canon extension tubes

[Watermelonshark]

Fellow dphotographers

I am looking for some advice.

I currently have a Canon 450D,I am looking to do some macro photography but cannot afford a new prime macro lens.I have been reading that a cheaper option may be an extension tube.

I currently have a standard 18-55 mm kit lens and a Canon EF 50 mm f/1.8 II lens

Any advice or suggestions?

Thanks

[ALwin]

Options for macro photography, from cheapest to expensive (does not always mean best option):

1) Ebay: reverse coupling ring or reverse mount ring (each under $20)
- reverse coupling ring will let you mount your 2 lenses face to face via the filter thread
- reverse mount ring will let you mount 1 of your lenses to the camera body by the filter thread instead of the normal lens mount.

the reason why this option may not be idea for you: typically this is done to achieve macro photography magnification ratios above 2:1, meaning an object 1cm in height or width in reality will take up 2cm of space or more on your sensor. 11:1 means 1 cm in real life will take up 11cm on sensor.

2) Macro filters: price depends on size, these are glass filters that act like magnifying lenses which attach to the front of your lens, not always the sharpest quality glass.
- These filters help you to focus closer with your lens than what it can do normally

3) Macro extension tubes: cheap tubes on ebay to good likes like Kenko Extension Tubes which cost around $200.
- Lets you change minimal focus distance of lens by adding something between lens and body (similar to how bellows work, except fixed lengths). Kenko tubes have electronic connectors to connect lens and body together for automatic settings.

4) Macro photography bellows: price can range from $30 on ebay to really expensive ones.
See this article for photo of a bellows being used for macro photography: http://www.better-photographs.com/macro ... raphy.html
- This helps you to change the focusing distance of your lens, every lens setting here will be manual. Pros include ability to use lenses by other brands as the lens used does not mount directly on the camera body.

5) of course, dedicated macro lenses: a majority of them support maximum 1:1 magnification ratio, Canon has a 65mm one which provides 5:1 ratio but all manual settings.
- Prices vary from a few hundred to well over $1000. Look in the second hand market for cheaper prices. In fact my advice is for you to find a cheap second-hand macro lens from a reliable dealer than going for any of the options above.

[BrianMDoucette]

I have used Kenko extension tubes many times and they work exceedingly well.
One caveat being that you lose the ability to focus at infinity and another minor problem is that with a full set of tubes on, focus distances become extremely close. I have used tubes on prime lenses (28mm, 50mm) and on my 18-55 with great success, but by far the best use for me is on my 70-200F4. The tubes give me a great close up from a reasonable distance(1-2feet).

My 2 cents,
B

[Troy]

I have used a set of cheap eBay extension tubes with my 50mm 1.8 (all be it a Nikon)

I believe i got mine for under £8, delivered. They can be set up in a number of combinations giving different focusing distances. With all of the tubes stacked the focusing distance is incredible, and you will be mere millimeters from your subject. Now as these are the cheaper ones, they have no electronic connections. So you will need to be in manual and manually focus. Because of this, these are best used for still subjects, such as flowers, and will probably be a bit difficult to use with things such as insects (although with some patience im sure they'd do just fine).

[Watermelonshark]

Alwin Brian and Troy,

Thank you all for your constructive advice.Alwin you have certainly given me a few options that I hadnt even heard of (bellows)!!
I certainly have plenty to think about.

Thanks again for your advice. I will let you know what I've gone for

Please feel free to visit my dphotography gallery and offer further advice that you think will help me learn and improve my work.

[pemily]

Thanks for the advice Troy! I think I will get the extension tubes for my Nikon... I plan to take more pictures of plants and flowers, since I saw so many inspiring pictures lately with these motifs. I plan to order flowers and then I want to train my skills with this. Normally I have the problem that smaller objects get blurry although I use the macro mode. This is annoying. I want to learn how to take better pics