Is this the 50mm lens for close ups etc?

Okay for portraits but to get close up/macro you'd need some extension tubes I believe.
Cracking lens for the money none the less.
 
Great lens for the money. Slightly plasticky feel but optically not bad at all. slightly soft sometimes at f1.8 but better by 2.2/2.5. The f1.4 lens is brilliant but 4x as much.

A great, cheap, light lens that should travel everywhere in your kit bag for just those moments you need it.
 
It's a great lens but it won't really get you up close and personal. The minimum focus distance is too long for close-up work so as said, you'll need extension tubes.
One other thing that makes it difficult to use for close-up work is that if you want to focus manually it's not that easy due to the tiny little focus ring.
If you have the 18-55 IS lens it's worth trying that for close up work, I tried mine yesterday and it's really quite impressive. ;)
 
Hi Adam,

The one that you've linked to is the "nifty fifty" that you'll have heard so much about.

As above, it's a great little lens for the price and its large aperture really comes into its own if you're shooting in low light, if you want shallow DoF or if you need to get a fast shutter speed in medium lighting conditions without resorting to flash.

However, for the requirements that you've stated I notice that you already have the 18-55mm lens in your camera bag.
If it's the IS version I'd absolutely echo the sentiments above about its close up ability. It's not a macro lens, but it does have a very short minimum focus distance which means that you can experiment with close-up photography to see if it's your thing - that's something that you won't get from the 50mm.
As far as portraits go, if you're not finding that lacking a larger aperture is limiting your photography then perhaps the 50mm isn't for you. You can shoot at that focal length with your current kit lens, and although it's not quite as sharp as the 50mm I'd find it difficult to recommend the 50mm as a complementary lens on sharpness alone.
 
Yes I have the 18-55 mm kit lens that I believe has the stability built in. The other lens is a 70-300 mm one.

I played around with the kit lens yesterday at the motor museum took a couple of pics. Although I have read and practised the settings tbh I don't really understand what they all do and how they can be used together which is something I am hoping I will be shown a bit at the TP meet in Jan.

Are the macro tubes worth buying?
 
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It's a great, cheap lens and if you get some extension tubes you can get some real good close ups, I tried it before christmas while waiting for my MP-E65 and got some great results. You do have to get very close to your subject though. You could have a look at MPB photographic and the classifieds on here for a good second hand one that'll probably be cheaper too.
 
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Kerso on here sells them new at £69 delivered, MPB are selling used ones for £69 + delivery. :lol:
Used ones seem to go for around £60 on here so tbh, you might as well buy new from Kerso. ;)
 
AdamcMWCK said:
Yes I have the 18-55 mm kit lens that I believe has the stability built in. The other lens is a 70-300 mm one.

I played around with the kit lens yesterday at the motor museum took a couple of pics. Although I have read and practised the settings tbh I don't really understand what they all do and how they can be used together which is something I am hoping I will be shown a bit at the TP meet in Jan.

Are the macro tubes worth buying?
Click to expand...

TBH if you're still at the stage of getting used to using the lenses you have, my personal advice would be to hold off on any new purchases until you've got to grips with what you already have and worked out what its limitations are.

However, if you have cash to spend and you really want to get into close-up / macro an external flash may be a better investment for you. Light is always a limiting factor once you start to get close up and I found a flash the single most helpful accessory for this type of photography. Example attached below of what can be achieved with off camera flash and just your kit lens without extension tubes / filters.
If that still isn't close enough for you, it's worth taking a look at the Raynox DCR-250 (or maybe the DCR-150) rather than tubes. Personally I find it easier to use and you'll get very good results with it on your 70-300mm.




 
Sarah,
In your above post, you mention Raynox......do these just clip on to the front of the existing lens? If so, presumably the diameter of the front mount doesn't matter? Some further explanation might help me to make a decision on these.

Appreciate any help, thanks,


Ernie
 
Hi Ernie,

Yes they do just clip on the front of the lens. They come with a "universal adapter" which from memory can clip onto any lens up to a 67mm filter size.

If you do a search for Raynox on here I'm sure that we've had a few threads dedicated to the Raynox and the results that you can get from it. They do take a little bit of getting used to since you need to be very close to your subject to achieve focus but the quality from them is superb for the price.
 
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