Macro Shooting - TS-E 90mm or MP-E 65mm?

darkdragon

Sorry if this has been discussed before, I ran some searches but couldn't find anything about this.

I'm looking for a real macro lens. I was pretty much set on the MP-E 65mm but then I stumbled across a thread talking about the TS-E lenses.

I had always thought TS-E lenses were strictly for architectural use but read the article on Fred Miranda site about their use for macro. I was floored, he was getting a full frame sharp image at f/2.8 :barb

So it got me thinking - for getting 1:1 macros, which lens would be better? Right now I'm leaning to the TS-E because of the 2.8 ability, but since I have never used one I am unsure - all I have to go on is what is on the internets.

There are some truly great macro shooters on this board and I'm hoping some of you can help me out here. For 1:1, which would be a better choice? I don't think there is a choice for 5:1, I believe the MP-E is the only lens that does that (correct me if I'm wrong).

Shooting with Canon 40D, handheld (usually), off-camera flash.

lowbone

There are quite a few lenses that will kinda sorta work for macro but if you are talking about one to one ratio then I would go with a true macro lens. The beauty of a macro lenses is that it is hard to find a bad one. Sigma, Tamron and even Vivitar make good lenses for macro. I have the Canon 100 and 180 macro lenses. The 180 gives me a little more working distance but it is heavy and difficult to hand hold. I would recommend something in the 100mm range for you. There is guy whose user name is Delantech. He posts allot on the Fred Miranda Macro forum. He used the 100mm with tubes and a Canon 500 closeup lens for a long time. It gave him 3X magnification. He now uses an MPE 65 but I would not recommemd this lens to someone starting out. It is a very difficult lens to learn and use.

darkdragon

lowbone wrote:

There are quite a few lenses that will kinda sorta work for macro but if you are talking about one to one ratio then I would go with a true macro lens. The beauty of a macro lenses is that it is hard to find a bad one. Sigma, Tamron and even Vivitar make good lenses for macro. I have the Canon 100 and 180 macro lenses. The 180 gives me a little more working distance but it is heavy and difficult to hand hold. I would recommend something in the 100mm range for you. There is guy whose user name is Delantech. He posts allot on the Fred Miranda Macro forum. He used the 100mm with tubes and a Canon 500 closeup lens for a long time. It gave him 3X magnification. He now uses an MPE 65 but I would not recommemd this lens to someone starting out. It is a very difficult lens to learn and use.

Thanks for the info. I've seen Delantech's work and it is great. I have used MPE 65mm as a friend of mine has one. It is a bit difficult to work with but the results can be astounding, it is definately a great lens. Right now I work mainly with 50mm with tubes or 70-200mm with tubes, i have used some other lenses with closeup filters attached but have not tried closeup filters + tubes yet.

ziggy53

darkdragon wrote:

Sorry if this has been discussed before, I ran some searches but couldn't find anything about this.

I'm looking for a real macro lens. I was pretty much set on the MP-E 65mm but then I stumbled across a thread talking about the TS-E lenses.

I had always thought TS-E lenses were strictly for architectural use but read the article on Fred Miranda site about their use for macro. I was floored, he was getting a full frame sharp image at f/2.8

So it got me thinking - for getting 1:1 macros, which lens would be better? Right now I'm leaning to the TS-E because of the 2.8 ability, but since I have never used one I am unsure - all I have to go on is what is on the internets.

There are some truly great macro shooters on this board and I'm hoping some of you can help me out here. For 1:1, which would be a better choice? I don't think there is a choice for 5:1, I believe the MP-E is the only lens that does that (correct me if I'm wrong).

Shooting with Canon 40D, handheld (usually), off-camera flash.

TS lenses are used to control certain types of perspective and shift DOF to a different image plane. The examples on Fred Miranda are an example of "close focus" and control over the DOF plane. They are beautifully done.

The Canon MP-E 65mm, f/2.8 1-5x Macro is a very specialized lens and would not do well for anything but macro photography. It is manual focus and is the only lens in existence (that I am aware of) that allows 1x through 5x magnifications without other accessories.

Other macro lenses may indeed approach up to 5x magnification using extension tubes.

You can also get a little bit more magnification using an $8 DIY approach:

http://www.dgrin.com/showthread.php?t=69392

There are lots of ways to go macro and we have a whole thread dedicated to the task:

http://www.dgrin.com/showthread.php?t=25164

darkdragon

ziggy53 wrote:

You can also get a little bit more magnification using an $8 DIY approach:
http://www.dgrin.com/showthread.php?t=69392
There are lots of ways to go macro and we have a whole thread dedicated to the task:
http://www.dgrin.com/showthread.php?t=25164

Hey Ziggy,

Thanks for the links - especially the last one as I have not read that thread yet. I was totally looking in the wrong forum area

I do know what/how TS lenses work, but just never thought of using it for macro/closeup work until I saw the FM thread which really amazed me.

Edit: After reading that first link, I will be trying that DIY - I love DIY