Can you guess what I got in the mail today?

[mmeyer]

I got a new toy in the mail today. I was going to wait but it was too good of a deal to pass up so I thought, what the hay.

You guessed it! It's a Sigma 105mm Macro. How did you know? I knew about the shallow depth of field but I am totally amazed at how shallow it is. You can see on the penny that I wasn't completely straight on because parts of it aren't in focus and that was at f8. this is really cool and I'm glad I got it before the flowers and bugs are around.

If anyone has any tips on using this thing I would appreciate it.

[Steve Foss]

The siggy's got a great rep, Mike.

A whole new vista has just opened up. That shallow DOF can be a gift and a challenge, no doubt at all. As well as all the usual advice for macro shooters (rock-steady tripod and remote shutter release), it's a great idea to test your lens on a single subject at all available apertures to find the lens' sweet spot. Usually that's somewhere in the neighborhood of f8 to f11 or so, but not always. To be clear, by sweet spot I mean the aperture at which the lens produces its sharpest images.

My Canon 100 macro sweet spot is f11 to f16. It's quite sharp throughout f2.8 to f16, but falls off after that. Few lenses are at their sharpest at f22 or higher, so while that very small aperture sounds like a cure for shallow DOF when you don't want shallow DOF, sometimes it's a matter of diminishing returns.

Each lens line may have its own sweet spot range, and indeed each copy within that line may vary slightly, so it's a good idea to do that experimentation now, while it's cold outside and you have plenty of time, so when the flowers start blooming in a couple months you'll have it all figured out.

Good luck, and have a blast. Congrats on the new baby!

[mcary]

Sweeeeettt! New toys are always awesome. I've been looking at Sigma's 150mm f/2.8 and am considering buying it. The only issue is I'm trying to save up for Canon's 500 f/4 and I'll never get there if I give in to every new lens temptation. I'll be looking forward to your more of your results with this one.

[Dbl]

Nice Mike! You no doubt will have a lot of fun with the Sigma.

[yakfisher]

Nice new toy, and one more area of photography for you to explore.

[MN Shutterbug]

Congrats on the new weapon. That looks like it should be a lot of fun this spring.

[Steve Foss]

MM, I also forgot to mention how much I use my macro for portraits in certain situations that call for that much focal length, and the siggy will do just as well, having basically the same focal length. Tight facial portraits at f2.8 will be wonderfully sharp and offer great BG bokeh at the same time.

Hey Michael, I'm all about living in the now. Buy the macro and have fun with it. That 500 will become much more affordable once you get up into the salary stratosphere of school administration! Sorry, couldn't resist.

On a different note, I settled on the 100 macro instead of the 150-180 macro lenses because when I need the longer working distance the longer macros offer (butterflies and such are spooky when you come too close), I've had great luck shooting with the 100-400 at 400mm, especially with a minimum focus distance of just under six feet. And there have been times out in the woods up here when using the longer macro would have prevented me from getting the shots I wanted because there wasn't room in cramped forest quarters to back off.

Anyway, a bit of a digression, and different photographers have different preferences. Just thought I'd share my perspective.

[mmeyer]

Thanks Guys! I'm really looking forward to seeing what this thing can do. It's my first prime lens and I know that the macros are really sharp so I can't wait to test it against my other lenses.

Steve, what type of subject would be good to test sharpness on? Any suggestions?

Thanks

[Steve Foss]

I would just use a nonreflective book page with writing on it. Depending on the paper used, you might even be able to get a lot of detail out of the fiber in the paper. A quarter or nickel will work just as well. If you shoot it at angle you'll also get a real sense of the various DOF issues with a subject so close to your lens.

Also, check out the kenko extension tubes (set of three for $150.) They are hollow so don't impact IQ at all, and because the tube(s) push the lens farther from the camera, you're able to get closer to your subject, thus effectively magnifying the lens' focal length. Autofocus is maintained (although for close macro work manual focus is much better so you get that fine control,) but distance focusing is sacrificed. I don't use my tubes all the time when shooting macro, but when you want to get really close, they are excellent.

[mmeyer]

Steve, what effect would a 1.4x converter have? Would it give me more working distance or would it be similar to the extension tubes?

[Steve Foss]

It would give you more working distance because it effectively adds 40mm or so to the lens, giving you the equivalent of a 145 or 150mm lens before the camera's own crop factor is added on. But you lose one stop of aperture. Most high quality 1.4 TCs don't degrade image quality noticeably unless the lighting is poor, so that's not usually an issue.

Whether you need the added working distance a TC gives is up to you and your shooting style, and also depends to some degree on which other lenses you have in your toolbox. As mentioned, when I need extra working distance for skittish butterflies, by 100-400 generally does just what I need, but you may not have an option like that in your kit, so the TC could be a really good thing.

[Dbl]

Shoot me an e-mail Mike I have some info on a focus test chart that I've been using for years that checks for front and back focus and also works well as a sharpness test.