More Bees at White Mill.
Took another visit to White Mill on the Sunday, following the initial play with the card and liking the results went out with it again. The weather was cold again with thundery showers. Taking a time in between the showers I found the odd sheltering and sometimes wet solitary bee on the flowers. These are my favourite shots from the visit before the thunder storms returned and I took a hasty retreat home to the dry. The pinkish background is the card I used, the green from nearby foliage.
Solitary Bee on flower (2x Mag)
Solitary Bee on flower (2x Mag) Taken on Canon 50D with Canon MPE-65mm Macro Lens. ISO 100 F11 1/250. Flash from Canon MT-24ex Macro Lens.
Solitary Bee on flower (about 3x Mag)
Solitary Bee on flower (about 3x Mag). Taken on Canon 50D with Canon MPE-65mm Macro Lens. ISO 100 F11 1/250. Flash from Canon MT-24ex Macro Lens.
Solitary Bee looking out of flower (about 2x Mag).
Solitary Bee looking out of flower (about 2x Mag). Taken on Canon 50D with Canon MPE-65mm Macro Lens. ISO 100 F11 1/250. Flash from Canon MT-24ex Macro Lens.
2 Shot stack of Solitary Bee (about 2x Mag).
2 Shot stack of Solitary Bee (about 2x Mag). Taken on Canon 50D with Canon MPE-65mm Macro Lens. ISO 100 F11 1/250. Flash from Canon MT-24ex Macro Lens.
Map of Location
Car park is here - photos taken from fields along the river, just past the Mill.
hi chris
stunning photos , i think looking at these my next lens could be the canon mpe-65 do you use it with tripod and slider or just a tripod seen some photos just taken by handheld with flash i think you have to have a steady hand for this , is it a hard lens to get use to i use a tamron 90mm was thinking of getting the canon 100mm , cant wait to get started but the dam weather is against us all the time
brilliant web site you have plenty of tips
great work chris
take care
mick
Hi Mick
I have occasionally used it with a tripod and slider, but that’s pretty rare. The insect would have to be static, and at a reasonable place to get to. I’d say 99% of the shots I take are flash and handheld. The flash effectively is the shutter so it eliminates most shake/bug movement – steady hand obviously helps. Maybe try setting your 90mm to 1:1 and try focusing just with movement handheld (with flash) for a rough comparison. Although you won’t be as close due to this being a 65mm lens. The higher the magnification – the worse the focusing gets, both in getting spot on and also the increase lack of depth of field.
Whilst I would not advise anyone not buying the lens, if you can borrow one to try then I’d recommend that. It’s pity your so far away otherwise you could of tried mine.
The MPE-65mm is different from any other macro (or come to that any normal) lens. It is fixed focus, meaning you set the magnification (starting at 1:1 and move up to a max of 5:1). There’s no auto or manual focusing to it ( i.e no focus ring).
I have the older Canon 100mm USM F2.8 Macro lens (no IS), which I use for most of my butterfly and dragons shots. Also for some larger insects. I find it good to use, and it’s probably like your 90mm or the Sigma 105. I’ve seen some good shots from the newer IS version, but it’s costs put me off. For the butterflies I can normally shoot handheld – or put on tripod if I get a nice resting one.
Cheers
Chris