Macro Photography

At a certain moment in your photography career, you find that you have shot everything you can possibly
think of shooting with your camera. You might even run out of ideas or lose interest because you think
there is nothing more to take. One of the best cures for a situation like this is swinging by your local
photo shop and picking up a nice piece of gear to experiment with. There are hundreds of accessories out
there that can improve your shooting and challenge your skills, but the best place to start is with a new
camera lens. One of the most useful and fun lenses to focus is the macro lens.

All 35mm camera lenses have some sort of ratio that can be used to describe the size of an object in the
image compared to its size in real life. A typical lens presents objects much smaller than their actual size,
while macro lenses will get a ratio much closer to reality. Have you ever looked at a close up of a flower or
a head of an ant? Where the subject seems larger than life? Chances are those photographs were shot with a macro lens.

There are several different types of macro lenses available. The most common ratio found on consumer-level
equipment is roughly 1:2, meaning that subjects in the image on film will be their actual size. This may not
seem like much, but remember that you're going to blow the image up when it's printed onto an 8×10 or 5×7
photograph, making the final version much larger than real life. Super-high grade equipment can hit a ratio
of 5:1, which would be perfect for mapping out a snowflake or exploring a rough surface like a sponge.
Depending on how much you are able to spend and the type of results you want, you can get a simple attachment
for your normal lens or a full lens that attaches directly to your camera. What makes macro photography seductive is the level of detail that you see, sometimes for the first time - familiar objects become unusual and abstract and unusual objects become even more interesting.

There are many applications for macro photography: flowers,plants,butterflies, minerals,snowflakes- Your own backyard, a local garden,beach or forest can provide you with hours of fun with macro photography. The possibiliies are endless as to what and where you can find a perfect subject for your macro photography adventure. You will find yourself pointing out objects that you see everyday but now are drawn to them by your curiousity of how they would look in your macro lens. It is amazing how much your world can open up with learning how to shoot macro photography.

Working with macro photography can be a whole new visual event for even the most advanced photographers.Every day can yield another subject and an endless supply of captivating images.The possibilities of macro photography are limited only by your imagination.
For more information on Macro photography as well as tons of info on every aspect of photography, visit my site at
www.makelifegreat4u.com/LearnToTakeBetterPhotos
Harley