Acessories and 'close up' lense v Macro

[Gaina]

Hi All

Well now I've got my DSLR, I'm looking for accessories. I really enjoy Macro Photography but had a mini-caniption fit when I discovered how much the lenses cost . Then, in my current Digital Camera magazine I saw a feature on what to take in your travel kit and they say 'close up' lenses make a lighter alternative to Macro lenses (both in terms of luggage and the impact on your wallet! haha).

I saw some lovely examples of close up lense results on here just last night so I was wondering if anyone could give me some advice in which ones I should go for.

And I'm also looking for a wide zoom lense that can handle mainly landscapes and birds - I want to be in the position where I have to detach lenses as little as possible.

Thanks

Gaina

[Oy]

Close up filters are a viable option - but as with adding a x2 teleconverter to your 300mm to get to 600mm they are a compromise in quality. You can get some decent results with them.

[matt_xyz]

the best close-up lenses are multi-element lenses also known as achromatic lenses. These are of much higher quality than single element close-up lenses. Good examples are the Nikon 4T, 5T and 6T and the Raynox DCR150 and DCR250. You can have problems getting hold of any of these though.

Matt

[MalcolmX]

canon make close up lenses (diopters) but these are quite expensive ,a set of bellows or extension tubes will give good close up pictures , however you would be best to aim for a macro lens even s/h but i do not know which camera you have so i cannot give you more specific advice ,
please do not start off with the idea to change lenses as little as possible learn to clean you ccd and work your camera not restrict yourself with self imposed constraints

[Boddie]

Originally Posted by Gaina

Hi All

Well now I've got my DSLR, I'm looking for accessories. I really enjoy Macro Photography but had a mini-caniption fit when I discovered how much the lenses cost . Then, in my current Digital Camera magazine I saw a feature on what to take in your travel kit and they say 'close up' lenses make a lighter alternative to Macro lenses (both in terms of luggage and the impact on your wallet! haha).

I saw some lovely examples of close up lense results on here just last night so I was wondering if anyone could give me some advice in which ones I should go for.

And I'm also looking for a wide zoom lense that can handle mainly landscapes and birds - I want to be in the position where I have to detach lenses as little as possible.

Thanks

Gaina

If you dont want to keep detaching lenses just do what I did and get a dedicated DSLR for each lens. I now have the 350D with the 105 and the 30D with the 12-24. The 105 was cheap compared to the 12-24. I may need some advice for what DSLR to dedicate to my 100-400 IS. Maybe a Nikon as OY rates them big time

[eeyore]

Originally Posted by Gaina

Hi All

Well now I've got my DSLR, I'm looking for accessories. I really enjoy Macro Photography but had a mini-caniption fit when I discovered how much the lenses cost . Then, in my current Digital Camera magazine I saw a feature on what to take in your travel kit and they say 'close up' lenses make a lighter alternative to Macro lenses (both in terms of luggage and the impact on your wallet! haha).

I saw some lovely examples of close up lense results on here just last night so I was wondering if anyone could give me some advice in which ones I should go for.

And I'm also looking for a wide zoom lense that can handle mainly landscapes and birds - I want to be in the position where I have to detach lenses as little as possible.

Thanks

Gaina

If you dont want to change lenses we have to wonder why you bought a DSLR not a top flight bridge camera like the FZ30

Assuming you are going to change lenses I would say get a set of extension tubes (£70 in jessops) you will loose the autofocus but most people use MF for macro anyway.

If you are commited to not changing lenses you might do well to get a reversing ring and use this to mount a 50mm prime (any make) backwards on to the front of your kit lens, This works best if the 50mm lens is fast ( I use a Carl zeis f1.4 MF lens picked up for £15 on ebay) and has a thread size the same as your kit lens.

This solution will be optically better than close up filters, will give you a closer to 1:1 ratio , and will probably be cheaper too.

[eeyore]

Originally Posted by Boddie

If you dont want to keep detaching lenses just do what I did and get a dedicated DSLR for each lens. I now have the 350D with the 105 and the 30D with the 12-24. The 105 was cheap compared to the 12-24. I may need some advice for what DSLR to dedicate to my 100-400 IS. Maybe a Nikon as OY rates them big time

A nikon wont fit on your 100-400 IS , you would need to buy a 80-400 VR instead.

Why not just cut to the chase and get a Canon 1DS a snip at a mere £4395 body only.

[Gaina]

Originally Posted by eeyore

If you dont want to change lenses we have to wonder why you bought a DSLR not a top flight bridge camera like the FZ30.

I bought the EOS 350D because that's the one I decided upon after reading lots of reviews and it really was time for me to graduate from my Fuji S7000. It's not that I dont want to change lenses, I just want to cut dust on my sensor to a minimum (I know I'm going to get some at some point).

I'm very new to DSLR (like one week! haha) and I am just trying to learn what's best in terms of basic equipment etc.

Also there's a budget to keep to so the more I can get out of the acessories I do choose, the better.

Originally Posted by Boddie

If you don't want to keep detaching lenses just do what I did and get a dedicated DSLR for each lens

Haha if you want to find me a rich boyfriend I'll happily have more than one DLSR

Thanks for the input everyone

[eeyore]

Originally Posted by Gaina

I I just want to cut dust on my sensor to a minimum

Turn it off before you change lenses - this discharges the ccd making it less likely to attract crud

keep the body pointed downwards while changing so that cack can fall out instead of on to the sensor

never leave it without a lens or body cap fitted

clean the rear element of your lense with an antistatic cloth before you chagne lenses and keep the caps on your lenese when you arent using them.

and try to avoid changing lenses in very dusty environments

Also have it proffesionally cleaned - fixation in london do while you wait cleaning (normally about 20mins) for £25 , camera seem to come from canon with a lot of debris already inside them and this is the best way to get it all out.

hope this is helpful

P

[Gaina]

Originally Posted by eeyore

never leave it without a lens or body cap fitted

I'm very 'anal retentive' about keeping all my gear in good order (cameras, guitars, computer) so the lense cap is always on when I'm not taking photos (and sometimes when I am taking photos, at which point my vocabulary can get rather colourful ).

The one thing that suprised me about this camera is that it didn't come with the little thread/cap system that attaches your lense cap to the body of your camera.

Thank you for the advice it is indeed very helpful. after 4 days of faffing about I should have some new photos for the Gallery tomorrow

G