Rock Daddeo
Senior Member
Shot at Joshua Tree National Park last month.
Insects with non macro lenses
- Thread starter aroy
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I shot this with a 55-200 kit lens. I'd prefer a 105mm macro any day, but for goofing around, the lens can be used 
DSC_4479 by jonas_sandager, on Flickr
DSC_4479 by jonas_sandager, on Flickr
Rock Daddeo
Senior Member
This little fella was hanging out on the back porch at the same time I was tinkering with my Tamron 70-300.
Awesome shots Mike! Don't think my budget would stretch to the 70-300 VR lens atm but I'm seriously considering upgrading to the 55-300 VR Nikon lens. If I could get shots anywhere near approaching as good as these I'd be happy. That extra 100mm and VR I think would make a significant differnce to what I've got now.
Don't worry about the VR necessarily. 99% of my shots I have the VR turned off anyway. The key is good focus, good light, and good post processing.
I have heard the 55-300mm is a decent quality lens but I have never used it. I have also heard the 70-300mm "G" lens is also good. I bought my 70-300mm VR lens used for about $370 USD after selling my 55-200mm (which I did not like) and my 18-55mm lens.
On these dragonfly shots I was able to get close enough that I could back my zoom lens back up to about 80mm length. That allowed me to fill the viewfinder with the insect and use the lens at a point where it is at its sharpest. Also, backing the lens up allowed me to use a smaller aperture of f/8 and get good depth of field.
Do you tend to use a tripod for a lot of your shots, hence not using VR? I intend to sell my 55-200 and upgrade as I don't really like it either. I have no idea what the resale value of it would be though, not much I would think as it is fairly cheap new.
I hadn't looked at the 70-300G, it's well within my price range. I'd be interested to find out how it compares vs the 55-300 in terms of image quality. I'd rather have a lens with auto focus but would have no problem going without.
Thanks for the info about how you got these shots. I think I tend to be using my camera with the aperture wide open too much in the search for faster shutter speeds. I think it's contributing to me missing my focus quite a lot.
I have not used my tripod for much of anything other than some people portraits and a couple of moon shots. If you are outside in daylight, any shutter speed above 1/60th should not require a tripod if you are relatively steady handed and your subject does not fly or run really fast. Keep in mind that VR only works at shutter speeds at or below 1/350th anyway and I think is not really useful unless you are shooting at relatively low light and need the extra stability because your shutter speed has to drop really low for the shot. I don't shoot a lot in low light as my D90 is not really a good low light camera. It does not focus well in low light and its sensor does not tolerate low light or high ISO very well.
Mine brought just about $90 on eBay.
I am sure there are plenty of people using both of those lenses here. You should be able to find plenty of images taken with either one and maybe even a comparison.
No need for really fast shutter speed on anything other than a bird or really fast moving critter. A static, or slow crawling bug, doesn't move fast enough to need anything over 1/100th or 1/250th shutter speed. 1/250th will freeze action of anything as fast as, or slower than, a moving human. Most normal movement is frozen with 1/125th second.
Keep your aperture between f/5.6 minimum and f/8 or f/9, if at all possible, while shooting something that you need more than just the face/eyes in focus. If you find you must go wider than f/5.6 then make really sure your camera focal plane is parallel with the entire body length of the subject. Else, most of the subject will be out of focus with only a small portion in focus, usually not what you need in focus.
Also, with your camera, you need to mind your ISO. Keep it below ISO 800 and preferably between ISO 200 and 400 for less grain noise.
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Excellent shots. I like the razor sharp details of the wings.
Thanks again Mike, really appreciate your advice. My main problem at the moment is I'm a bit shaky so keep trying to compensate for that, hence looking for faster shutter speeds and feeling like I need to use a tripod. I think I am getting a little better with practice and my images are gradually getting sharper I think.
I'll play about with my aperture and shutter speeds based on what you've said and see how I get on.
I'll play about with my aperture and shutter speeds based on what you've said and see how I get on.
My hands shake most of the time, so when I can, I use the flash to "strobe' and freeze the motion. Works perfectly for objects within the camera flash range.
Good tip, i'll try it out.
Flash is an option but I have found I do not like what it does to the natural light provided I have really good natural light. Remember, flash will overpower sunlight if not done correctly and it changes the natural angle of the sunlight from above to "from the camera" angle which is not natural.