theofanis

I have a Sony A7ii camera,and I am getting conflicting information regarding the type of lens I need. Most of the items are jewelry, women's handbags and toys. Is a macro lens the best option,and if so,what are the options?
Thank you!

EoS_User Loc: Oshawa, Ontario Canada

I use a 100mm macro for shooting this type of thing. For larger objects it allows space to move between camera and subject for repositioning of items being photographed. It also allows for extreme close shots to provide detail on small items.

billwassmann Loc: Emerson, NJ

If you are working close-up (under 3 feet) I'd say use a real macro (not one that claims "macro capabilty". A good macro should give you much better sharpness, corner to corner. If, for some reason, you don't want that much sharpness, then any lens will probably do;they're all sharp in the center.

imagemeister Loc: mid east Florida

How large are your subjects and how large is your lighting/work area - will have some affect as to focal lengths. Generally speaking, the longer focal lengths introduce the lesser distortions. I do think macro lenses are a good option - and older/adapted manual focus is OK - if not preferred. For the ultimate in distortion/perspective control, consider a 90mm tilt/shift lens !

Ken Rockwell uses the Nikkor 200mm macro for his studio product work - but I am sure he has the room and lighting for it !

Apaflo Loc: Anchorage, Alaska

If you will only have one lens, probably a macro lens from 50mm to 105mm would be the best.

Small jewelry will require such a macro lens. The other items (things the size of a handbag) can be done just as well with a non-macro focusing lens.

WayneT Loc: Paris, TN

I've uses macro lenses as small as 40mm DX on a DX camera with small items, you just need to get up close but they are very inexpensive and they work. If you are shooting in a light box you can't help but be close.

TriX Loc: Raleigh, NC

Depending on whose lenses and/or adapter you use, a macro between 50 and 100 as been suggested is a good choice. I use the Canon 50mm f2.5 macro which is reasonably priced and sharp. When you're inches from the subject, flash/lighting without shadows can be difficult. Although many ring flashes are available (but expensive), I've had good luck with the old Cokin triple tube flash that mounts on the front of the lens. Alternately a light box works well and can be easy and inexpensive to construct.

Bazbo Loc: Lisboa, Portugal

I have been very happy with the Zeiss 100mm macro for this kind of work.

DavidPine Loc: Fredericksburg, TX

I'm happy using a 105G f/2.8 macro for this sort of work.

burkphoto Loc: High Point, NC

On full frame cameras such as your Sony, I'd use a macro lens in the range of 50mm to 100 or 105 mm. Typically, these lenses are flat-field, apochromatic, extremely well corrected, and very sharp. They aren't super fast, usually sporting maximum apertures of f/2.8 to f/4, but you're more likely to use strobe or CFL or LED or even incandescent lighting with products. And most Macro photography is done on a tripod or copy stand, so you can use the longer shutter speeds and pick your aperture for sharpness, depth of field, or a compromise.

The shorter the macro lens, the deeper the depth of field, and the closer you can work. Longer macros are generally used by folks who photograph bugs, snakes, and other wildlife. I like the shorter ones for product photography and copy work.

If you don't have a real macro lens, a 50mm lens or a 24-70mm zoom lens set to a 50mm to 60mm focal length will do in a pinch.

Keep your aperture in the middle of the range for best sharpness. On high MP full frame sensors, diffraction limiting of sharpness starts around f/11 or so and gets worse as you stop the lens down to f/22 or f/32. And regardless of the lens type, stop it down at least one, preferably two or three stops to find the sweet spot for sharpness. However, when photographing jewelry, coins, and other small objects, depth of field becomes a concern. You may have to use a very small aperture to keep the whole 3D item reasonably sharp, and just accept the loss of sharpness due to diffraction. The saving grace is that such items are seldom reproduced very large.

amfoto1 Loc: San Jose, Calif. USA

I mostly use tilt-shift lenses for product photography. Not sure what's available for Sony full frame (I use Canon). But I use either a 45mm or 90mm, depending upon the size of the item (and the camera sensor format). The Canon TS-E lenses are pretty close focusing, but if even closer (higher magnification) is needed with smaller items, I use macro extension tubes behind the lens.

The advantage of a tilt-shift is that you can to some extent control the plane of focus and depth of field with the tilt movement. The shift movement can be used to "dodge" reflections (i.e. unwanted "self portraits") and correct perspective distortions.

For really small pieces of jewelry, a macro lens might be needed. But for larger pieces I'd use a 45mm or 90mm tilt-shift.

Depending upon camera sensor format, I look for a focal length that positions me far enough from the item to not be in the way of lighting, but close enough that I can reach out and adjust the item positioning while keeping my eye to the camera's viewfinder. That's a huge time saver when you have 200 small items to shoot in an afternoon!

Canon offers four different TS-E lenses: 17, 24, 45 and 90mm. Nikon has their similar PC lenses: 85, 45, 24 and a recently announced 19mm. Schneider makes two PC-TS: 28 and 50mm (also a 120mm but it's designed for medium format cameras). Rokinon makes a fairly affordable 24m Tilt-Shift, and there's a relatively new Laowa Venus 17mm with some limited movements, but both these are wider focal lengths than I'd normally use for tabletop studio shots (24, 19 and 17mm are more useful as landscape/architecture lenses, IMO).

There may be some others out there and there are tilt-shift adapters available for some lens mounts, to add movements to a standard lens. There are also vintage tilt-shift and PC that might be usable or adaptable (Nikon made one of the first lens of this type for 35mm SLRs back in the 1970s... a 35mm PC). Some vintage tilt-shift lenses were designed for medium format, but even those might be adaptable.

Most tilt-shift and perspective control lenses are manual focus only. Some of the vintage ones and the Rokinon are both manual focus and manual aperture only.

Incidentally, the longer focal length TS and PC lenses also make for interesting portrait lenses.

speters Loc: Grangeville/Idaho

A macro lens can certainly be helpful when shooting jewelry and that sort of things, but is not a necessity. But a lens with good close-focusing ability as well as a decent MMD is certainly preferable!