Help finding a lens... 60mm prime/micro for Canon EOS

[Sean Dempsey]

My friend has a nikon 60mm prime "micro" lens, it's a fixed 60 but can focus down to about half an inch. It's really quite awesome.

I have a Digital Rebel and would like a similar lens, but can't seem to find anyone selling anything like that. I've checked canon lenses and tamron, but don't see it.

Does anyone know of any more sites or place I can check? Would be really great to pick up a lense like that. Or maybe just any micro prime lense, doesn't have to be a 60.

[kkraczek]

Do you mean "macro" lens?... try this link.

[url]http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?O=productlist&A=details&Q=&sku=12145&is=USA[/url

Or, for about three times as much, you can try this...

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?O=NavBar&A=getItemDetail&Q=&sku=183199&is=USA&si=acc#goto_itemInfo

[Sean Dempsey]

I thought I meant micro, but maybe it is macro. I want to be able to take pictures of tiny things from like half an inch away.

The 2nd one is was too expensive, but it would work. The first one is alright, but the minimum focus is 7 inches... not sure if that is close enough to do like postage stamps and insects and coins... I suppose I could try it.

[kkraczek]

I thought I meant micro, but maybe it is macro. I want to be able to take pictures of tiny things from like half an inch away.

The 2nd one is was too expensive, but it would work. The first one is alright, but the minimum focus is 7 inches... not sure if that is close enough to do like postage stamps and insects and coins... I suppose I could try it.

I'm not sure about this, because I'm a newbie as well, but what about a close-up lens such as this one?

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/cont...#goto_itemInfo

[Michael Fanelli]

My friend has a nikon 60mm prime "micro" lens, it's a fixed 60 but can focus down to about half an inch. It's really quite awesome.
I have a Digital Rebel and would like a similar lens, but can't seem to find anyone selling anything like that. I've checked canon lenses and tamron, but don't see it.

What Nikon calls "micro" everyone else in the world calls "macro." Macro lenses are all over the place. I have a Tamron 90mm macro that is fantastic.

Canon has several macro lenses. The 50mm or 100 mm would work well. The Tamron, of course. Sigma has a couple that fit Canon.

Minimum focus does not determine how close you can get in the way you are thinking. What you want is a 1:1 ratio: objects are real size on the film or sensor. A longer focal length allows you to stand back more to get 1:1. A shorter focal length makes you move up close to get 1:1. I prefer to have the working distance of the long focal lengths but others like to work very close. Either way, 1:1 is 1:1. Both look the same.

[Mig]

They're commonly called macro lenses, but Nikon sometimes calls theirs micro lenses. That second one is a specialty lens and not really comparable to your friend's lens.

The Canon 50mm f2.5 macro from the first link goes to 1:2 (or half lifesize). There's also this Sigma lens if you want to stay in 50mm range, and this one goes to 1:1 (or lifesize, which is what your friend's lens is capable of). Then they each have ~100mm versions. They both go to 1:1 and the Sigma (which I happen to have and love) is about $100 cheaper. Of course there are other options - go to B&H's site and searching for Canon + macro.

Good luck!

Oh and regarding the min. focusing distance. The 50mm lenses for Canon are comparable to the Nikon. Actually the Nikon's is 8.8."

Danielle

[Sean Dempsey]

I still don't understand what a 1:1 or 1:2 means?

a 1:1 means the viewfinder view will be the same size is my eye? So if I am looking through the viewfinder, and then look at the thing with just my eye, it'll be the same size if it's a 1:1?

not quite getting it... but I'll probably try out that Sigma lens on BH.. I am not to fired up on Canon for some reason since I got my Tamron 28-300

[Mig]

1:1 means that the object you're photographing is captured lifesize on the film.

Here's some examples - 35mm film frame is 24mm x 36mm . A US quarter has a diameter of 24.26mm. So when shooting at a 1:1 ratio you can get the quarter to fill the frame across the 24mm dimension. If you do a 4"x6" print the quarter will fill the 4" dimension. At a 1:2 ratio the quarter will appear half the size. I hope that makes sense.