Nikon 105mm Macro VR with Raynox DCR-250

[Bruce Williams]

Camera is Nikon D300.

I have been using the Nikon 105mm Macro VR lens in combination with various mixes of Kenko extension tubes for quite some time now. I always use the Nikon SB-R1 flash system when the extension tubes are fitted. Using 68mm of extension gives me a little over 2:1 and is comfortably hand-holdable if I can lean on something solid (like a fence for instance). By and large (no pun intended ) I would say that the set-up works pretty well. However.....

I like to photograph very small insects (say 1-3mm) and would like to push the magnification up to 4:1 or more. I still plan to try hand-holding as my subjects are generally moving about (a lot) and just stopping for a few seconds every now and then (that's when I take my pic).

At over 1:1 I shoot entirely manual focus, exposure and flash control.

I was thinking of maybe adding a Raynox DCR-250 as I've been quite impressed with some of the results that I've seen. However I've got a couple of concerns about how effective this combo would be in practice. Mainly:

(1) How close would the end of the lens be to the subject at closest focus?

(2) Will I still be able to use the Nikon SB-R1 flash unit with the Raynox fitted?

Help/suggestions appreciated plus views on any other problems that I'm likely to have with this set-up.

Bruce

[kiff]

For best quality forget about adding more glass as air is better quality then glass, a simple reversing ring could give you 4:1 adding some bellows and you can start going up to 25:1 I think Nikon recommend a 20mm lens to achieve magnification of that ratio, you could even stick the reversing ring on your tubes which will increase your magnification and give you much better quality images then what you would get by adding a raynox, don't no if your flash would still fit with this sort of set up.

[Bruce Williams]

Thanks for your helpful comments Keith.

Yes up till now I've tried to avoided add extra glass for the reason you mention (but see below *). However recently I've seen some VERY impressive results using the Raynox - and it has the advantage of being relatively cheap (c.£45).

As said, I'm "only" looking to increase magnification to about 4:1 however at the same time I would ideally like to retain camera control over aperture. My one previous attempt at using a reversed lens set-up resulted in an unusably (in the field) short working distance and problems stopping down just prior to shutter release. Manually locking down the iris gave a very dark image and made critical focus quite difficult. Is there a technique for dealing with this problem?

* I have also tried reversing a Nikon EL 50mm F/2.8 (enlarger lens) onto the Nikon 105mm. This had the advantage of retaining aperture control but gave an uncomfortably close working distance for field work.....and of course it also means I was adding extra glass .

Another option I'm considering is to add another set of Kenko extension tubes? This would give me a maximum 136mm of extension with no loss of image quality - excepting a worsening diffraction limitation effect of course. If this works I might also consider getting the Sigma 180mm macro lens to help increase working distance.

Any thoughts on this last suggestion?

Bruce

[glsammy]

I'm not sure the Sigma 180mm would be the right choice to try and get that type of magnification. Due to the rules of magnification the larger the lens, the LESS magnification you get when using extension tubes!
The shorter the focal length, the greater the magnification when used with the same length of extension. To get a 1:1 ratio with the 25 mm tube, you would need a 25 mm lens. I certainly don't understand all the maths of it all, here's a site that explains it much better than I can:

Philip Quanjer, photography

[kiff]

I think getting another set of extension tubes would be the best be for keeping image quality

having 136mm tube should give you about 2.30 : 1 magnification using your 105mm macro lens putting on a 180mm macro lens would increase your working distance but you would decrease the magnification to about 1.75 : 1
were as a 60mm macro lens would decrease your working distance but increase magnification to about 3.25 :1

[squishy]

i can vouch for the DCR 250 it is very sharp.

i don't know about the flash and exposure though but i use the aperture priority setting, and my camera sets the shutter speed fine, so i dont see why it shouldn't work for shutter priority (i'm not sure if it's called the same in nikon, but you should know what i mean )

examples

[Maccattack1]

Hi Bruce ,thanks for highlighting the DCR250 ,first i'd heard of it .From the web site the universal adaptor they use seems to take a lot of room at the front of the lens , I don't know but I don't think the R1 flash holder will fit as well. Might be able to use the flash guns on a bracket or use the plamp things that come with the R1 kit (prob not supposed to) .I seem to remember someone recommending novoflex bellows which they said could be used handheld( suspect expensive tho).With the extension you're going to use do you need more firepower from the flashguns?

Sorry can't answer the question

Malcolm

[Bruce Williams]

Thank you all for your advice and comments, you've certainly made me realise that it would be a mistake to proceed without fully understanding exactly what I'm gonna achieve - the disadvantages as well as the advantages.

Graham and Keith - Thanks for pointing out the inverse relationship between extension tubes, lens focal length and magnification - I'm going to have to think carefully about that - I could have made quite an expensive mistake there (gulp!).

Graham -Thanks for the link I'll see what I can make of it.

Keith - I currently get a tad under 2:1 magnification using 68mm of extension tubes with my 105mm macro lens (see test shot of ruler below) so if 136mm of extension will only give me 2.3:1 then it's not going to be worth the expense and operational disadvantages.



Adam - Thanks for posting your first class DCR-250 results. Actually I generally use aperture priority when ambient light is low and I can get away with flash TTL. However I always use full manual exposure (I set both aperture and shutter speed) with manual flash control when I'm at >1:1 so I'm certain that the DCR-250 will work just fine (if I can mount the flash unit that is ).

Malcolm - Based on my manual flash settings at 68mm extension I'm pretty confident that the flash unit will be able to provide enough light up to another couple of stops (he says crossing his fingers ). I've been looking at this very versatile bracketing system developed especially for use with the Nikon R200 flash units. It looks very impressive but perhaps a bit pricey: Google Translate

What do you think?

Bruce

[kiff]

Hi Bruce

my sums are for 35mm film but I should be thinking digital so I think you have to times it by 1.5 some were in the working out to compensate

so tube 68mm divided by lens 105mm = 0.647 x 1.5 = 0.97 + 1 (which is the ratio you already have from the macro lens) = 1.97 : 1

so a 136 tube should work out at about 2.94 : 1

heres a quick set up using a 65mm tube with a reversing ring plus the Nikon 18mm to 55mm zoom set at 18mm not bad just over 4mm fills the sensor

[Maccattack1]

I like the look of the brackets , look strong enough and flexible (not sure which material is used). Couldn't see a price tho. Suspect home bade brackets may get a bit cumbersome.

Very happy with the R1 system

Malcolm