Thanks for showing! I found myself doing a little damselfly photography lately in between bird migration season...and it's a fantastic reason to get outside. Cheer!
Dear Paul! The minimum focus distance of Canon 100mm/f2.8: 31cm.Is not enough? Do you need 1.4X converter + ext.tube? Impossible,but the praktice is in your side! Grat!
I use the converter for two reasons: 1. I can get a softer background, but perhaps more importantly 2. I can shoot from further away. I only use the extension tube because otherwise I can't connect the camera to the converter - it's a little trick.
@@PaulMiguelPhotography How much further away can you get with the 1.4X plus 25mm extension tube? I have tried the Canon 100-400mm Version II recently for this sort of thing which has a minimum focus distance of 98cm. Will the 1.4x + extension tube combo require you to get in closer than this?
It's an older video Paul, but i do have a question... i notice you always use the extension tube, does the 1.4 extender fits directly on the 100mm macro lens ?
I can't use just the extender with the lens, the extension tube is necessary as a work around. Extender, then extension tube, then lens. After testing i no longer think it softens the background more.. but it does allow a bigger working distance from your subjects.!
It can enable you to get a shot when its too dark, lets you use an aperture you want without upping iso too much. Its also handy to fill shadows in bright light. Well worth getting.
Very good video.I have noticed that since ive been following you that your still using the 1DX.Have you any plans to upgrade ?Also do you think the 1DX is a good investment for an enthusiastic amature?
Thank you Roy. I would like to upgrade but I don't feel it is that necessary for me. I would rather put my money into travelling... although that isn't easy right now!! I do think it's still a great camera. It is heavy, that's a negative, but my word do these things keep going. It has had some wear - and still doesn't miss a beat! If anything I would probably look at the R6.
Paul, thanks for your great videos! Big fan of your work and I point other enthusiastic photographers to it all the time. This video - and your one on using the same lens in relation to photograph e.g. flowers - prompted me to order the lens from MPB, £289 in excellent condition. Can't wait to get snapping with it. Will try it with boTH my 5DII and (cropped frame) 760D, the latter will of course increase effective magnification from 1:1 to 1.6:1. Kepp up the great work! Mike Buchanan JUSTICE FOR MEN & BOYS
Hi Paul, great video! I have the same lens the 100mm 2.8 USM and the Canon 1.4X III converter. BUT alas I have Kenko extension tubes and the protruding portion of the converter won't fit inside the extension tube so this setup doesn't work for me. Are you using the "III" version of the teleconverter? What brand of extension tubes do you have?
@@PaulMiguelPhotography Thanks Paul! Oddly - I heard back from the Canon help desk that you lose AF capability with the combination. Is this true in your experience? I know that if I put my Kenko extension tube between the camera and the 1.4X converter on a "different lens" (the 100-400) I retain AF capability so not sure why a different order would matter? I don't normally AF for macro (usually manual) BUT with the R5 there is the amazing focus bracketing option that requires the camera control lens focus. So I would love to be able to take full advantage of that ability. By any chance have you tried that combo?
Paul - I also got this reply on a Canon community forum regarding the issue . . . "I have the Canon EF 25 II extension tube and the Canon 1.4 III extender, so I just checked to see if it would fit. They attached together easily, but was very hard to take back apart, in fact, I got that sinking feeling when you know you messed up, but with a little patience and light pulling, it came apart. I wouldn't recommend this. It was like a Chinese Fingertrap" Do you experience any problems putting them together and taking them apart?
I believe that when you use an extender with any lense, the depth of field remains the same. The image is magnified and the light transmission is reduced by factors of 1.4, 1.7, or 2.0. Of course the image resolution tends to be reduced.
Paul, try using your speedlite with a bounce head/diffuser. I use a Meike 320 minispeedlite set to manual 1/2 power. I set my A7III to 1/250th, f13, ISO 100. I check the first shot and alter the angle of the flash head as necessary. I use a Neewer 880 full size speedlite on my A9 + 100 - 400mm + extn tube/TC for shots where I cannot use my 90mm macro.
Hi Pete. Thanks for sharing that information - and the settings you use. I'm not a fan of using flash at all for macro, but there are times when it can work. I also use a small LED very occasionally.
Nice work Paul, love those damselflies. I sometimes use a monopod as it gives some stability but also some flexibility when moving round (although it's not great for really low-level shots).
I’m new to this all so may be a bit of a stupid question, but as I’m using a Nikon D7000 I picked up used and it’s APSC, would a 105mm macro lens be sufficient or would I still need extension tubes? Appreciate your help.
I do a lot of macro photography of Insects and although only an amateur I am generally pleased with my results. if I can get four or five reasonably good pictures from my trip, I am more than happy. It is all for personal use but if I only saw one Insect on my trip, like you did, I would be well fed up and consider it a totally wasted morning.
Really good stuff Paul. When you say that you went out in the morning ... at what time? Was this an early early morning shoot in order to ensure that the temperatures were as low as possible as from what I have read, this seems to be the ideal time for work like this on cold blooded animals.
Hi Alan. Looks like my reply didn't register so I'm typing again! Yes, it is usually best to be early in the morning - as you say, it simply stops the insects from moving. There are different weather factors at play but temperature is a big one. If it's around 10 degrees then I'd be pretty confident in having time to set up on the insect. On this day I wasn't super early - maybe half hour after sunrise. I've read that dragonflies don't fly much until around 20 degrees but that's probably too simplistic.
That is a great habitat you were in. I could spend a long time exploring the possibilities. I struggle between hand holding and using a tripod to photograph little creatures. They move, I shake or take too long. I keep trying. Thanks for sharing.
Excellent video, Paul. Knowing nothing about macro photography, I found it very informative. One question please, I noticed with your first beautiful image your settings were 80th second at f8, ISO 1000. This seemed a very high ISO for your chosen aperture/shutter speed. Is this to do with the nature of macro lenses and using teleconverters? Thank you.
Hi Tony. Yes, I'm sometimes surprised at the high ISO. The converter reduces one stop of light and then the extension tube about the same. So it all reduces the light. If it's not very bright either then it gets even worse. This is the difficulty with macro - and particularly my combination.
@@PaulMiguelPhotography Also the image will be highly degraded by the use of the converter. And even more so by the tube and converter. Is the converter used to increase working distance? Is so you would be better off with a longer lens such as 180 macro.
I have both the extender and extension tube. I'll try them with my Sigma 105mm macro (hopefully compatible). When shooting handheld, do you use AF or manual focus?
Hi John. You might be able to use the extender without the extension tube with the sigma. It seems to be depend on the lens etc. I almost always use manual focus for macro.
@@PaulMiguelPhotography just tried the combo in the house. While AF won't work, I get more magnification with both the 1 4x and EF25 II attached. If the weather's favorable, I'll try them in the field. Thanks!
@@PaulMiguelPhotography welp. I wound up using the extension tube only on the Sigma. I was able to AF with it, and got better results hand-holding with AF than manual focus. My insect subjects were moving and a tripod was out of the question.
Glad that worked for you. I shouldn’t say I never use autofocus.. I do very occasionally, for some insects in bright light. But mostly I end up using manual.
Nice video, just one correction. Your extender doesn‘t reduce the depth of field, the bigger magnification ratio does do that. In fact in macro photography only aperture and magnification (no matter what focal length you use) determine the depth of field. The focal length only has influence on the rendering of the background which gets busier the shorter the focal length is.
You understand the physics of this way better than I do. All I can say is using my combination - if I want the subject to fill the same amount of the frame as with just the macro lens - the background is much softer.
@@PaulMiguelPhotography That difference is not down to the DOF, that's solely down to the focal length. In macro photography you need to separately consider the DOF, thus the acceptable sharp area of a photo and the background. On the DOF the focal length has no effect, so if your DOF is 1mm with a 200mm lens then a 35mm lens at the same magnification ratio (thus same size subject capture) will yield the very same 1mm of DOF. The background between the two though will be radically different.
I think I’m starting to understand this now. So to clarify, if the damselfly is taking up exactly the same size in the viewfinder with either just the macro lens, or with the extender added, the depth of field is the same, but the background will look different because that’s simply down to magnification.. and the narrower field of view?
This is undoubtedly my weakest point. Not the technical stuff, but the fieldcraft involved in capturing them. I know it, but it’s getting my body to work stealthily. That can prove to be quiet amusing, especially when my mobility scooter starts going into the water without me noticing. My plan is usually watching for favourite landing places, getting set up and waiting for the insect to land again. A great video as always Paul, thank you.
Definitely agree about waiting for insects to land - some dragonflies often seem to return to the same place. Sorry but I have to chuckle at the thought of the scooter slowly sinking in the mud.. there's commitment for you!
Yes, absolutely Andrew. It's something I need to look at. The main issue is I have is for me to change the height of camera to compose vertically, which with the bracket I wouldn't.
@@PaulMiguelPhotography Paul you might need to alter the way you work to use an L bracket. As the bracket centres your camera for both landscape and portrait you adjust the tripod to change height rather than moving the camera to a vertical format. The big plus is that stability is increased as the weight of your camera and lens is not hanging away from the centre of gravity
For macro photography instead of the L bracket consider getting the tripod ring for your lens - that‘s even better as it allows for arbitrary rotation of the camera instead of being limited to orientation changes only...
Why the extension tube? The subject was large and you didn't need to get close. Also, I would have tried taking the tele off and moved a little closer to get back a stop of light and lower my ISO. Do you ever use flash?
I use the extender purely to soften the background, but if not necessary then I won’t use it. Diffused or ring flash can be ok but I much prefer to use natural light.
Did well to have the Damsel sit, as the temp gets over 15 deg c the insects get active here in Australia , i use the 100mm 2.8 IS version handheld find F11 works well for me , isn't the realm of Macro a fantastic genre to get passionate about umm perhaps very addictive
Hi Rick! A very interesting part of insect photography. Apparently there are many weather factors involved as well as temperature. Here we can sometimes get summer mornings around 10 degrees and these seem to work well. As you say, once it gets warmer everything becomes active.
Again, another great video from you! Thanks for taking the time to share your knowledge and experiences with us.
Keep up the nice job!
👍🏻
Much appreciated, thank you!
Thanks for showing! I found myself doing a little damselfly photography lately in between bird migration season...and it's a fantastic reason to get outside. Cheer!
It can be addictive!
ua-cam.com/channels/YvPE0UfgjiqYhAURFskPUw.html
Thank you for this, very, very informative. Does your extender fit dirctly onto your lens please?
Great video. If you dont mind me asking, what's the tripod and backpack your using in this video.
Tripod is Induro CT404. Backpack is an F Stop Satori. Both pieces of kit I rate highly. Two of my best purchases.
@@PaulMiguelPhotography Thanks for the reply. Great tutorials.
Dear Paul!
The minimum focus distance of Canon 100mm/f2.8: 31cm.Is not enough?
Do you need 1.4X converter + ext.tube?
Impossible,but the praktice is in your side!
Grat!
I use the converter for two reasons: 1. I can get a softer background, but perhaps more importantly 2. I can shoot from further away. I only use the extension tube because otherwise I can't connect the camera to the converter - it's a little trick.
@@PaulMiguelPhotography How much further away can you get with the 1.4X plus 25mm extension tube? I have tried the Canon 100-400mm Version II recently for this sort of thing which has a minimum focus distance of 98cm. Will the 1.4x + extension tube combo require you to get in closer than this?
It's an older video Paul, but i do have a question... i notice you always use the extension tube, does the 1.4 extender fits directly on the 100mm macro lens ?
I can't use just the extender with the lens, the extension tube is necessary as a work around. Extender, then extension tube, then lens. After testing i no longer think it softens the background more.. but it does allow a bigger working distance from your subjects.!
I've slowly been getting into macro - little here and there, definitely not that good though
Cheers Noealz. Like anything it's practice. At least with macro you can really fine tune your skills by concentrating on static subjects like flowers.
Want think about using ring flash ???
Hi Alan. I really don't think it's for me!
It can enable you to get a shot when its too dark, lets you use an aperture you want without upping iso too much. Its also handy to fill shadows in bright light. Well worth getting.
I don't waste my time with tripods, I just use a bounce flash or ring flash.
You talk too much.
Very good video.I have noticed that since ive been following you that your still using the 1DX.Have you any plans to upgrade ?Also do you think the 1DX is a good investment for an enthusiastic amature?
Thank you Roy. I would like to upgrade but I don't feel it is that necessary for me. I would rather put my money into travelling... although that isn't easy right now!! I do think it's still a great camera. It is heavy, that's a negative, but my word do these things keep going. It has had some wear - and still doesn't miss a beat! If anything I would probably look at the R6.
Paul, thanks for your great videos! Big fan of your work and I point other enthusiastic photographers to it all the time.
This video - and your one on using the same lens in relation to photograph e.g. flowers - prompted me to order the lens from MPB, £289 in excellent condition. Can't wait to get snapping with it. Will try it with boTH my 5DII and (cropped frame) 760D, the latter will of course increase effective magnification from 1:1 to 1.6:1.
Kepp up the great work!
Mike Buchanan
JUSTICE FOR MEN & BOYS
Hi Paul, great video! I have the same lens the 100mm 2.8 USM and the Canon 1.4X III converter. BUT alas I have Kenko extension tubes and the protruding portion of the converter won't fit inside the extension tube so this setup doesn't work for me. Are you using the "III" version of the teleconverter? What brand of extension tubes do you have?
You have to check everything carefully - I had the same issue. A cheaper tube probably won't fit - mine is Canon. Yes, version 3 extender.
@@PaulMiguelPhotography Thanks Paul! Oddly - I heard back from the Canon help desk that you lose AF capability with the combination. Is this true in your experience? I know that if I put my Kenko extension tube between the camera and the 1.4X converter on a "different lens" (the 100-400) I retain AF capability so not sure why a different order would matter? I don't normally AF for macro (usually manual) BUT with the R5 there is the amazing focus bracketing option that requires the camera control lens focus. So I would love to be able to take full advantage of that ability. By any chance have you tried that combo?
Paul - I also got this reply on a Canon community forum regarding the issue . . . "I have the Canon EF 25 II extension tube and the Canon 1.4 III extender, so I just checked to see if it would fit. They attached together easily, but was very hard to take back apart, in fact, I got that sinking feeling when you know you messed up, but with a little patience and light pulling, it came apart. I wouldn't recommend this. It was like a Chinese Fingertrap"
Do you experience any problems putting them together and taking them apart?
Good photo.
I believe that when you use an extender with any lense, the depth of field remains the same. The image is magnified and the light transmission is reduced by factors of 1.4, 1.7, or 2.0. Of course the image resolution tends to be reduced.
Thanks for sharing Isaac. It's a complicated topic and I don't claim to understand the technical side in great detail.
Paul, try using your speedlite with a bounce head/diffuser. I use a Meike 320 minispeedlite set to manual 1/2 power. I set my A7III to 1/250th, f13, ISO 100. I check the first shot and alter the angle of the flash head as necessary. I use a Neewer 880 full size speedlite on my A9 + 100 - 400mm + extn tube/TC for shots where I cannot use my 90mm macro.
Hi Pete. Thanks for sharing that information - and the settings you use. I'm not a fan of using flash at all for macro, but there are times when it can work. I also use a small LED very occasionally.
Nice work Paul, love those damselflies. I sometimes use a monopod as it gives some stability but also some flexibility when moving round (although it's not great for really low-level shots).
That's a good suggestion Steve. I don't have a monopod yet but I think in the end I would just end up hand-holding!
Really nice pictures! Love the contrast of the green and blue colors! The only thing I don't really like is the sharpens...it's too sharp
Thanks Hubert. I think one of the images looks a little too sharp. It’s mostly the higher iso which makes it harder to process.
I’m new to this all so may be a bit of a stupid question, but as I’m using a Nikon D7000 I picked up used and it’s APSC, would a 105mm macro lens be sufficient or would I still need extension tubes?
Appreciate your help.
I would just start with the macro lens, I think you’ll be pleased with the results.
I do a lot of macro photography of Insects and although only an amateur I am generally pleased with my results. if I can get four or five reasonably good pictures from my trip, I am more than happy. It is all for personal use but if I only saw one Insect on my trip, like you did, I would be well fed up and consider it a totally wasted morning.
Hi Lawrence. For insect photography I'd be happy with 2 or 3 good images.
Really good stuff Paul. When you say that you went out in the morning ... at what time? Was this an early early morning shoot in order to ensure that the temperatures were as low as possible as from what I have read, this seems to be the ideal time for work like this on cold blooded animals.
Hi Alan. Looks like my reply didn't register so I'm typing again! Yes, it is usually best to be early in the morning - as you say, it simply stops the insects from moving. There are different weather factors at play but temperature is a big one. If it's around 10 degrees then I'd be pretty confident in having time to set up on the insect. On this day I wasn't super early - maybe half hour after sunrise. I've read that dragonflies don't fly much until around 20 degrees but that's probably too simplistic.
That is a great habitat you were in. I could spend a long time exploring the possibilities. I struggle between hand holding and using a tripod to photograph little creatures. They move, I shake or take too long. I keep trying. Thanks for sharing.
it's a lovely habitat Glen. Keep trying.. and learning - it's the best way.
never thought of using an extender on my macro Q why not use an L bracket?
I've only become of aware of the bracket recently. Will certainly look into it.
At my local patch I see ;-) Suprised you didn't find any dragonflies as there are loads up there at the mo!
Hi mate! That’s good to hear. Only did a quick search, really. Hopefully another time..
@@PaulMiguelPhotography funnily enough I was there this morning and didn't find any roosting!
I loved this video I just got my Macro
Watching and Learning in The Bahamas :)
Keep up the great work buddy📸🌼🦉🌸
Thanks so much Barney! I’ll try,
Excellent video, Paul. Knowing nothing about macro photography, I found it very informative. One question please, I noticed with your first beautiful image your settings were 80th second at f8, ISO 1000. This seemed a very high ISO for your chosen aperture/shutter speed. Is this to do with the nature of macro lenses and using teleconverters? Thank you.
Hi Tony. Yes, I'm sometimes surprised at the high ISO. The converter reduces one stop of light and then the extension tube about the same. So it all reduces the light. If it's not very bright either then it gets even worse. This is the difficulty with macro - and particularly my combination.
@@PaulMiguelPhotography Also the image will be highly degraded by the use of the converter. And even more so by the tube and converter. Is the converter used to increase working distance? Is so you would be better off with a longer lens such as 180 macro.
I have both the extender and extension tube. I'll try them with my Sigma 105mm macro (hopefully compatible). When shooting handheld, do you use AF or manual focus?
Hi John. You might be able to use the extender without the extension tube with the sigma. It seems to be depend on the lens etc. I almost always use manual focus for macro.
@@PaulMiguelPhotography just tried the combo in the house. While AF won't work, I get more magnification with both the 1 4x and EF25 II attached. If the weather's favorable, I'll try them in the field. Thanks!
@@JohnDrummondPhoto I always use manual for macro/close-ups.
@@PaulMiguelPhotography welp. I wound up using the extension tube only on the Sigma. I was able to AF with it, and got better results hand-holding with AF than manual focus. My insect subjects were moving and a tripod was out of the question.
Glad that worked for you. I shouldn’t say I never use autofocus.. I do very occasionally, for some insects in bright light. But mostly I end up using manual.
Sir can show totall camara settings please, metering, WB, focus m
Hi Rajesh. Maybe I will do that in a few videos. But it would just take too much time to always do it.
Nice video, just one correction. Your extender doesn‘t reduce the depth of field, the bigger magnification ratio does do that. In fact in macro photography only aperture and magnification (no matter what focal length you use) determine the depth of field. The focal length only has influence on the rendering of the background which gets busier the shorter the focal length is.
You understand the physics of this way better than I do. All I can say is using my combination - if I want the subject to fill the same amount of the frame as with just the macro lens - the background is much softer.
@@PaulMiguelPhotography That difference is not down to the DOF, that's solely down to the focal length. In macro photography you need to separately consider the DOF, thus the acceptable sharp area of a photo and the background. On the DOF the focal length has no effect, so if your DOF is 1mm with a 200mm lens then a 35mm lens at the same magnification ratio (thus same size subject capture) will yield the very same 1mm of DOF. The background between the two though will be radically different.
I think I’m starting to understand this now. So to clarify, if the damselfly is taking up exactly the same size in the viewfinder with either just the macro lens, or with the extender added, the depth of field is the same, but the background will look different because that’s simply down to magnification.. and the narrower field of view?
Hello there. What’s the name of the tripod? And, does it come with the head?
It's Induro CT404. The head is separate - it's called 'Pig Iron' ball head.
Paul Miguel Photography Thank you
Very good!
Brilliant, thank you.
Thanks for an interesting video.
Cheers Michael. Thanks for watching.
This is undoubtedly my weakest point. Not the technical stuff, but the fieldcraft involved in capturing them. I know it, but it’s getting my body to work stealthily. That can prove to be quiet amusing, especially when my mobility scooter starts going into the water without me noticing. My plan is usually watching for favourite landing places, getting set up and waiting for the insect to land again.
A great video as always Paul, thank you.
Definitely agree about waiting for insects to land - some dragonflies often seem to return to the same place. Sorry but I have to chuckle at the thought of the scooter slowly sinking in the mud.. there's commitment for you!
Great video. Have you cnsidered using an L bracket as this would keep your camera centred over the tripod and aid stability.
Keep up the good work
Yes, absolutely Andrew. It's something I need to look at. The main issue is I have is for me to change the height of camera to compose vertically, which with the bracket I wouldn't.
@@PaulMiguelPhotography Paul you might need to alter the way you work to use an L bracket. As the bracket centres your camera for both landscape and portrait you adjust the tripod to change height rather than moving the camera to a vertical format. The big plus is that stability is increased as the weight of your camera and lens is not hanging away from the centre of gravity
Thanks Andrew. I will check it out some time and decide if it’s for me. Thanks for the advice.
For macro photography instead of the L bracket consider getting the tripod ring for your lens - that‘s even better as it allows for arbitrary rotation of the camera instead of being limited to orientation changes only...
Thanks. I didn't even know I could get one for this lens.
Excellent, as usual. More insect/macro, I really enjoyed this one. Do you ever bring reflectors or off camera flash with you for these kind of shots?
Thanks Tim. I’m hoping to do another macro video this summer. I often use a reflector for macro. Flash not so much, very rarely.
Keep it up bro
Thanks Yassine.
Love the site.....lots of great shots brewing here....am jealous Paul laddy !😜😜😝😝 jk
Many thanks!
Why the extension tube? The subject was large and you didn't need to get close. Also, I would have tried taking the tele off and moved a little closer to get back a stop of light and lower my ISO. Do you ever use flash?
I use the extender purely to soften the background, but if not necessary then I won’t use it. Diffused or ring flash can be ok but I much prefer to use natural light.
@@PaulMiguelPhotography Oh, I'll have to give that a try. Thanks!
Just love that habitat. One of my favourites. That Damselfly was superb.
I love it too Pauline. it's such a rich variety and lots of colour. it's a small place but very beautiful.
Did well to have the Damsel sit, as the temp gets over 15 deg c the insects get active here in Australia , i use the 100mm 2.8 IS version handheld find F11 works well for me , isn't the realm of Macro a fantastic genre to get passionate about umm perhaps very addictive
Haha! I'm in Texas, same problem, for us this time of year the temps don't go below 21 °C by the way I love that lens too, macro is awesome! :D
Hi Rick! A very interesting part of insect photography. Apparently there are many weather factors involved as well as temperature. Here we can sometimes get summer mornings around 10 degrees and these seem to work well. As you say, once it gets warmer everything becomes active.
HI Liesl. We probably have it easier in the UK. We can get a summer morning about 5 degrees sometimes..
Chemtrails everywhere you look.
Not so many recently..
Love your videos Paul
That's very kind. Than you Margaret.
Another great video Paul-I'm really looking forward to my workshop with you in November!
Cheers Graham! Can you send me an email, as I’ll be away for part of November.