Canon EOS R6 for Macro Photography

[Suzq]

Hi all,

I'm a big fan of close-ups and got the R6 primarily for this purpose. I've used the kit 24-105mm f4-7.1 STM lens for a bit before getting the 100mm f2.8L Macro USM, and the latter is the way to go for macro, hands down, so I'll be mostly using that from now on. I'd like to share some of my work, and will be adding to this thread as new notable captures are added to my collection. Hope you enjoy.

I do try to get as close to my subjects as possible, so cropping is usually minimal, mostly just removing the borders after focus stacking (but ok, not aaaalways. The images are resized down to be web-friendly.


Dragonfly - 100mm f2.8L Macro IS USM, 3-shot composite.

View attachment 9621

Beautiful shot. I followed the same path as you --- I am enjoying the macro 100mm lens and need to get out there with it more!

 

[Suzq]

A couple of bumblebees doing bumblebee things


View attachment 10823View attachment 10824

Question -- do you set your camera manually for these exposures? I am learning the best settings -- tend to set the aperture and leave the speed and ISO to auto settings. Do you recommend a certain approach that's worked best for you?

 

[Kwazy]

do you set your camera manually for these exposures?

Almost manually, with specific reasons for the choices, but sometimes I mis-set something by accident or have to compromise. Examples above show all of these - purposeful settings, accidents, and compromises, so note those settings with a grain of salt.

Of course, it all depends on what your subject is, what effect you're trying to achieve, and what environment you're shooting in. I've found that Fv (flexible priority) mode works best for me. It lets me set two variables and have the camera figure out the third. In bight light I'll set aperture and ISO to what I want (aperture for desired focal depth, lowest reasonable ISO), but in darker settings I'll choose aperture and shutter, while keeping ISO on auto. It's a good idea to keep an eye on what ISO happens to be in this case, and adjust either the shutter or aperture if it gets too high - that's the compromise.

For my most common subject, bugs, I try to keep aperture at f8-f11, and shutter speed as high as I can while keeping the auto-determined ISO as low as possible. With R6's large sensor and having recently acquired Topaz Denoise, I've been seeing how high I can push ISO and still retain quality; normally, high ISO will really ruin a shot...

When shooting macro (and often with a close-up attachment) hand-held I've only had good results with higher shutter speeds of at least 1/320-1/400, especially if the subject is constantly moving or I'm trying to do focus bracketing. If it's a stationary subject, like a butterfly, I can go a little slower; or if I can rest my hands on something or use a tripod it helps a lot. Bees on the other hand, twitch (buzz) a lot, so I had to really turn up the speed to freeze them; and forget focus bracketing - too much movement.

This ended up a bit rambly, but I hope it helps. The bottom line, I think, is to give Fv a try.

 

[Suzq]

Thank you for the tips!

 

[Hali]

Thank you for the tips!

Ask away with any questions! We all love to help.

 

[Kwazy]

This absolute unit of a grasshopper.
Probably one of the biggest grasshoppers I've seen, certainly the biggest in a long while.
Must have survived from the very beginning of the summer - quite beat up and dusty.

This grasshopper has seen things.

• Canon EOS R6
• RF100mm F2.8 L MACRO IS USM
• 100.0 mm
• ƒ/11
• 1/125 sec
• ISO 400

 

[Kwazy]

A sleeping bumblebee

• Canon EOS R6
• RF100mm F2.8 L MACRO IS USM
• 100.0 mm
• ƒ/11
• 1/200 sec
• ISO 1600

 

[Hali]

That's fantastic, Mike!

 

[Kwazy]

That's fantastic, Mike!

Thank you! Getting up at 4am to catch the bugs still sleeping really paid off