macro flowers

[brewmaster15]

Stan,
Thanks for the feedback here and suggestions! Definetly appreciate it ! I have absolutely no problem with you or anyone else posting their flower shots here.It would make a great thread and be a good way for people to learn a little more about macro work. The way I see it whats learned here may one day help someone take better picture of any subject...even their fish. Nice use of extension tubes..I was going to try to put up a few images using extension tubes,closeup filters, and reversing rings as well just to show the various ways we can take macro/closeups of subjects.


Matt...thanks!

Al

[SMB2]

Just noted a typo. (a god thing!) should read (a good thing!)

[DiscusOnly]

Very cool Al. I purchased a bunch of macro gear for my Nikon about 2 years ago for playing around with my CRS tanks. Never got the time for it. Someday..

Stan: Thanks for posting details of the equipment used.

[dagray]

Now you did it Al

Venus Bee Trap (Nasturtium and Honey Bee) taken with Pentax K3 and Tamron 70-300 with macro (lens was broken as it had to be pushed or pulled for focal length and auto focus wouldn't work.... a casualty of my son putting the lens away in the camera bag in the macro position ... lens got squished).


Honey bee on English Lavender (in my front yard)


and a little devil aka Lucifer (Crocosmia Lucifer. a variety of day lilly)

[brewmaster15]

Venus Bee Trap (Nasturtium and Honey Bee) taken with Pentax K3 and Tamron 70-300 with macro

Love that shot! my african violet macros were also done with the K3 . Great images!

[dagray]

Thanks Al I have plants in my front yard that encourage the honey bees. I am trying to find a combination that brings in the butterflies, and I feed the hummingbirds.

[SMB2]

Nicely done. Love the green and red in the first one. How was the last one processed? For the last one, maybe a diagonal composition that does not clip off the end of the plant?

[brewmaster15]

Thanks Al I have plants in my front yard that encourage the honey bees. I am trying to find a combination that brings in the butterflies, and I feed the hummingbirds.

Do you guys have Butterfly bushes out there?
al

[dagray]

Yes and no. Yes there are some still around, but no because they are on Oregon's invasive specie list making them unavailable for purchase from the local nursery and many mail order nurseries.

I could go across the river and buy one in WA, but I think it best to just use other flowers.

I have milkweed seed to plant as that is supposed to attract the Monarch butterflies (the only flower they lay on and eat).

[dagray]

Nicely done. Love the green and red in the first one. How was the last one processed? For the last one, maybe a diagonal composition that does not clip off the end of the plant?

Thank you. The last one was originally shot in RAW with an old 40-80 PK mount with macro lens, then edited in Photoshop, and then run through Topaz Labs plugins (Topaz Adjust 5 using the "spicify" filter and then the HDR filter).

I wanted to catch the one group of flowers with the sand as a backdrop as out here the soil is sand.

[brewmaster15]

I agree! Milkweed is a great choice and will attract some really interesting beetles as well..I have it planted here. You may also want to look into butterfly weed...its a good one also similar to the milk weed.

[dagray]

I agree! Milkweed is a great choice and will attract some really interesting beetles as well..I have it planted here. You may also want to look into butterfly weed...its a good one also similar to the milk weed.

we also have honey suckle growing. I might try to talk my wife into letting us get bee balm.

[rickztahone]

Great shots guys. Keep em coming

[brewmaster15]

Dave,
I have the old pk 40-80 mount.I have seen some amazing shots with it .. .. I havent played with it much ...seems to get very mixed reviews. How do you like it?
al

[dagray]

Dave,
I have the old pk 40-80 mount.I have seen some amazing shots with it .. .. I havent played with it much ...seems to get very mixed reviews. How do you like it?
al

I picked mine up in a camera shop that sells old used equipment for about $50.00 a number of years ago. For aquarium shots, for flowers, for insects it is wonderful IF you can have the fine motor control to make the minute adjustments to focus the subject. So While I love the photos I can produce using that lens it is a royal pain in the kiester at times to use.

I do like it as it is a fairly fast macro. But I love my Sigma f3.5 180mm macro. And for some real fun the sigma 600mm mirror for macro can give some very cool effects (boka is ring shaped).