It must be bug time. With temps hitting the high 90's last week all the critters are hiding and the bug are out.



And a Damsel fly.

Knockout dragon fly shots. Lens envy strikes, thank you Jeff. Last week I agonised between the Tamron 90 macro and a Nikon 85 f1.8. The Nikon won out because the flyball was at a low-light indoor venue on Saturday. How far is the lens from the subject when you get these insect shots? There is a good macro lens on our Lumix FZ30 but it needs to get too close-in for insects to stay put. I love the new Nikon lens for its sharpness, but I do wish it was a macro also. And I don't think it beats your Tamron for sharp so maybe I made the wrong decision. 1.8 is nice though, the 1.4 would be even better but the price out of reach.

Thanks PC. I do love my Tamron 90. It is the candle I hold all my lenses too, and it's difficult to keep up. I often find my self thinking I need an 85 1.8, but then I remember the 90 is pretty damn good. Unfortunately I would say I was probably 12-18 inches from the dragon fly and maybe 8-12 inches from the smaller Damsel fly. I say unfortunately since you will need to stalk your pray to get them full frame like this:) I would love a little more working distance, but on the flip side I would also love a little more DOF. So in the end a 90mm macro is well a good compromise. In the interim, the 85 is also a very sharp lens, maybe adding a diopter would help quell the lusting? I never tested my lens for sharpness wide open and would speculate that your 85 will play better at 2.8-4 then mine. I usually shoot with it stopped down and sometimes all the way to f40. I think about adding a Diopter to my 300f4 to get me the working distance I sometimes need. Had it been on the camera, it would have made for a good choice in these shots. There is ALWAYS one more thing to get:)

Very nice Jeff. I love to see those eyes.

Laslo

Hey Jeff,

Great shots - all of them. I love the DOF you are able to get with the Tamron Macro lens. I am half thinking about purchasing one myself.

Cheers
James

Thanks Laslo and James.
They are neat bugs to shoot. I will try and get more, I saw the green one in the yard the other day.
James,
Laslo and I both love our Tamron 90s. I can highly recommend it. At $450 it's a good deal. It must be tough having B&H so close:)

I use my Tamron 28-75/2.8 macro when I want to shoot bugs n stuff but I can see the advantages of some of these primes too. Lovely d'fly images Jeff. I am going to be looking for all kinds of critters when we go on a road trip in the near future.

Thanks Chezzyr. I do like shooting macros with my Tamron 90. It is an excellent lens. But working with the 300f4 is cool too. I also just bought a used 180f2.8 and hope to do some bug work with that too:)

Both very nice shots Jeff. Crisp and good color.