This article shares some recent insect kit field test images and discusses the rationale behind this particular equipment set-up. I suppose when many people think of insect photography the first gear that comes to mind is a macro lens. While I do use a macro lens for insect photography quite often, there are occasions when a macro lens is not a particularly effective piece of kit.
NOTE: Click on images to enlarge.
For insects that are stationary much of the time, especially in captive environments where they have become acclimatized to people, a macro lens can be an excellent choice. Many photographers use a flash with a diffuser for this kind of stationary subject matter.
Depending on the species it is possible to get in very close to some wild insects and capture some interesting images with a macro lens.
When the subject is a few metres away, another effective approach can be the use of a long telephoto lens often married up to a 1.4X or 2X teleconverter. As photographers we can anticipate the use of this type of set-up when we are very familiar with a specific location and we have a good idea of where our intended insect subjects are likely to be found.
Where things can get more challenging is when we are trying to get in fairly close to skittish insects, or those that are constantly on the move. In these situations using a macro lens can turn into a frustrating exercise. And, result in a lot of missed opportunities.
As I was pondering how I could construct an insect kit that would be effective for skittish subjects, and those that are on the move constantly, I thought about distance to subject and flexibility.
In essence there are opportunities for insect images when the subjects are too distant for a macro lens to be effective. There are also occasions when they are at shorter distances to subject than are possible with the M.Zuiko 100-400 mm f/5-6.3 zoom (i.e. 1.3 metres/4.27 feet). This led me to consider using a different zoom lens for my insect kit.
The M.Zuiko PRO 40-150 mm f/2.8 came to mind immediately. This zoom is excellent in terms of sharpness and colour rendition. It also has a comparatively short minimum focusing distance of 700 mm which often comes in handy. I knew from previous experience that it also performs extremely well with the M.Zuiko MC-20 teleconverter.
Although I wasn’t planning to get in any closer than 700 mm, I decided that including a 10 mm extension tube to shorten my minimum focusing distance would be prudent. I did some rough physical tests and estimated that the 10 mm tube reduced the minimum focusing distance to about 600 mm or so. That added flexibility would cost me a bit of light, which I considered to be an acceptable trade-off.
Unfortunately my E-M1X appears to be unable to estimate the subject distance under 700 mm when an extension tube is used.
When an extension tube is used at distances to subject of less than 700 mm, I needed to shorten my focal length until the subject came into approximate focus. I could then half depress my shutter release to engage regular auto-focus and complete my image capture.
Once I became familiar with the near and far limits of my distances to subject, I found it was extremely quick and easy to achieve focus on skittish insects. I could do so without having to move in too close to them… and scare them off.
My insect kit was also very effective to use with bees as they moved around on various blossoms. Being able to position myself to get good shooting angles on the bees’ heads created more interesting images.
Capturing an interaction between species is always a bonus. This was a very calm affair with no hostilities observed.
I appreciate that some photographers have had negative experiences with 2X teleconverters. The MC-20 is a very competent piece of kit and is especially effective when used with the M.Zuiko PRO 40-150 f/2.8 zoom. You can examine the detail on the flank and around the eye of the bee in the above image.
As part of my insect kit field test I also captured a number of bee images using the E-M1X’s Digital Teleconverter. I found the resulting photographs quite useable for my purposes.
My insect kit field test worked out better than I had initially anticipated. Using the M.Zuiko PRO 40-150 mm f/2.8 in combination with the MC-20 teleconverter and a 10 mm Kenko extension tube delivers a lot of flexibility… along with quite good quality outputs. Plus it’s a lot of fun to use…
Technical Note
Photographs were captured handheld using camera gear as noted in the EXIF data. All images were captured using an M.Zuiko MC-20 teleconverter. and 10 mm Kenko extension tube. Images were produced from RAW files and out-of-camera jpegs using my standard process. This is the 1,297 article published on this website since its original inception in 2015.
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Hi Thomas,
Nice article. I am having trouble getting focus and sharp photos with the 40-150 f2.8 pro and the 2x TC. Been working my technique, is there a possibilty that I have a bad copy of the 2x TC? Also, I have the Pixco extension tubes which allow using the TC’s on any lens when the 10mm is mounted to the TC. Near as I know, this is the only extension tube company that makes one to fit the TCs. I have successfully added the 10mm to the 60mm f2,8 macro and then to either of the TCs. I then add the 16mm and have made photographs of microscope slides at extreme magnification.
Cheers!
Randy
Hi Randy,
I would suggest investigating two issues before worrying about a potential issue with your MC-20 teleconverter. The first is the shutter speed you are using. If you check the EXIF data in the article you’ll see that I used pretty fast shutter speeds, at correspondingly higher ISO values, to capture the images in the article. The second potential issue is that you may be trying to focus on a subject that is too close to your camera. It may be inside the minimum auto-focusing distance of your lens and thus at a distance where the lens simply cannot focus on it. I faced this issue when creating some of the images for this article. The solution was to shorten my focal length until the insect came into focus… then the auto-focus would work perfectly.
I am intrigued with your Pixco extension tubes as my Kenko tubes will not accept MC-14 or MC-20 teleconverters. Do the tubes fit into your Pixco extension tubes effortlessly, or do you have to force them a bit?
Tom
Hey Thomas,
You musta been readin ma mind. I went out today and shot my street sign across the street which has been my supertele target for years. I shot at minimum 1/2000, auto iso @ f5.6 on the 40-150 f2.8 with the 2xTC, and after my usual post processing, beautiful renders of the signs.
As to the Pixco extenders, the 10mm fits so nice, no forcing at all, but snug and smooth. I wonder what would happen to get another 10mm tube and double stack the TCs …
Thanks a bunch. Another night of digesting your wonderful content.
V/r
Randy
Hi Randy,
I’m glad things worked out with your MC-20 and PRO 40-150 f/2.8. I’ve been trying to locate Pixco tubes but have been unable to find a retailer in Canada.
Tom
The only place I found them was on Ebay, about $35 USD as of today
Thanks for the update Randy.
Tom
Good morning,
I imagine you inserted the extension tube between the 2x multiplier and the camera body. Have you tried inserting it between the optics and the 2x multiplier? Are there differences in magnification and/or focus distance?
Thank you.
Greetings.
Hi Riccardo,
The M.Zuiko teleconverters have a protrusion that inserts into compatible M.Zuiko lenses like the PRO 40-150 mm f/2.8 zoom. This protrusion on the teleconverters does not fit smoothly into a Kenko extension. It would need to be forced in. I would not risk damaging my teleconverters by doing this… so I would not alter the position of the extension tube.
Tom
Grazie.
Hi Tom, enjoyed this article. The quality of the digital TC is quite remarkable, especially after adding the 2X TC and an extension tube.
Is the only thing left to add to your setup a close-up attachment lens? What do you think?
Hi Edward,
I’m glad you enjoyed the article. I actually don’t own a close-up attachment lens for my M4/3 system…. so it won’t be something that I will be using in the future. I tried this type of accessory with some other camera gear that I owned but never liked using them.
Tom
Morning Thomas,
An interesting article.
I have the M.Zuiko 100/400, 40/150, f2.8 and 60, f2.8, but only the TC1.4.
I use all 3 lenses for my insect photography and very much in the same way as you. Not used the digital converter on my EM1/3 for insects though so I shall give that a try next time I’m out.
Cheers Mal.
Only use Flickr – Mal from North Yorkshire
Hi Mal,
Thanks for adding to the discussion.
I may be doing an article on the digital teleconverter sometime in the future. So far it appears to me that the best use of this technology is to fill the frame with the subject. Trying to use it with very distant subjects doesn’t seem to work that well in my experience.
Tom