Finding a way to use the macro lens creatively was a challenge for me. Sure, I could have photographed flowers and had you saying “oh look at that beautiful stamen” or “wow that pistil is just fantastic” but decided I’d challenge myself to find something less popular to photograph. My subject of choice was a set of antique books. My goal was to photograph them in such a way as to make the most of the textures, erring on the side of abstraction. The books are fantastic, beautiful in their lines, colors and textures. The old pages and woven covers made the lens really work for a shot. I wanted you to be able to almost feel the rough woven spines and smell the old pages. I think macro shots are the least popular and digestible to the mobile photography community when it comes to lens use, so I approached it in a way that made it interesting or at least different that the normal macro shots. I was amazed the amount of texture the lens picked up. It performed better than I expected. I think I ended up with some pretty strong shots that had the characteristics I wanted.
Some off the cuff tips for you while shooting macro:
•be steady – whether that means bracing yourself or using a tripod of some sort, stabilize your self.
•hold your breath- I know it sounds stupid but it helps
•take lots of shots
•look for strong lines and dramatic light
•look for textures
I really enjoyed getting to know the ins and outs of the Olloclip macro lens. The picture was more clear and crisp than the other lenses I have used. I particularly love the DOF this lens renders. My results were across the page more predictable. I also found that my camera focused more easily with this lens compared to the others I own.
Fisheye/wide angle lens
I really enjoy having the options and ease Olloclip allows the iPhone when out and about shooting. The effect the fisheye lens gives you reminds me of Alice in Wonderland with its bowed lines and bulges. It has a definite look to it and I had a blast playing with different architectural subjects. Before I started shooting I made some comparison shots just so I understood the range of each lens. This lens will give you almost a 180 degree view in your view finder, whereas the wide angle comes close to doubling your range. Both the wide angle and fisheye bend lines so be aware of that while you are shooting and use it to your advantage. Either be ready to crop some of the photo beyond the cropping you have to do to take care of the empty “lens line” or go with the rounded effect of the fisheye. I shot with hipstamtic so I can’t speak to how much of it would need to be cropped using the native camera. I found I liked the shots where I really centered on a subject more than when I took large open shots, but that is just a personal preference.
I shot mainly with hipstamatic and while that helped with the cropping it also made me focus more on what I was shooting. I tried to find high contrast subjects that would play to the lenses strong points. The above shot is taken with the fisheye lens and I was quite taken with how it made the lock look more dynamic that the regular shots that I took of it. The added dimension really gave it a life of its own. The photo below was taken with hipstamatic tinto lens and super grain and the wide angle lens. The feeling of the building almost crowding the viewer appealed to me. The lens added more character to a building that already had a large personality.
Without a lens, the doors and a small part of the bricked windows are seen in the photo frame, as compared to what you see above. Although, I also did the shot with the fisheye I preferred the wide angle for the minimal bending of the lines. Once again, finding a subject with good contrast to highlight I think the lens created a more dynamic image. Overall, I was happy with the results while shooting with the wide angle and fisheye. If you go into the shoot knowing the amount of effect the lens will have on the scene if definitely helps. I found myself thinking of the lens as I would a hipsta combo, meaning, which lens would work best for a certain scene. Sometimes I guessed wrong and the shot was askew other times I was pleasantly surprised.
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Thanks for sharing this, Anna! I especially love those book macros. Really gorgeous. I’m curious; which iPhone are you shooting with? I’m wondering if the lenses in the Olloclip for the 5 is any different than the lenses for the 4 and 4s. Thanks!
Hey Eric!
Shooting with a five. I didn’t have an olloclip with my 4 so I can’t speak to that. Perhaps one of the commentors will know.
I love the olloclip, still haven’t had the chance to pick up the one for the iphone 5 yet. I love the macro shots you can get with it.
Hey Gordon, thanks for taking the time to read through the article. I’m shooting with a 5 and love it. Where can we see your macros?
I love your book macros. You images are inspiring me to try new things with my olloclip.
Love my olloclip. I did a mess of those “oooh, there’s a pretty stamen” shots with the previous macro lens I had, but haven’t used the macro as much since I got the clip for the 5. Will definitely try some more interesting textures.
For the fish eye, I find it difficult to show more than the square you would see from hipstamatic due to the “black” areas of the lens. And I find it definitely helps to have a strong straight line across the middle (horizontal or vertical) of the image to counterpoint the bowed lines.
Great article and beautiful photos as always Anna.
Great article – they are beautiful and interesting images that say a lot about your love of antique books.
I bought a simple flat magnifying lens that I can hold against my iPhone 5 to take macro photographs. It gives x6 which is about as strong as I can handle given the really limited depth-of-field with these shots – you note this characteristic, which is part of the appeal of the results, but it does make it hard to get a good result given the limitations of the auto focus function on an iPhone.
Your tips for taking these shots are spot on, and I can definitely emphasize “take lots of photos”. I have also found it good to use a set of headphones or earphones and to trigger the photographs using the volume + switch on the cable – this minimizes the movement of the iPhone which can occur if I trigger the shot from the screen.
Oh … And I do like photographing the inner parts of flowers, amongst a whole lot of other things, and don’t feel there is anything wrong with this. 🙂
With my iPhone and magnifying glass, I just feel like a kid again – I can still remember when I first got a magnifying glass – I ran around with a sense of wonder looking at everyday objects in a whole new light. Now I am doing this all over again. Isn’t it fantastic fun ?!!
Hey there. I agree I LOVE a flower macro. I just meant that I think there are a large group of people that don’t appreciate macros in general. I am not one of them. I adore a good close up of just about anything.
🙂
That’s interesting about the magnifying glass. Ill have to try it out. See what the DOF looks like that way.
I’m so glad to hear that you weren’t having a dig at macro flower shots, not that they are the only things that I photograph with my pretend-macro (substitute-macro) lens. Everything look new again and amazing zoomed in close.
PS After reading your comment and feeling relieved, I celebrated on the walk home by taking some (macro) photos of … you guessed it … some flowers 🙂
After reading this I had to go try… Did some daffodils, just to feel comfy, then started to play with some other stuff…..
Thank you for the tips and ideas, I am having SO much fun!!
Beautiful shots Anna, I have been planning to do some interesting videos with the iPhone and was checking out the olloclip to use with it. You have certainly sold me on it and given me some great ideas for material. Thanks Geoff