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Just how good are cheap extension tubes and do they really compare to an expensive dedicated macro lens?

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Macro photography is some of the most fun you can have with a camera. But good macro lenses can be very expensive. There are other things we can do, however, to get macro-like images with our regular lenses, though, without actually having to buy a macro lens. There are close-up filters, reversing rings and extension tubes, for example.

But the latter of those three options, extension tubes, is generally thought to give the best results. But how do they really compare to a true macro lens? In this video, Karl Taylor takes a look at true macro lenses vs extension tubes on both Sony full-frame and Hasselblad medium format systems to see how the two techniques stack up against each other.

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Here are seven macro photography ideas you can shoot at home and on a budget

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When the weather is bad or you’re in a lockdown, taking some shots at home is one of the best ways to spend time. And there can never be enough ideas to spark some inspiration if you ask me. So, Spencer Cox has created a video to show you seven low-budget ideas for macro photos you can shoot at home right now. He also shares a bunch of useful tips for getting the best results, which will be especially useful if you’re new to this genre of photography.

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My process for creating insect portraits with macro photography

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Each print that I create is a composite of hundreds (sometimes thousands) of individual photos digitally stitched together. Using a method of macro photography called “photo stacking” it’s possible to create images with an incredible amount of detail, even when printed at a very large scale.

To show you the amount of work involved—often reaching 10 to 20 hours per image or more—I’ll walk you through my process using a giant stag beetle (Cyclommattus metallifer finae) from Indonesia. It is time-intensive and tedious, but worth it. Let’s get to it.

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Here are 13 close-up photography ideas to shoot when you’re bored at home

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Judging from the current situation, we’ll face another round of lockdowns soon. Winter is also closer than it seems here in the Northern hemisphere, so all in all- I guess we’ll be at home a lot more. And in case you get bored, you can always spend some quality time with your camera. In this video, Run N Gun will show you ten ideas for shooting close-up and macro photos around the house, and I’ll jump in with three of my own.

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Close-up Photographer of the Year winners will make you rediscover the world around you

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Seeing the world around us from up close gives us a whole new perspective of even the most everyday things. If you enjoy rediscovering your surroundings through photography, you’re gonna love this year’s winners of the Close-up Photographer of the Year (CUPOTY) contest. It celebrates close-up, macro, and micro photography, and it lets us see the world anew.

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This 5x macro is possibly the strangest lens you’ve ever seen

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There are a lot of oddball lenses out there these days. And I mean that in the nicest possible way. Look at Laowa’s crazy lookin’ 24mm f/14 2x macro probe lens, for example. I’ve played with that one myself and it’s a lot of fun and pretty awesome. The Yasuhara Nanoha Macro Lens for Sony, though, takes the reach much further, going all the way to 5x. And the best bit? It costs a mere $399.

You might wonder what’s so unusual about it. Well, for a start it’s got a strange removable hood thing that houses several LED lights, powered by USB (yup, it’ snot for firmware updates, just powering LEDs).  But that’s not all. This thing… Well, Arthur Reutov’s made a video about it. So, why don’t you have a watch?

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Winners of 2020 International Garden Photographer of the Year show how much beauty there is in your own backyard

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The coronavirus has stopped us in our tracks and prevented us from traveling, exploring, and taking photos at new places. But hey, this is our chance to rediscover our own city, neighborhood, even our own backyard. International Garden Photographer of the Year (IGPOTY) 2020 winners will inspire you to get out and find all the hidden beauty of your own backyard.

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How to create a DIY macro flash diffuser using a Pringles tube

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Macro is a challenging subject to photograph. Light, especially, can be a real struggle, so you often need to add extra light to overcome the bellows extension factor inherent in all true macro lenses. But dedicated macro flashes and ring flashes can be very expensive (at least if you want a good one). Are there other options?

Well, you can butcher a Pringles tube. We posted a tutorial on this way back in 2011 to be able to make use fo the popup flash for macro, but this video from photographer Micael Widell shows a similar method using an on-camera flash, allowing you to get much more power for those extreme close-ups.

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Six macro photography ideas that you’ve (probably) never tried before

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A few days ago, we spoke about five reasons to use vintage macro lenses. And if you don’t know where to start shooting, here are some pretty cool ideas. In this video, COOPH gives you six macro photography ideas that you have probably never seen or tried before. Let’s see what they’ve got for us and get inspired.

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The NiSi NM-180 Macro Focusing Rail makes shooting for focus stacking a breeze

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While more commonly known for their filters and their upcoming cine lenses, NiSi recently announced their new NM-180 Macro Focusing Rail. Focusing rails are essential pieces of kit for serious macro photographers that allow them to create images that might otherwise be impossible, but how well does the new NiSi NM-180 stack up? Maybe pun intended.

I’ve been using the NiSi Macro Focusing Rail for a few weeks now. The short version of this review is that for what it costs, it’s an extremely well-made device, that has some thoughtful design considerations and does exactly what it’s supposed to. In my opinion, it’s well worth what it costs. But how do focusing rails work and why do you need one?

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