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Macro Ratio's Please Explain...!! (1 Viewer)

M

magpiemick

Well-known member
Hello all ,

Hope everybody is o.k. and getting enough birding time in.
Firstly i would like to thank DOC and REZMOLE for their advise that they gave to others , that helped in the purchase for me of the Tamron 200/500.
Many thanks for your indirect assistance its a great lens.

So my problem is this i also have a Sigma 70/300 mm f4-5.6 apo dg macro with a ratio of 1:2 which i use mostly for macro work, but would now like to up-grade to a dedicated macro lens. Tamron 90 mm or 180 mm macro lens both have ratio's of 1:1. Sometimes at 300mm with the Sigma i just could not get close enough.
If for instance the camera body is mounted on a tripod with static object at say 1 metre and a photo was taken at max magnification how do they compare , the ratio of 1:1 of the 90mm and 180mm to 1:2 of the 300mm ????

Hope this makes sense,

Thanks Mick..
 
That's not how macro ratio works, Mick. From a given distance (say 1 metre), the longer fovcal length will always give a "bigger" picture.

Macro ratio describes how "big" a picture you get at the closest possible distance for the particular lens. So, for example, my Canon 60mm macro lens gives a 1:1 ratio, but I have to put the front element just a couple of inches from the subject to achieve that. I could use my big 500mm lens instead, but it doesn't focus closer than 4.5 metres, so although it has a heap more magnification, what you gain is more than lost again by the minimum focus distance.
 
1:1 ratio means that 1mm of the subject will cover 1mm on the cameras sensor, 1:2 gives 1mm on the sensor for 2mm of the subject. So a macro lens with a 1:1 will be capable of giving more detailed close ups, however as Tannin has stated you do need to get very close with these lenses.

I recently saw a lens with a 5:1 ratio, so 1mm of subject takes up 5mm of senser... stunning close ups, however it wasn't within my budget...
 
magpiemick said:
Hello all ,

Hope everybody is o.k. and getting enough birding time in.
Firstly i would like to thank DOC and REZMOLE for their advise that they gave to others , that helped in the purchase for me of the Tamron 200/500.
Many thanks for your indirect assistance its a great lens.

So my problem is this i also have a Sigma 70/300 mm f4-5.6 apo dg macro with a ratio of 1:2 which i use mostly for macro work, but would now like to up-grade to a dedicated macro lens. Tamron 90 mm or 180 mm macro lens both have ratio's of 1:1. Sometimes at 300mm with the Sigma i just could not get close enough.
If for instance the camera body is mounted on a tripod with static object at say 1 metre and a photo was taken at max magnification how do they compare , the ratio of 1:1 of the 90mm and 180mm to 1:2 of the 300mm ????

Hope this makes sense,

Thanks Mick..
Click to expand...
That all sounds a bit technical to me Mick!
Just like to say I purchased the Tamron 90 a few weeks ago and I am knocked-out by the quality ( see some of my recent pics in my gallery)
It was a choice between the Canon 100 and the Tamron90 at £100 cheaper plus the lens hood I am well pleased
Great lens to handle and really light, hope this helps ;)
Regards
PauV
 
Just in case it helps - you can focus any interchangable lens closer by using an extension tube but you will not be able to focus to infinity with it fitted. There are loads of tubes available from camera manufacturers and third party suppliers like Jessops and srbfilm.co.uk They do not increase the magnicication of you lens but by allowing you to focus closer the do provide a bigger (more detailed) image.
 
I have a Sigma 50-500 lens which I occasionally use with a 13mm extension tube. This allows me to focus down to a few inches depending on the zoom setting. I find that between 50mm and 300mm gives me good results. There are a few recent examples in my gallery.
 
The simplest way to understand macro ratios is as a fraction.

1:1 = life size
1:2 = 1/2 life size
1:4 = 1/4 life size

These sizes refer to the size of the image on the film or sensor.
 
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