There is a problem that newbie photographers will find when they start taking an interest in macro photography – the dreaded price tag. Macro lenses can be very expensive, and they’re so specialized that you really have to want to focus on macro photography to justify spending the money on them.

For instance, this Canon macro lens runs up over $300, and is on the lower end as far as brand-name macro lenses go.

You can, however, find some off-brand macro lenses for less, if you’re ok with sacrificing some quality in your images. If you’re just looking to learn macro photography and experiment a little with it, there is absolutely nothing wrong with getting cheaper lenses.

The photos in this post are unedited, straight from the camera unless otherwise stated.

Ok, but what are macro extension tubes?

Yes, good, let’s get to it. I’ve been talking a little about macro lenses and price, but there is another option: extension tubes.

If you’ve never heard of extension tubes, but you want to get started with macro photography, this is your lucky day. Extension tubes let you dip your toes into macro photography fun without dipping your bank account into the red.

Macro extension tubes are different than macro lenses.

1. They are hallow – they do not have any glass “lens” in them.
2. They are stackable – you can mix and max different extension tubes to change magnification.
3. They’re a super-affordible [see: CHEAP] alternative for macro photography.

I have a very cheap set of extension tubes from a brand called “SHOOT”. Like $20 cheap. I knew nothing about them when I got them, but I wanted to mess around with macro photography and was searching for options that I could afford. Photography is not a cheap hobby, unfortunately.

How to use macro extension tubes

Extension tubes often come with 2 or more tubes per set. This is because they can be stacked.

For example, this is the set I have and it comes with:

1. 13mm
2. 21mm
3. 31mm

You can combine these tubes for greater magnification. More extension tubes = more zoom.

Come closer…

You’ll notice that when you’re using your normal lenses, there comes a point where you can’t get any closer to the object you’re shooting because your lens will fail to focus no matter what you do. Placing macro extension tubes on your camera before your regular lens allows you to move your standard lens closer to an object while still being able to keep focus.

At the same token, with the macro extension tubes on your camera, you’ll find you need to be closer than normal for your standard lens to be able to focus at all. If you’re too far away from your object, the extension tubes won’t allow the lens to focus.

Sometimes this might mean your lens has to be almost touching the subject you’re shooting.

These are some examples of the distance my lens had to be away from the subject in order to get focus, using different focal lengths on my standard lens.

55mm-250mm lens with 3 extension tubes and lens set to 55mm.

Magnifiy

Along with letting you get closer to a subject, your extension tubes also increase magnification, so you’ll see more details of whatever you’re shooting. Look back at the previous photos to remember just how small the pin is compared to the photos below…

Autofocus

If your standard lens has autofocus, you’ll want to look for an extension tube set that includes autofocus. This just means that your lens and camera will still be able to talk to each other with the extension tubes on, so you can autofocus if you want to.

In many cases, you’ll probably want to use manual focus anyways, but it’s nice to have the option.

Light

If you’re doing macro photography do yourself a favor and make sure there’s enough light.

The combination of macro and the potential need for a fast shutter speed (if there are moving subjects) means that you’ll have less light going into the camera. If you don’t have moving subjects, you could look at using a slower shutter speed (with a tripod, for the love of photography! Here are some tips on how to choose a good tripod) to let in more light, but if you have moving subjects (like bugs) you’ll want a faster shutter speed and need as much light as possible to stop the photo from being overly dark.

Some photo examples with a macro extension tube set:

A video of the process experimenting with the extension tubes

Just a reminder:

Macro photography normally refers to super up-close style photos, but if you wanna get technical about it, it means that you can achieve a 1:1 ratio for the item you’re shooting. Basically, if your subject is 1 inch in size, you should be able to capture it as 1 inch long in your picture at 100%. This means you can get unusually close to an object to get that 1:1 ratio within your picture.

That’s a rough explanation, from my understanding. If you feel you can clarify please do so in the comments. I still have a hard time articulating the technical side of macro photography. I prefer to just go with – stuff looks cool this close!

Actual lenses capable of macro shots can be pretty pricey, but you can use things like extension tubes to give you similar shots for a price that’s much easier on the wallet. I grabbed a set for just $20 to try them out and filmed the process of experimenting with them.

It’s a simple, quick video, just to give you an idea of how using extension tubes works and the results you can achieve. It’s also the first video on the CameraTheory Youtube channel! So be sure to subscribe for more over there.

I mean, I prepared. I had a plan. I was gonna photo like a pro and it was gonna be epic!

You’ll notice this is all in the past tense because, as you might have guessed, things did not go according to plan…

MY FIREWORKS PHOTOS SUUUUUUCKED.

THERE WERE A FEW ISSUES THAT CONTRIBUTED TO THE SUCKAGE:

1. There was a telephone wire literally right in front of where I had to set up my camera.
2. The fireworks started before I got setup – that was my bad.
3. I was trying to make sure I wasn’t blocking anyone’s view and almost caught my hair on fire (which would’ve been the 2nd time that’s happened to me on the 4th of July…)
4. The fireworks show itself was lame. The fireworks stayed relatively low, making it hard to get a good aerial photo, and it was over super-quick. No one was actually sure if we’d seen the finale.

Oh well, c’est la vie.

THE REAL IRONY IS THAT AFTER THE FIREWORKS, I ACTUALLY GOT SOME PHOTOS THAT I LIKE.

Maybe I’ll call them “little fireworks” so it doesn’t seem like I failed quite so epically.

I’m sure there’s a lesson in there somewhere.

“Your favorite memories might come from failed plans

-someone wise

Something like that. 

HERE’S WHAT I DID LEARN ABOUT PHOTOGRAPHING FIREWORKS FOR FUTURE ATTEMPTS:

1. For the love of all that is sparkly get your tripod and camera settings set like 20 minutes before.
2. Your f-stop (aperture) should be around 11.
3. Your ISO can be at 100 and everything should be fine – AS LONG AS YOU HAVE A TRIPOD. Otherwise, you’ll need to up it so your fireworks photos don’t get blurry.
4. Long exposures can look cool, but shorter exposures on the big round fireworks are pretty sweet too.
5. Make sure you’re going to have a clear view of the fireworks. Like, maybe, no telephone wires.

If all else fails, just take photos of sparklers.

HOW TO TAKE PHOTOS OF SPARKLERS:

1. Up your ISO to 500 for the sake of speed unless you have an awesomly low f-stop lens.
2. F-stop can be as low as you want
3. Keep an eye on your camera speed to prevent shake – I handheld the camera for my “little fireworks” photos

(Just fyi these are affiliate links, so if you click ’em and buy I get a little sumthin’ sumthin’, at no extra cost to you!)

A zomei tripod

My old tripod that died an honorable death during my recent Bryce Canyon trip. So this Zomei tripod is my new one and so far I’m lovin’ it.
It’s taken a little getting used to since the adjustment levers are a little different than my old tripod, but after that night on the roof, having to adjust everything in the dark, I pretty much got it down.

One of the biggest differences is how you adjust the camera angle. On the Zomei the camera mount rotates on a ball, so you can move it around to pretty much whatever angle you want much more smoothly.

A wired remote

I got a wireless Canon remote with my first ever DSLR camera, and I’ve always liked it, but there are a couple reasons I am now switching between it and the wired remote:

1. When you’re near other people’s camera’s, you could accidentally set off their shutter. It seems unlikely, but I’ve been standing right next to people who were also using remote shooting, so ya never know.
2. I sorta like the feel of the wired remote compared to the wireless one. It just feels a little more solid and I can tell by touch whether it’s keeping the shutter open or not.
3. It’s attached to the camera, so you’re less likely to misplace it. I’ve had to go searching for my other remote a few times just because I put it down somewhere while I’m waiting during a long exposure.
   

Wireless remote

Like I said, I still like my wireless remote. I think it’s a matter of personal preference, but also the situation you’re shooting in. For instance, if it’s really windy, I want as few things hanging off my camera as possible to minimize camera shake.

So for that, I’d use the wireless one.

For those that are interested this is the one I use:

Alright I think that covers The Great 4th of July Photography Fiasco.

I’ll def be trying this again next time fireworks pop up.

What’s a fisheye lens?

Fisheye lenses are famous for creating an interesting “bubble” perspective. They’re ultra-wide-angle lenses, good for when you’re trying to get as much of a scene in one photo as possible. The more zoomed-out your fisheye lens is, the more warp you’ll get. But I, like a lot of people, don’t mind that. It’s gives photos a very unique look.

TIP: A 0.5x fisheye would be considered a wide angle lens while a 0.18x fisheye lens would be considered a super fisheye. The Altura fisheye and macro combo lens is 0.35x – so it’s in the middle.

WHAT’S A MACRO LENS?

Macro lenses let you get close – like, really close. You wanna see the eyelashes on a bee? This is the kind of lens you want. How you go about getting close enough to see eyelashes on a bee is a whole different thing.

Where your average camera lens will get confused once you get too close to a subject – it won’t be able to focus anymore – the macro lens is made to be right up on your subject.

Affiliate link found in its natural habitat – if you decide to buy something through them, I make some money. Ya know the drill.

THE PROBLEM WITH BOTH FISHEYE AND MACRO LENSES

There’s one reason I haven’t tried either of these lenses yet – PRICE. These specialty lenses can be pricey, so if you don’t have hundreds or thousands to drop on a cool specialty lens for fun, then it can seem like you’re out of luck.

Not true, my shutterbug friend.

In fact, as it turns out, you can find both a macro lens AND a fisheye lens – in one, for a price virtually all of us can afford.

I was able to find this one for LESS THAN $30.

Technically it’s an attachment, because it screws on to the end of your standard lens. NOTE: When buying it, check to make sure you’re getting the right diameter lens. To check, what size filters fit on your current lens? You’ll need to get this lens in the same size. Mine is 58mm for a standard lens on the Canon 70D camera.

You might laugh at me, but I actually didn’t realize the macro portion was part of it until I got it and reviewed it in this video:

All around, I was pretty excited.

ALTURA 0.35X FISHEYE/MACRO LENS SPECS

• 58mm or 52mm
• Wide-angle fisheye and super-macro
• Lightweight but sturdy with metal components
• Detachable fisheye section for macro use

THE GOOD AND THE BAD

Let’s get the bad out of the way. Some things I didn’t like:

When you detach the fisheye lens to use the macro, there’s no cap to put on the bottom of the fisheye to make sure it stays clean. You have to improvise. You can’t use the fisheye without the macro part attached, so it’s a non-issue for that.

The macro depth of field is shallow AF. This is both good and bad.

On one hand, can you say “BOKEH OMG.” On the other, it means you NEED a tripod for the most part. You’ll also notice some edges blurring when you blow the photos up, even with the areas that are in focus.

But, that’s because this is 2 LENSES UNDER $30. You just can’t expect the same level of crispness as an expensive lens.

That being said, I’m very glad I tried this lens.

I really like the lens as someone who wants to just mess around with fisheye and macro, having never used it before. For one, you don’t have to worry about carrying around 2 extra lenses, because this one is 2-in-1. I think that’s fantastic.

It takes good photos. The quality won’t match a lens that’s hundreds or thousands of dollars, but the lens quality is perfectly good for taking pictures for fun and learning.

I took both photos and video and it impressed me with both.

Took me a couple of minutes to work out the right settings on my Canon DSLR. And I was also totally paranoid that I was going to be attacked by a raccoon.

Worth it.

I ended up spending Friday night climbing onto a roof, in the dark, with my camera and tripod in the middle of a lightning storm.

You probably shouldn’t do that. It’s not smart or safe.

For anyone that’s curious about photography with a DSLR, you can slightly change the color of a photo in your camera by adjusting the white balance. Making it more red or more blue. That’s why these pics have some different coloring.

Now I really want another lightning storm so I can do this again. I kinda love how the photos turned out 

There’s a lot of ’em though, so they might take a minute to load, thanks for your patience, guys!

WHAT I LEARNED FROM THIS IMPROMPTU PHOTO SESSION:

1. Your camera’s gotta be turned to manual focus – it has no idea how to autofocus on a dark sky.
2. You need to pay attention to the aperture. It should be as wide (low-number) as possible. A small (high-number) aperture makes the photo too dark. It might be ok if you kept the shutter open forever and a day (loooooong exposure), but I didn’t have a remote to try that out. The longest exposure I used was 25 seconds.
3. Long exposures picked up more of the awesome lights and colors in the clouds. Shorter exposures just picked up the lightning bolts, and the rest of the sky looked pretty dark.
4. Using a manual white balance (the “K” setting on a Canon DSLR) you can make the sky and lightning redder by going up, or bluer/purple by going down. I used between 3500-7500. I think I like the blues and purples better, but the reds are really cool too.
5. Tripod is a MUST.
6. Photographing lightning is addicting.

That’s what I think of whenever someone mentions macro photography.

I think I saw a photo of a praying mantis or something and now that’s just what my brain associates with macro photography. It’s kinda appropriate actually, because bug portraits aren’t something you can really get unless you know what you’re doing with your camera.

I’m working on the whole macro thing, but I’m still learning, so no bug eyes in my photos yet. I have tried taking some photos of bugs though, but I haven’t gotten close enough.

Until then, I have been working on taking some unusually close photos of trees. I actually kinda love how the photos turned out because it made me realize how often I overlook all the little details of a tree. Taking the time to really examine the bark and sap was an interesting way to spend the morning.