Adding Macro Photography to My Portfolio

I have another new lens on order!

This little beauty is a Canon EF 60mm f2.8 Macro USM. I’ve only used it once very briefly, whilst buying my Canon EFS 18-5mm f/3.4-5.6 IS zoom lens earlier this year.

I almost purchased it back then, but one of the salespeople said it was not nearly as good as the 100mm Macro. Since SWMBO uses the 100mm exclusively for bee-photography,  I decided to get my own macro! Plus I felt it important to get something different so we could swap occasionally, so I went with the 60mm.

I’ve discovered tonight that I can attached either the Extension Tube EF12 II or EF25 II (See here for more information.) to achieve the same, if not stronger, magnification than the 100mm Macro!

But what’s so special about the 60mm Macro? The specifications give three really good reasons:

[1] Firstly, it’s incredibly lightweight in comparison to the 100mm Macro, and approximately two-thirds the length. This is good, because I really hate looking like I am carrying a bazooka for taking down light aircraft!

[2] According to the specifications, it has 1:1 macro capability. By using an optical design, this means we now have a short back-focus and a smaller image circle. This may mean a little vignetting, but nothing that will ruin a great photograph of a bee alighting a flower.

[3] Similar to the 100mm Macro, it allows manual focusing during the AF (Auto Focus) mode. A definite advantage when an insect wants to move either toward or away from you whilst you are attempting to focus on it’s hairy abdomen.

This has convinced me further that I have made the right choice. Funds have been saved so I will be the proud owner of the 60mm Macro in about 4 weeks time. I am looking forward to adding a new area of macro photographs to my redbubble portfolio!