Well, I think I’ve reached the limits of what my macro gear can accomplish in the world of bug photography, and I’ve definitely hit a point where my fitness level has become an additional impediment.
I could’ve stopped down to f/8 and gotten a slightly sharper eye. In fact, I did stop down about 15 shots later, and got a slightly sharper eye, but there was an antenna crossing this fellow’s eye. I believe—but am not 100% positive—that the Kiron-made Vivitar from maybe 1980* can’t quite hold up to a proper macro lens on modern digital sensors.
This could merely be my GAS rearing its head, but I’m pretty sure this is it.
However, I am positive that I need to do some strength training. My arms are worn out from holding up the camera and this lens for the 20 or so minutes that I shot this guy. <—-disgusting
Anyway.
So this is almost sharp, and I’m almost fit enough to pull off a half hour of serious bug stalking, and I’m almost able to concentrate on composition whilst stooping over, rocking -back and forth- up and down to focus on a bug that stayed mostly still, even when the front of the lens was a mere 2″ from him.
Hence: almost.
D7000. Vivitar 70-210mm f/3.5 Series 1 (Kiron), in Macro mode. ISO400, 1/4000th, f/3.5, -1EV. About 5 minutes of slider play to bring out some color and detail, rotated 180 degrees, and cropped to 3×4 to remove a large expanse of nothing on the right edge.
*My 70-210 Series 1 has a serial number of 22059482. Its design matches exactly the versions made by Kiron, and is specific to the one and only version 1 of this lens. However, given that there are only 52 weeks in a year, this serial number does not conform to the pattern I’ve seen, so I wonder if it’s maybe a counterfeit model or something.
