes often come in sets of three, in different widths ( some expensive tubes tend to be sold individually) that can be used singly or combined to get the magnification required. One area where extension tubes really shine is for making a long focal length lens ( like 300mm) focus much closer, which is great for photographing skittish dragonflies and other critters. Bellows work on the same principle but as mentioned earlier, but are expandable, allowing a great deal of flexibility. The real downside to bellows is the high cost plus the bulk and weight. Most people use bellows for studio work only as they aren’t very practical in the field.
3. Lens Reversal Rings
Lens reversal rings allow you to mount a lens ‘ backwards’ on the camera body. When used with high quality prime lenses the results can be stunning and if you reverse a wide angle lens, often you can achieve a high magnifications on the order of 2X or more. For people interested in high magnification photography, this is often the way to go, especially if you are on a budget. One thing to keep in mind is that the depth of field will be almost nil and the attached lens is vulnerable to dust and other particles that could possibly get into the lens and scratch it.
4. Teleconverters
Unlike a diopter, a teleconverter is an auxiliary lens that goes, not
of the frame, this gave the feeling of a window light coming from the side. Now plane Y was brighter and automatically a better definition was created between plane X (the plane facing the camera) and plane Z (top of the box). Position of the black cutter was still the same. One can find that this source has now cast a shadow on the right side of the frame. To soften the shadow on the right side, a white thermocole was used. The dimensions of the box were now getting slowly controlled but the texture on the box, needed some other attention through lighting. In order to further study the texture, a single light source was placed from behind the box, this source was a hard source of light and a 32 degree grid was used as light modifier for the same ( diag 2). Pic 3 shows that the texture on the top of the box has suddenly got
enhanced. The other sides were getting illuminated by the light bouncing on the white paper below. The position of the light is fine, but is casting a dirty hard shadow in front of the box. In pic 4, a soft-box was added to the left with a thermocole on the right. This softened the shadow and gave a better definition to the molding on the box. Pic 5 is just to show you how the same box can look distorted if shot with a wide angle lens. In pic 6 ( an incense-stick holder) I have used this property of a wide angle lens to distort an image when shot from a close distance to my benefit, by making an artistic use of the same.
Pic 7 was produced after studying the dimensions and the texture of the wooden incense-stick holder. It is a fact that smake registers well when backlit and shot against a darker background. The lighting was done considering all such properties.
Pic 8a and b are excellent examples to show how changing focal length and camera angle can make the same object (the same bottle in this case), appear shorter then what it really is. Pic 8a was shot at a focal length of112mm while pic 8b was shot at 250 mm. There is no standardized lighting in table tops. It all depends on the shape, molding, size and the surface texture of the object.