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Learn how to shoot psychedelic macro photos using oil, water, and food coloring

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Ray Scott of Visual Art Photography Tutorials shows us a creative way of shooting macro photos with oil, water, and food coloring. It’s a simple process that yields a variety of artistic results that look totally psychedelic.

You don’t need much for this project except for a few household items you already have. Apart from the oil, water, and food coloring, you’ll need a sheet of glass, a big transparent bowl, small containers for the water and food coloring, and an eye dropper. Although not required, you can also use poster boards to add more color to your images

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First look at the new Sigma 105mm f/1.4 Art, 70mm f/2.8 Art Macro lenses & E Mount release schedule

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One of the things I was most interested in checking out during The Photography Show were the new Sigma lens offerings. Those are the 105mm f/1.4 DG HSM Art lens, aimed primarily at portrait photographers, and the 70mm f/2.8 DG Macro Art. So, I sat down for a chat with Paul Reynolds of Sigma Imaging UK. I wanted to find out why the 70mm f/2.8 wasn’t available for Nikon, and I also hoped to get some insight on a release schedule for the new Sony E Mount versions of their existing and new prime lenses.

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Sigma launches the 70mm f/2.8 Macro – their first Art series macro lens

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This is the first of a number of new announcements from Sigma today. They’ve finally added a macro lens to their Global Vision Art series lenses. That lens is the Sigma 70mm f/2.8 DG Macro Art. With an aperture range of f/2.8 to f/22 and offering up to 1:1 magnification, this lens is likely going to be a big hit with macro fans.

While this is a full frame lens, it may be of particular interest to APS-C shooters. On Sony crop bodies, for example, it will offer the same field of view as the popular Nikon 105mm f/2.8VR Micro-Nikkor does on full frame. But it does it with a little more of that depth of field which is oh so scarce at macro distances. Unlike previous Sigma Art series lenses, this one’s available for native Sony E-Mount, too. Although, surprisingly, not Nikon, according to the press release.[Read More…]

Laowa announces two new lenses: 25mm f/2.8 2.5-5X Ultra Macro and 9mm f/2.8

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Laowa has introduced a couple of interesting lenses so far. Now they’re adding two new primes to their family: 25mm f/2.8 2.5-5X Ultra Macro and 9mm f/2.8 Zero-D. Both lenses come in several different mounts and promise high-quality image at a pretty affordable price. Check out the specs and a hands-on review after the jump, and see if there’s something new to add to your gear bag.

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The Weirdest Macro Lens – Laowa 24mm f/14 2:1 Underwater Field Test

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Back in June, I was given the opportunity to test the new crazy lens by Laowa – the Laowa 24mm f/14 2:1 Relay Lens. It measures about 40cm in length and looks more like an endoscope rather than a traditional lens. While such relay lens designs are not entirely new with a few other examples in underwater macro photography, there are rarely any readily available options for terrestrial macro photography.

I only managed to spend a few hours with it during an inter-tidal shoot, and compiled some clips in the intro video here:

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The macro lens is the Swiss Army knife of lenses, and this is why you should own one

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Macro lenses are often seen as this weird special purpose thing, that only those interested in shooting bugs should buy. But they’re so much more than that. Photographer Peter McKinnon believes everybody should own one. In this video, Peter talks about the versatility of a macro lens. That it can be used for so much more than typical “macro” use.

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Canon announces EF-S 35mm f/2.8 Macro IS STM lens and SX730 HS compact camera

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After some guessing and speculations, Canon has now officially launched Canon EF-S 35mm f/2.8 Macro IS STM lens. According to the test shots and videos, it makes really great images, and it’s quite versatile. Along with the macro, they have also released a new compact camera, Canon PowerShot SX730 HS. It’s the follow-up to the SX720, and another light and compact travel camera. So let us tell you more about both of them.

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Sample footage with weirdest lens ever: Laowa 24mm f/14 telescopic macro lens

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After releasing the world’s widest 1:1 macro lens, Venus Optics have announced another pretty unusual lens. Their Laowa 24mm f/14 telescopic macro lens looks quite weird, to say the least. It’s designed not to disturb “shy” subjects, and it was presented at Photokina in 2016. So, it features an almost 2 feet long telescope with makes this lens officially the strangest one I’ve ever seen.

The lens is not officially out yet, but Venus Optics has released three sample videos to show off the lens’ capabilities. Looks strange, but it does a pretty good job.

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Sony expand their full frame macro range with a new 50mm f/2.8

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Sony have today announced the release of the full frame Sony FE 50mm f/2.8 Macro lens. This announcement doubles the number of lenses in their full frame macro range to two. It also gives those looking a “standard” lens an option other than the FE 50mm f/1.8, and the ability to focus much closer for 1:1 magnification.

It features many of the same design and features of its longer sibling, the FE 90mm f/2.8 Macro G OSS lens. Of course, this one has no image stabilisation. It does, however include dust and moisture resistant, focus-range limiter, focus-mode switches and a focus-hold button.

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