Aiyo, you should be enjoying the nightlife there mate
Pretty lenglois for you to shoot

I've already tried extension tubes and a Raynox 250
Getting a Raynox will be a better pick bro
Don't have to worry too much about lost light, malfunction or incompatibility issues, yet at the same time not losing too much on magnification

Thanks for sharing hehe, submitted a cat photo too They seem to be very popular with the internet haha


Nice landscape photo, love the light rays! The boat thingy is a bit distracting though ,perhaps can pp it out
Sometimes I re-edit my older photos too, with better editing skills now, we can really bring out the best of the older photos, so keep it up mate!


Plastic ones costs around RM30 or so, but they cannot support heavy lenses, and have to be used manually (which will be a pain with Nikon DSLRs, not advisable). No autofocus.

Electronically-enabled ones like Meike and Kenko costs around RM250 to RM500 repsectively, they are better built, and enables autofocusing, though the AF performance varies from lens to lens. I've written something on this awhile ago, read here for more details: https://forum.lowyat.net/index.php?showtopi...&#entry64558546

A Raynox 250, on the other hand is around RM260, and its just a "strap-on" to a regular lens, easy to use haha, less hassle, that's why recommended

This post has been edited by [PF] T.J.: Dec 1 2013, 11:09 PM

Well, some people lose interest half way, so its a bit wasteful I suppose
But if you are interested, then it will be good to invest straightaway in a Kenko Extension Tube, since it can somewhat support the weight of a 90mm/ 105mm micro (a lens macro enthusiasts will surely get)

AF doesn't work very well on the 50mm F1.8G, its probably the same, or worse in the 1.8D. Focusing is inaccurate and very slow. but still, since its a prime lens, you could simply just move your hands/body forward or backward abit to focus- simple and effective!

Oh, the lens will surely work well with the body and extension tubes, and you will be able to take great photos!
Just that the autofocus sucks, so you are better off focusing manually, that's all
Summore with that aperture ring on the 1.8D, it will work better, especially if the extension tube malfunctions or loose contact

I bought my Kenko tubes from yannick. Hell I bought everything from him
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Yannick-Came...?flyingspaghettimonster=ts&fref=ts

Recommended seller, deal with confidence

lol, I've already mentioned the price in my earlier comments what
That's why I recommended Raynox (~RM260) in the 1st place XD

Yup, that's the one

Well, the 60mm is a good pick also
The thing is most of us started out as normal photographers, so most of us would've gotten the 50mm prime instead haha, then only we pair it with ET, Raynox or reverse lenses for macro. After we have gained experience, then it will make sense to jump to a dedicated, top-of-the-line macro lens for better versatility and performance

the 40/60mm is a very good pick, if one already knows he/she is interested in macro right from the start (unfortunately most will not, unless if they have some macro gears to borrow from other friends who are already established) . I've actually recommended some of my friends to go straight ahead with a 30-60mm F2.8 macro lens instead of the usual 50mm F1.8 as their go-to lens

This post has been edited by [PF] T.J.: Dec 2 2013, 12:43 AM

Thanks for the input man, appreciate it!
That diffuser looks good, might try it out someday, at least its smaller than the softbox haha, if its diffusing capabilities are equal, if not better than my current softbox, then it'll be the one staying on my flash XD

Thanks bro
Its kind of a ridiculous setup haha, very heavy and bulky, but since it takes great photos, I have no choice but to stick to it

Well, you can try your house garden (if you have one), who knows you might be able to find something interesting Still, botanical gardens or forests are the best, since everything is out hunting ^___^ I am looking forward to my first night outing too~
You will get most insects during the morning 7-10am. Dragonflies and damselflies usually come out a bit later, when it gets really hot

The FlashBracket is from FotoPro, diffuser from GamiLight

Damn hardworking yo bro
I love #2 and #3~~ Really magical shots, despite the cloudiness!
Awesome!

Dayuuum, that is one sexeeey beast
Kudos to you! I never had the balls to take this kind of shots
Scared later ppl thought I wanna steal car haha, face problem XD

Great photos man! Keep it up! I like all 3 of them~~
The pose of the Malay Dartlet in the 1st shot is very good, its just too bad that sometimes the background will be pitch black when there's nothing (leaves) for the flash to hit lol... this can be solved by printing some leaves on A4 paper and used as background XD Though I am kind of lazy to do that haha, like cheating XD

#2 is quite good also, just that the abdomen is out of focus already, might be better if the magnification is not so high = more DOF

#3 is the best among the 3, since its shot from afar, there's more DOF, and both ant heads are in focus, which is no easy task! Kudos!

QiAnG, you are from Miri too?
Perhaps next time can ask you all help me collect some samples for research

Grats! haha

Its just luck for me
I just found the cat, and took a few photos, all credits go to the cat

Photo for tonight!


Unidentified Salticid by PF T.J., on Flickr

The number of spiders that I cannot identify are getting higher and higher

Thank you man!
Jumping Spiders (Salticids) have some of the cutest eyes, which is why many love to photograph them XD
Other creepier spiders can have 6-8 eyes, where members of different families might show different eye arrangements! Very interesting~

Shot taken with Mark III baby XD

Awesome shots bro~
#1:
Dayumm that is one very fat Lynx Spider haha, look at mine T___T On diet:


#2:
This kind of flies are some of the hardest to photograph, especially with flash, since they always managed to fly away even after you press the shutter button
I've not got a shot from the front yet Tough one hehe, though some sifus say it might be easier to land a shot early in the morning

With Mark III, it has to be quite close, perhaps around 5 inchs between the subject and the end of the lens. It will be even closer when Raynox or lenses of shorter (<105mm) focal lengths are used. Some insects will run away if you get to close, so have to learn from experience which ones are sensitive, then change your macro lenses accordingly.

For instance, dragonflies and damselflies are usually very alert, and are often perching at areas you cannot reach, so it might be better to just remove the extension tubes/Raynox, and shoot directly using the 90/100/105mm macro lens

Jumping Spiders are cute, though I can't say the same for the other types of spiders haha XD

Look at them eyes

Nice shot man, eat your fly too

Oxyopes birmanicus ♀ eating a bee by PF T.J., on Flickr

Wah, awesome haha

Very impressive photos mate! Totally different feel when racing in the rain

Thank you man, much appreciated!
Will let you know if I need anything for my research hehe, but probably need to find in the jungle Of course I don't mind paying you for your trouble; sure beats flying over there myself haha

Yeah, a good diffuser will help improve shots tremendously, and the shape of the diffuser will help too. If you are into jumping spiders, then ring flashes are good picks~
Well, sometimes you can lure the spider out what haha, then only shoot. Jumping spiders are usually pretty curious and not shy

Yup, the shot is cropped, most macro shots are cropped, as far as I know haha~
There are only two ways (based on what I've learned so far) to get large DOF:
1. Shoot with lower magnification, then cropped or
2. Focus stacking

Woah, you guys are making me hungry haha

Awesome shots mate!
I'm sure these were not taken at your house garden right?

#1 is a fungus beetle
#2 is a Great Egg Fly (Hypolimnas bolina) - great shot, these butterflies don't usually hang around too much
#3 bug porn! XD
#4 is an Electric Blue Banded Phintella (Phintella vittata) - this is a very tough spider to shoot since they are extremely jumpy, I have yet to get a decent shot of the front hehe, can try it as a challenge~
#8 is a stilt legged fly- again, a tough shot since their legs are so damn long and are always out of focus. You did very well in your shot, where the legs are still pretty decently focused, kudos!

Shots will be come very soft at high magnifications, so the trick is to reduce magnification (yes I know its hard to do that for a macro shooter haha) and crop later, or focus stack ^___^
Keep it up~~

Thanks mate, do share your photos too oh

Beautiful action shot!
That fly can be cropped out and photochopped for many stuffs haha
One fly shot to complement yours hehe, though mine a bit out of focus liao XD

Fly pee~

Fly and Water Droplet by PF T.J., on Flickr

Wow, that is an interesting shot man!
Flies will secrete fluids when they find suitable food. The fluid will digest the food before the fly sucks them up
I'm sure its a great shot hehe, share share~~

I've never seen anything like that before though haha, and I don't intend on waiting beside dog poo to find out XD

We all have to start somewhere
I used to be very poor in my macro shots too haha

Yeah, CY sifu's photos are so good, both the cars and girls
Coincidentally I am also working a bit on some insect research, so I know some of them haha, I just refer to books or scientific literature. I can only ID the commons ones la haha Still much to learn~

Usually noneed to wait (unless flying or hunting shot), just find them and shoot
Like copperwire93 mentioned, its more about composition, focusing and ninja stealth to not scare them away XD