Canon 60mm macro vs canon 100mm macro

lucky_13

lucky_13

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Hey, I want to get into macro photography and I was just wandering wether to get the Canon 60mm macro or the 100mm macro? They also double as a portrait lens or at least so I hear.
I use a 550D
I would like to hear ** thoughts.
 
What sort of macro are you looking at doing? With flashes, tripods and bugs or just wandering around snapping the occasional flower etc.?
 
I have the canon 100mm macro on 400D and am also new to macro. Cracking lens and also good for portraits. Only downside is af sometimes but for macro I use manual. Can be a bit annoying for portraits but end results are amazing.
 
I have the 550d and use the 60mm for macro work. It can be difficult getting close enough for true 1:1 before the bugs fly off, especially with a lens hood on (which takes up about half of the working distance). Also if you want to go above 1:1 you will really suffer with working distance when you add extension tubes.

Technically the lens is razor sharp and a really good length for head and shoulders portraits on a crop body. The only negative is focus in low light is a bit iffy.

Here’s some examples from my setup; Macro & Portraits
 
Ksanti said:
What sort of macro are you looking at doing? With flashes, tripods and bugs or just wandering around snapping the occasional flower etc.?
Click to expand...

The general sort of macro.. Flowers / insects / objects / etc
No ring flash thou
 
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irelanst said:
I have the 550d and use the 60mm for macro work. It can be difficult getting close enough for true 1:1 before the bugs fly off, especially with a lens hood on (which takes up about half of the working distance). Also if you want to go above 1:1 you will really suffer with working distance when you add extension tubes.

Technically the lens is razor sharp and a really good length for head and shoulders portraits on a crop body. The only negative is focus in low light is a bit iffy.

Here’s some examples from my setup; Macro & Portraits
Click to expand...

Ok as I'm new to macro I have no idea what the extension tubes are or what they do! Could you educate me please? :-)
 
lucky_13 said:
Ok as I'm new to macro I have no idea what the extension tubes are or what they do! Could you educate me please? :-)
Click to expand...

Extension tubes go inbetween the camera and lens and mean the focusing works at a closer distance so allow you to get closer to the subject, thats the basic anyway :)
 
lucky_13 said:
On a crop that = 160 and the 180mm is way out of my price range.
Click to expand...

Things are a little different with Macro's, what your really looking at is working distance for the maxmum magnifcation. For the 100mm thats about 6 inches from the front of the lens, for the 60mm its about 4 inches.

Personally I went with the 100 for that reason, doesnt just help with insects but also flowers since you can keep your tripod further from the subject. Not as easy to use for portaits as the 60mm macro would be(most useful outdoors) but it does have the benefit that 2.8 allows for a shallower DOF at 100mm, very nice bokeh aswell.

Extension Tubes(which go between the lens and the body) and diopters(which screw on the front like a filter) help improve the magnifcation of normal lenses but won't get you as much as a pure macro, plus they stop you focusing to infitity and can damage image quality.

It depends how far you want to go, a true macro lens is one which the subject appears lifesize(expressed as 1:1) on the sensor so will make insects fill a good part of the frame and allow you to get inside the interal structure of larger flowers. You can also add diopters and extension tubes to a macro lens to push it even further although the working distance will get shorter.
 
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60mm is a nice sharp lens however to get 1:1 you have to be quite close to the subject unlike the 100mm.
 
Ok thank you for all your help and it sounds like I might have to start saving up a bit for the 100mm macro.
 
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