My Macro Rig - Then and Now

Just a quick one to show you guys how my macro rig has evolved since i first took up macro photography in July 2007. To skip right to my latest and most up to date macro rig, scroll to the bottom of this post.

Edit: I have been using mainly the Laowa 15mm since July, 2015. You can check out this lens on the official website here. I shared my thoughts and tips on this awesome lens, as well as many images taken with this lens in this blog post.

For high magnification work,  I use a 40D/70D, MP-E65, MT-24EX with DIY Concave Diffuser. You can scroll all the day down to view the image of this setup.

For natural light macro/close-up, normally with bigger subject, I use the Sigma 150 (with or without a Kenko 1.4X PRO 300 TeleconverterDG


Many DIY stuff especially DIY Diffusers/DIY Snoot Diffusers were covered in this post too. I started with a D80 and Tamron SP90 1:1 macro lens, with Raynox Raynox DCR-250 Super Macro Snap-On Lens +8 diopter glasses, and finally moved on to the Canon MP-E 65mm f/2.8 1-5X. First with a bracketed and diffused 580EXII, then with the Canon MT-24EX Macro Twin Lite Flash. I had also acquired a Sigma 150mm f/2.8 Macro Lens along the way so yes, my macro rig has evolved quite significantly!

But the most important thing is - you don't need fancy and expensive gears to get started!

June 2007

Nikon D80
Tamron SP 90 1:1 macro lens
Styrofoam plate from Tesco for diffusing the flash
Manual everything else i.e exposure and focusing. Focusing done by moving my body back and forth.


Click on the image to see notes/tagging.


Edit: i have an SB800 speedlight now, but still use the same diffuser.

June 2008

I made myself a DIY snoot-diffuser. Check out how to DIY a Snoot-Diffuser here.


Click the image to view some important notes/tagging

It works great for up to 1:1, but for any higher magnification, it's highly advisable to get the flash off the hotshoe and as close to the subject as possible. Remember, if you reduce the distance by half, the flash intensity increases four fold! That's called Inverse Square Law. In other words, if you reduce the subject to flash distance, you'll require way less flash output for the same illumination. Lower power results in shorter flash duration, thus higher motion freezing capability! I explained about this in more details in this post: Full Flash Photography - 3 Things You Must Know.

December 2008

Bought the MPE65 and switched completely to Canon. Lighting - 580EXII on a Hakuba LH1 flash bracket with ballhead and DIY flash diffuser.

Canon MPE65 1X-5X Macro Lens at minimum magnification of 1X

MPE65 at maximum magnification of 5X. You can see the working distance at various mag. 1X - 4", 2X - 2.5", 3X - 2", 4X - 1.7X, 5X - 1.6"


Hakuba LH1 Flash Bracket. I replaced the original ballhead with cheap China made one. Cost about MYR30 . Don't mind the tissue paper. Couldn't find a washer of the right thickness LOL.


Basically, any L shaped flash bracket will do, as long as it meets these two conditions:

1. a bolt at the bottom for fastening onto the base of your SLR, but this is pretty much standard.
2. more importantly, a screw hole at the top left. This is where you screw your ballhead onto. Unfortunately, I couldn't find any suitable one on Amazon to show you. Your next best bet is Ebay.


The DIY diffuser for the 580EXII. 2 to 3 layers of Styrofoam sheet in front for diffusion. The inside of the bowl was covered with aluminum foil for better light efficiency.


You can also get a ready made, foldable ones like this:


Oh you'll need a off-shoe/ETTL cord as well.



The fully assembled macro rig with the Hakuba LH1, eTTL cord, ball head and bowl diffuser look like this:

Note: instead of one ball head, you can use TWO as in this image below for even more flexibility! (Image courtesy of Ah_Wei)


Mar 2009 - bought the MT24EX Twin Flash

MT24EX on my 40D



The DIY diffuser for my MT24EX. Sorry, shot with a lousy Motorola cellphone photo.


Changed to Gen 2 diffusers starting Feb 6, 2010

I used a stofen inside.




Mar 13, 2010

(Edit: I have been using this same setup and concave diffuser since March 13, 2010 with no changes at all)

Testing yet another new diffuser. Idea from SteB1 - a great macro guy on juza forum.

Made out of transparent PP material from a mineral water bottle with 2 layers of polystyrene sheet over it. I use 3M medical tape to stick the concave diffuser onto the MT24EX adapter hood. You can use moldable plastic to DIY a better holder though.


Updated version of this easy to make, cheap but great DIY Concave diffuser is  here.

So this is how my macro rig has evolved since July 2007. I will continue to make changes when I see fit, either in terms of equipment or lighting - whatever it takes to take better macro images. But one thing for sure, my passion for the small things is still unchanged, so stay tuned - I'll continue to update My Macro Rig post whenever there is any new changes.

Note: all the macro rigs you see here are for flash macro photography. For natural light macro/close up, check out this post.

Now that you have seen my macro rigs, do also check out some other macro rigs from my friends.

   
As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.