The Little Things
(Fri Apr 04, 2008) [/Photography] #
I've always been fascinated by macro photography, but had never ventured into that small world for fear of getting sucked in. Then I remembered that I'm taking pictures simply because it's fun (and presents a good challenge). Why not try macro!
So last week I finally broke down and bought a macro lens (the Canon EF 100mm F2.8) which arrived today. Now, the first thing you're supposed to do with a macro lens is shoot a big hairy insect. Trust me, I'll get there. But bugs don't just stand still, which is unfortunate when you're trying to practice with a new lens. And it snowed overnight here, which means the springtime bugs aren't out yet (but the ones that are definitely stand still!).
So instead of stalking insects, I thought I'd try a close-up of a fairly old comic book. I know, you're supposed to shoot macro straight at the subject, but flat pages aren't very interesting. I like the way the pixels give it texture. Many thanks to Duncan for help with the color correction in Lightroom. That's a whole different challenge in itself, though equally enjoyable.
All the photography books say this, and they're absolutely right: You need a tripod to do this. When you get dialed in on the details, you feel every little vibration. I've also been using a shutter release cable to bump my odds of getting tack-sharp shots. (Yeah, the mirror lock trick comes next.) In this case, I switched over to manual focus because auto-focus was squirrelly.
Anyway, I hope you enjoy it. Comments in Flickr are always appreciated!
