Did you ever think how photographers make a caterpillar visible? Or the colorful layers of the dragonfly? Yes, that’s the modern charm of photography! Still not clear? Well, you can say this is the most modern spark of the photography world. Yes, in this blog, we’ll learn all the sparks that come with macro photography. And of course, how you can earn money from it.
What Is Macro Photography Exactly?
Well, you’ve heard the term ‘zoom’, haven’t you? Because macro photography is about zooming in your camera lens so that you can take pictures of the smallest object.
Many objects can’t be seen in normal eyes. But macro photography has made it possible for us. Mainly, it’s the art of making the smallest object the biggest. Trust me, when it comes to challenging types of photography, macro photography is the hardest to do. Why? Because it lets you capture the smallest object in a bigger shape but with incredible details. The details you can’t see in naked eyes. For example, the life of ants, dragonflies, moths, etc. But don’t think that it’s all about taking the insect’s photo. It’s just the nature of macro photography ideas.
The concept of macro photography came into the world in the early 1900s. F.Percy Smith is considered to be the first macro photographer in photography history. Do you know how? Because he used to photograph with some tools that are almost the same as the tools we use today.
So, you can say that the art that lets you see the unseen object in every single detail in the form of photography is called, macro photography.
3 Types Of Lenses You’ll Need For This:
Do you know the very basic concept of macro photography developed with the macro lens? Well, there’re are 3 types of macro lenses that you’ll need for doing professional macro photography. And do you know why there are types of macro lenses? Because even in macro photography, you’ll need to take photos from different distances. And every single type of macro lenses has its own characteristics. Now let’s see these lenses:
1. Short Macro Lenses:
This type of lens is not expensive and is very light. Its focal length is (35mm-60mm). Which means you need to stay close to your subject. And do you know what that means? That means your closeness to your subject will cast shadows in your photos. Also, your closeness can scare your objects away. So, if you’re gonna use this lens for macro photography, be aware of the consequences.
2. Intermediate Macro Lenses:
This lens allows you to shoot from a longer working distance. Meaning, its focal length is a bit better than the short macro lens. This mid-range macro lens allows you to take photos from (90mm-105mm). What makes it better is that it’s a light lens and still you can work with it without a tripod.
3. Long Macro Lenses:
This lens provides the highest quality photos taken from the longest distance. Because its focal length is (150mm-200mm). This is the ideal lens for shy objects. Also, it’s the heaviest lens as well as an expensive one.
As an amateur photographer, you can start with the intermediate lens. Sony, Canon, Nikon, Sigma, etc have some of the best macro lenses.
Do You Know Which Camera Is Best For Macro Photography:
Although macro lenses are the primary tool for macro photography, you can’t start it without a quality camera. A standard DSLR camera or a mirrorless camera is good enough for this photography. If you ask me, which one is best. My suggestion is a mirrorless camera. Because it comes with the spark of seeing the final view of your photo. And do you know what that means? That means you can make necessary adjustments without moving your camera. And in macro photography, you really wouldn’t want to disturb your subject.
And if you ask me the brands, then let’s see. Sony is a specialized brand for mirrorless cameras longer than Canon and all other brands. Canon tells you the actual aperture than your actual functionally correct aperture is. And if you go for Nikon, remember that you can have the highest resolution with 36 megapixels. In short, you can buy any brand but these 3 provide some best macro photography cameras.
What Is Extension Tube?
As I said, long macro lenses are very expensive. So if you can’t buy one right now, then the extension tube is here for you. Because you can take close-up photos with an extension tube. Now let’s see some points about these extension tubes.
- A starter pack of extension tubes will cost you almost $150-$200.
- You’ll find these tubes are sold in sets which can be mixed, so you might have to buy several sets for different situations.
- These are some tubes that you have to attach to your present lens in camera to increase the focal lenght.
- If you already own a long macro lens, still it’s good to have a set of extension tubes that works electronically by connecting your lens and camera. Because then you can have a great control in the camera settings like the aperture, focus, etc.
If you ask for an honest review, then it’s best if you invest in a good macro lens from the beginning. Because the lens is vital in this photography. Besides, the extension tubes are a good substitute for the macro lenses but not the strongest.
Now that, you’ve seen the primary things you’ll need as a macro photographer, let’s get you some heads up. So that you can take beautiful macro photos and of course, make money.
Some Macro Photography Tips:
Although it’s the hardest kind of photography, if you can practice and follow these macro photography ideas, I’m sure you’ll become a professional within no time!
Using A Flash & A Flash Diffuser:
When you reduce the aperture to get the depth of the field, your light in the camera also decreases. So, your subject may be focused but doesn’t look appealing. Also, what if your setting doesn’t allow enough natural light. You can use a flashlight. Yeah, I know it may scare or startle your subject. That’s why you need to use a flash diffuser. In this way, your photos will get enough light and the subject will be undisturbed.
Practicing Never Hurts:
Look, the whole photography term comes with thousands of ideas or concepts. No matter what kind of photography you’re doing, if you keep practicing, you’ll develop always. To start macro photography, you can capture dews from the backside garden in your house. Or the nip of a pencil. It’s much better to start practice with a still life object at first.
Use Longer Focal Length For Living Subjects:
Capturing tiny frogs or hummingbirds or tiny butterflies are some of the best macro photography ideas. Besides if you’re done with practicing with still life objects, you should go to your backyards and photograph some living objects. Macro photography is very much popular and demanding because it captures the tiny lives around you. So, use a longer focal length so that your object doesn’t run away seeing you.
Patience Is The Ultimate Key:
At first, when you’ll try to capture living objects, prepare yourself that your very first shot will be missed. Because there are lots of things to set up to improve the whole composition and it takes time and practice. So, be very patient about it and keep practicing. If you can’t find any tiny frog or a butterfly, then capture ants or objects like that.
Don’t Forget To Edit Your Photos:
Of course, macro photography calls for post-processing. Why? Because, in macro photography, you need to use macro lenses as a mandatory thing, but that also means, you can’t use any other lens while using a macro lens. So, you’ll need a professional color correction service, a reflection service, or a background changing service. So, be sure to polish up your photos after shooting.
Use A Tripod:
Macro photography calls for a delicate camera position to get the depth of the field using a manual focus. For still life objects, using a tripod can give you some ideal macro photos. Also, if you want to highlight a particular side of your subject, using a tripod can help you. And in living objects, a tripod helps you to take many pictures in very little time.
Well, that was some of the basic macro photography tips. If you follow these tips, yeah you may miss some shots at first. But you’ll a pro in no time. Now let’s make the macro photography concept more clear by giving you some macro photography ideas.
Awesome Macro Photography Ideas:
We have talked about almost all the pros and cons of macro photography. Now I’ll share some awesome macro photography ideas. So that you can choose at least one area as per your comfort and start practicing. Because many macro photographers struggle to decide from where they should start and which object they should be photographing. So, I thought I can help you with these macro photography Ideas.
Nature:
Of course. If you want to see yourself as a successful nature photographer, then at some point you must take some photos that are macro photos. Besides, for practicing living object macro photography, nature is the best source for you. There are so many things! butterflies, bees, worms, ants, dragonflies, fireflies, leaves, dews on the green grasses, mushrooms, frogs, tiny flowers, etc. You can find these in your backyard garden or you can go to a park nearby you. But be sure to protect yourself from poisonous insects.
Products:
Macro photography is widely used by commercial photographers. Do you know why? Or what’s the use of macro photography with products? Well, the answer is this photography helps you to capture a detailed photo of your product. In an e-Commerce business, you post your product photos online but most of the details remain unseen. Macro photography here solves the problem. It highlights the features and details beautifully. And these attract your targeted customers.
Portraits:
This is one of the most stunning macro photography ideas. You’re thinking that how the term ‘portrait’ & ‘macro photography’ match? Right? Well, these two terms go absolutely fine with each other. Also, it’s becoming a trend in many events such as a baby’s photo shooting, wedding ceremonies, and so on. You can take photos of only a baby’s tiny feet or just the wedding ring on the bride’s finger. Or just a simple eye to highlight the color of the eyeball and the eyelashes. Pretty amazing, right? And I bet you’ve seen these photos before.
Foods:
This one is one of the most popular macro photography ideas. When you order your favorite pizza online, why do you order from a certain restaurant? Maybe because their photos on the menu look way too delicious to pass up? Most of the fast-food chain shops and restaurants use macro photography to highlight their delicious chunk of sausage, cheesiest texture, the beautiful golden pizza crust, or the crumbly coating of chicken fries. So, you can make your favorite dish to treat yourself and take some photos!
These are some of the very popular macro photography ideas I’ve seen so far. But you must remember that you need to edit your macro photos once you’re done with the shooting. Because, living objects might move while you photograph them, or in food or portraits, you must improve the colors and texture or the saturation. Sometimes you’ll have to replace the background to focus on your subject. And if you can’t do all these things by yourself, then you can go for some professionals. I suggest Clipping Amazon.
Why Clipping amazon?
Well, Clipping Amazon is one of the most promising photo editing companies. We provide 17 kinds of photo editing services. Clipping Path, Color Correction, Background Removal, Image Masking, Color Enhancement, etc. We also provide magazine cover design services and ads design. We remove the background by using a clipping path which is extremely necessary for your macro photography. Also, you’ll need proper color enhancement to improve your photos. Some of your subjects might move and your photo can get blurry. You can take our professional image cleaning or photo restoration services. Why would you rely on us? maybe you can have a tour of our portfolio!
We provide services for 24 hours around 7 days. Which professional photographers find very helpful. Because in photography life, you may need editing services at any time. That’s why we provide urgent deliveries too. If you want to try our services, then don’t miss the chance to grab your free deal! I’m leaving the link on the button.
