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How I built my own DIY wide-angle macro lens

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The wide-angle paradox

As we know, wide angle lenses show a larger field of view and therefore make things appear smaller and appear further away than they are. Which contradicts the concept of macro photography, where we want our subject to be projected onto the sensor at a magnification ratio of at least 1.0x. So how can we combine a wide angle perspective and macro macro-capabilities?

The concept of wide-angle macro photography is not exactly new and there are other photographers out there, who built their own super-wide macro lenses. There even are a couple lenses on the market that provide 1.0x at a15mm focal length, but I much rather an interesting DIY project than spending 500$ on a niche lens.

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Adapting industrial lenses for extreme macro photography

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If you ever visited some industrial surplus shops, very often you would see some cameras and lenses used in industrial automation. But you probably do not know that these lenses can have very high optical performance and features we want: high resolving power, large image circle, low distortion, and often very long working distance compared to some of the other lenses we use.

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Create rainbow flares with a CD for colorful macro photography

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The glorious colours of summer are fading away, and the windy weather makes outdoor macros difficult. In other words, it’s the perfect time to take photography inside and stage creative photos with things around the house. Anything could be an ingredient in your creative recipe. These ingredients can be simple things, such as in this example: A CD, a Milkweed seed and some water, put together on a reflective piece of glass, made for the images in this article.

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An in-depth look at the best macro photography light modifiers you can buy, or make yourself

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Even though speedlights are incredibly useful for macro photography, they’re light does not always look flattering. Harsh shadows in unwanted places, blown-out highlights and strong aberrations are common issues. And even though strong, directed light can look good in many cases, diffused light looks more natural and generally more pleasing to the eye too.

The two following photos illustrate that effect:

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How nature photography brought me back from the brink of suicide

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Photography offers an escape unlike any other. It allows us to capture moments, create moments, and interpret the worlds we see through a lens. We document, we study, we create art, and for me, this was lifesaving.

Several years ago, in my early twenties, I suffered a huge mental breakdown. It was unexpected, out of control, and hard. Truth be told, I’d been suffering for many years before this but as we all do from time to time, I just pretended my problems weren’t there. I wasn’t pleasant to be around, my head was a very busy place, and I was struggling to cope.

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How to convert almost any standard zoom lens into a macro lens

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Are you looking for an affordable but also electronic macro lens? Or maybe you have an old kit lens, that’s just sitting around, collecting dust since your last upgrade?
Well, then read on, because in this article I am going to share one cool hack that will allow you to transform almost any kit or standard zoom lens into a capable macro lens!
And I am not talking about reversing the lens or mounting it on extension tubes, we’re actually going to convert the lens for good. And it’s incredibly simple.

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This macro timelapse shows the unexpected beauty of pills dissolving in water

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When you shoot macro photo and video, you can find beauty even in the most unexpected places. Visual art director Ben Ouaniche decided to look for it in a range of pills dissolving in water. So, he took his camera, submerged a range of pills in water, and created a timelapse that will keep you staring at it from the beginning to the end.

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This stunning macro footage shows 11 elements that make up your body

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Beauty of Science has presented us with some amazing video before. To celebrate The International Year of the Periodic Table, the team has created a fantastic video which celebrates human life. We’ve all mainly been made of 11 chemical elements, and this video shows these elements from up close in a beautiful series of macro video clips.

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Here are some macro photography ideas you can shoot at home right now

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Just because you might know your own home like the back of your hand, it doesn’t mean that there’s nothing exciting left to shoot there. If you’re not convinced, this video from COOPH will change your mind.

Your home is full of photographic opportunities you can grab on a rainy day or when you simply feel like playing with a camera. And best of all – you can try them out straight away. Check out the ideas in the video below, and I’ll give you a few suggestions of my own, too.

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