The dog doesn't like it outside today.

And the shed is still standing - pity.

Steve

Subtle, understated, lovely colours, perfect composition. I'd have them on my wall any day!

Or the eyes of an evil human/robot hybrid from a sci-fi movie. Ever thought of getting a job in Hollywood?

Steve

Looking forward to Ciara here. A friend and I are due to demolish a shed next Thursday. With a bit of luck, Ciara might save us the effort.

Steve

Mowed the lawns today. Has anyone else got grass that won't stop growing this winter?

Steve

It took hundreds of scientists, lot of huge telescopes and massive computing power to take the first picture of a black hole, then you go and do it in your kitchen...

Superb picture!

Steve

Isn't it Euros in Wicklow? Or do you know something that hasn't hit the headlines yet???

You're absolutely right, of course, about magnification and closer focusing. The closer the subject is to the lens, the bigger the image and thus magnification. When the subject is closer than the minimum focus distance, the image is formed behind the sensor (hence the image on the sensor is blurred). Tubes or bellows move the lens away from the sensor and the in-focus image towards it. Move it by the right distance and the in-focus image falls on the sensor. As you say, it's just like a handheld magnifying glass.

Now how does reversing a lens work...

Steve

According to my book that has lots of formulae and says what buttons to press on a pocket calculator ---- Youre RIGHT!

More generally, adding 2 x FL gives 3:1, 3 x FL gives 4:1 etc.

The book does point out that the formulae are exact only for thin lenses (vague memories of school physics here!) and are only approximate for real lenses.

Whether you can get 1:1 by adding 50mm tubes to a 50mm lens depends on how close it will let you focus. You can get 1:1 from a 50mm lens without tubes - it's called a 50mm macro lens. The difference between that and a standard 50mm is the macro lets you focus close enough to get 1:1.

Steve

Isn't that's true for every lens, though, whether APSC or full frame? I wanted 16mm on APS-C because I liked 24mm on 35mm film. Going from film to APS-C meant getting new lenses.

Steve

Two excellent and contrasting pictures of a stunning creature - a good use of half an hour. The second one is the scariest for me, others may think differently.

So was it camera > tube > 1.4 TC > lens, or camera > 1.4 TC > tube > lens? And does it make any difference?

Steve