Because the prosumer cameras are recovering and better every day, the macro possibilities are opening more and more for even the non–DSLR camera users.

As a matter of fact, many an occasion, these smaller, weather sealed cameras produce photographs which are as good as ones taken with a DSLR and macro lens. Again, great add-ons like Raynox DCR 250 could be easily mounted on the lens of these non-SLR cameras. Such arrangements open a complete new world for the photographer.

In short, macro and super macro photography has become a commonplace hobby for all the photographers.

The capability to go closer and closer, seeing tinier and tinier subjects also raises a fascinating question,

How Close Is Close Enough?

Obviously the answer is as much as the photographer wants!

However, one needs to bear in mind that it's not merely the technical ability of the camera or the lenses that draw out small world, but it can also be the significance of the subject in addition to aesthetic considerations of presentation that plays part in the merits of the ultimate photograph.

One of many key factors in deciding how near go is the depth of field of the photograph. While working at macro level, photographers are working with extremely shallow depth of field. The only way to increase that is by reducing the aperture of the lens. Frequently inexperienced photographers don't realise the downside of planning to the extreme end of aperture reduction. They often tend to go to the cheapest possible aperture value that can be allowed to by the equipment. This results into substantial distortion as well as chromatic aberration in the photograph. At such times it generates more sense never to go too close and use slightly larger aperture values.

Common subjects for macro include water droplets and insects. Let us take an instance of a photograph where – with focus is on the eye of the insect and the rest of the image is just a blur.

This may not be something the photographer might have experienced in mind while clicking the photograph. The unfortunate part is that there's absolutely no way of getting back the blurred information on the photograph.

To summarize what the decision points would be for – How Close Is Close Enough?”

– Get as close as you are able to provided that the location captured in sharp focus makes sense. Stop the minute you feel that you”re losing on the details at the margins of the area of interest. Don”t forget that you usually have an option of cropping the image and making it look little closer!

– Don”t visit the extreme camera settings. They are extremes because beyond those it is difficult to capture photographs of acceptable quality. Obviously, it always helps to keep a few stops away from the extreme.

– Be absolutely sure that the camera is held at right angles to the plane that you wish to have in sharp focus. This allows you to acquire a more close-up image than in the event that you hold the camera at an angle.

– And understand that the camera equipment, today, allows substantial close-up abilities. But, don”t make an effort to push the boundaries of those abilities. Stay within and enjoy the new tiny world!