Macro photography is a fun and challenging genre of photography. It requires you to get very close to your subject, which can be difficult if you don’t have a macro lens or a camera with a built-in macro mode.
If you don’t have the right equipment, here are some tips for getting near-macro photos with your telephoto lens:
Shoot wide open.
A small aperture (like f/3.5) will make it easier to focus on close objects. This is especially true when shooting with telephoto lenses because they’re often not as sharp at wider apertures as other types of lenses.
If you have a telephoto lens, you can use it to get near-macro images.
But the trick is getting close enough to your subject without causing blur or distortion. Here are some tips for taking great photos with a telephoto lens:
Use a tripod and/or remote shutter release.
You don’t want any camera shake or movement when you’re shooting at such a close distance.
Use manual focus
autofocus can easily be fooled by small objects that aren’t in focus. You’ll also want to set your lens to its smallest aperture so that the depth of field is as deep as possible (to keep everything in focus).
If you want to shoot outdoors, use an ND filter
this will allow you to shoot at slower shutter speeds without overexposing the image. If you don’t have an ND filter, try shooting in shade instead of direct sunlight if possible.
If you’re looking to capture images of small objects and insects, a telephoto lens is a must.
But even the most expensive lenses will produce poor results when used at their maximum aperture for macro photography.
Use a tripod whenever possible.
This will help reduce camera shake, which is especially important when shooting handheld at these close distances.
Get as close as possible to your subject.
The closer you are, the more depth-of-field you’ll have and the less light that will be required from your flash (if you’re using one).
Use manual mode with manual focus and exposure settings.
If your camera has a live view function that allows you to zoom in on your subject while framing it, that will also come in handy here.
Other things to consider
When shooting macro and micro, it is important to keep a few things in mind.
The first is to use the smallest aperture possible to get your subject sharp. This means that you will need to be using a tripod, as you will want to make sure your camera is absolutely still. When using a telephoto lens, it is also important to use a small aperture (large f-stop number) so that you do not create diffraction around your subject.
The second thing to remember when shooting macro or micro with a telephoto lens is the distance between your subject and camera. If you are too far away from your subject, the depth of field will be very large and you will have trouble getting everything in focus at once; however, if you are too close to your subject then there will be no depth of field at all! This is why it’s important to find that sweet spot between these two extremes where everything looks sharp but there isn’t too much depth of field for it to matter either way (and this changes based on what kind of photo you are taking).