Seeking advice on Macro photography, and on whether to get third party lenses for it

[jeezuinn]

Hi all, i am looking to get a macro lens as i am keen in going into macro photography, and i wish to seek some advice from ppl around here.

Before i get a lens, i would like to have a better understanding about macro photography.From what i have read,it refers to taking close up pictures of small objects at 1:1 or beyond. Similarly,macro lenses usually offer a maximum magnification rate of approximately 1:1. However all that i understand from the definition is that it allows you to take pictures of smaller objects closer. What exactly does the 1:1 mean?

Also i would like to ask regarding the differences between the various types of macro lens.I currently own a D90 with 18-105 kit. Besides Nikon lenses, I have also been checking out other macro lenses of other brands, such as:

Nikon AF-S Micro VR 105 f/2.8G - $1.1k
Nikon AF Zoom-Micro Nikkor 70-180mm f/4.5-5.6D ED - $1580
Sigma AF 70-300mm f/4-5.6 APO DG Macro - $330
Sigma 28-300mm F3.5-6.3 DG Macro - $380
Tamron SP AF90mm F/2.8 Di 1:1 Macro - $500

(all prices are found from the history of B&S section)

Why is there such a big difference between the prices of the various lens? eg. Nikon AF Zoom-Micro Nikkor 70-180mm f/4.5-5.6D ED has a smaller focal range, and smaller maximum aperture as compared to the Sigma 28-300mm F3.5-6.3 DG Macro, however, if costs almost 4 times more! what do i look out for when i wanna get a macro lens?

any advice would be welcomed!

 

[daredevil123]

Hi all, i am looking to get a macro lens as i am keen in going into macro photography, and i wish to seek some advice from ppl around here.

Before i get a lens, i would like to have a better understanding about macro photography.From what i have read,it refers to taking close up pictures of small objects at 1:1 or beyond. Similarly,macro lenses usually offer a maximum magnification rate of approximately 1:1. However all that i understand from the definition is that it allows you to take pictures of smaller objects closer. What exactly does the 1:1 mean?

Also i would like to ask regarding the differences between the various types of macro lens.I currently own a D90 with 18-105 kit. Besides Nikon lenses, I have also been checking out other macro lenses of other brands, such as:

Nikon AF-S Micro VR 105 f/2.8G - $1.1k
Nikon AF Zoom-Micro Nikkor 70-180mm f/4.5-5.6D ED - $1580
Sigma AF 70-300mm f/4-5.6 APO DG Macro - $330
Sigma 28-300mm F3.5-6.3 DG Macro - $380
Tamron SP AF90mm F/2.8 Di 1:1 Macro - $500

(all prices are found from the history of B&S section)

Why is there such a big difference between the prices of the various lens? eg. Nikon AF Zoom-Micro Nikkor 70-180mm f/4.5-5.6D ED has a smaller focal range, and smaller maximum aperture as compared to the Sigma 28-300mm F3.5-6.3 DG Macro, however, if costs almost 4 times more! what do i look out for when i wanna get a macro lens?

any advice would be welcomed!

I hope you realize that a lot of Sigma lenses that come with the "Macro" label, are not really Macro lenses. It just means their minimum focusing distance is quite short. But their magnification is nowhere near to being a real macro lens. Yes, I agree that is misleading and a real abuse of the term "Marco". But what to do? So you can disregard the two sigma lenses in your list.

1:1 means 1 to 1 magnification factor. It refers to the image captured on the 35mm film frame (24×36mm) equals to the size of the original subject.

Read more: http://digital-photography-school.com/macro-photography-for-beginners-part-1

Since you are interested in macro, you should also consider two other 3rd party lenses:

Voigtlander SL 125mm f/2.5 APO-Lanthar
Carl Zeiss Makro-Planar T* 2/100 ZF

And they are both more expensive that the Nikon lenses you listed.

 

[zac08]

Plenty of threads available on this subject already.

And plenty of examples are available for you to see in comparision if you bother to search a lil. It boils down to your budget and interest level.