whiplash3333 Loc: Cass City Michigan

I want to take pictures of Foutian Pens I will be selling on E-Bay. What would be the best lens to use for this. I have a Canon Mark II 5d camera. I'm thinking of a Macro Lens. What would be the best lens to take pictures of these fountain Pens.

djtravels Loc: Georgia boy now

I think any good lens that shows the details would work. Avoid to wide angle lens because of distortion. The bigger trick would be the lighting. Others will help more than I have.

bigwolf40 Loc: Effort, Pa.

I have a Sigma 105 macro. It's a real nice lens and quite sharp....Rich

bsprague Loc: Lacey, WA, USA

Spend your money on a "table top studio" with good lighting. With a camera like you have, I would bet you can get close and crop for the pen. The result should be more than good enough for online photos.

If on the other hand, you are looking for "reasons" to get some more gear, this is a good one. Any "macro" lens from Canon, Tamron, Sigma, etc that fits your camera will work.

Db7423 Loc: Pittsburgh, PA

Indeed :thumbup: :thumbup: :thumbup:

jdubu Loc: San Jose, CA

I collect fountain pens, so I have taken photos of my pens for insurance and database filing purposes.

The lens you use could be any mm that will allow you to get the framing you want of the body, nib, etc. If you have a lens close focusing within a foot, you are probably good to go. Possibly a macro if you want to detail nib or finish details.

More important is the lighting setup you employ. The tabletop lighting setup is perfect for your needs. If you are going to do a lot of Ebay selling, a light tent would be a very good investment. Good pictures should get you better interest.

whiplash3333 Loc: Cass City Michigan

That's I Guss the lighting is the most important thing.
Thanks a lot.
Love all your commits
Sometimes you don't think it helps but a different view of things always helps
Thanks again guys and girls

amehta Loc: Boston

When people talk about macro lenses, half the reason for using a longer focal length is to give room for the lighting. You don't have to worry about the other half, scaring the subject. :-)

rpavich Loc: West Virginia

Canon has a 60mm macro that's reasonably priced.

http://www.amazon.com/Canon-EF-S-60mm-Macro-Cameras/dp/B0007WK8KS

JPL

Well, the standard 50 mm f1.8 will do the job. Of course there are many other lenses that you can use and some will do a better job, but this is the one I would use.

MARTYIV Loc: On the Wabash

I apologize in advance for this pun but have you tried a Pentex camera?

houdel Loc: Chase, Michigan USA

For several years I've been using my Canon 20D & 18-55mm kit lens for photographing things (mostly vintage Konica cameras & lenses) that I sell on Ebay. My pictures improved dramatically when I bought a $40 tabletop studio and a $30 Meike ring flash (both available on Amazon & Ebay) to better display my items. The tabletop studio came with mini-floods, 4 different colored backdrops and a worthless tabletop tripod. I got better results by moving the studio to the edge of the table and using a full sized tripod.

A macro lens is not needed for what you want to do, actually a wide zoom is probably better for your subject material. Your pens are probably comparable in size to what I photograph. I got very good pics with my cheap kit lens by using aperture priority and stopping down to f/11-f/16 for better depth of field. The ring flash is quite powerful (I used it for my avatar photo) so I use it in continuous mode to help composition and at low power so I don't blow out the subject. It also helps to use a duster to go over the items before photographing, dust becomes very visible in miniature photography!

Tabletop studio

(Download)

Meike Ring Flash

(Download)

Sample photo

(Download)

Alois

A medium macro like 50mm would be your best option.

bsprague Loc: Lacey, WA, USA

Well written, photographed and with great advice! Thanks.

whiplash3333 Loc: Cass City Michigan

Thanks Guys. I know a lot more now