That's what she said

Macro isn't really that high in my list of preferences (normal > wide angle > telephoto > macro), but I was getting sick of shooting in Eastwood, and I wanted to try something new.

A coworker expressed plans of buying one of the 100mm macro lenses, but I'm not (yet) interested in spending that much cash for a macro lens (not that I'm in the financial position to do so anyway since the cheapest is roughly 17k Php).

So I went for the cheapshit route and bought a relatively inexpensive 52mm reversing ring for my relatively inexpensive 50mm prime lens.

Shooting through the other hole feels weird at first, and it presents a couple of issues regarding dirt getting into sensitive parts (of the camera). Still, it's a not an uncommon practice, and results are still pleasing, if a bit messy (in terms of blur since one could not close the aperture to get a sharper image).

Lessons and observations so far:

• Focusing for macro shots is far more challenging compared to regular photography since the depth of field is unbelievably shallow.
• If using a reversing ring, the focus ring on the lens doesn't appear to do anything, and manual focusing means moving closer or away from the subject. Unfortunately, this changes the perspective/angle of view of the shot.
• Lighting and positioning are crucial. A small, movable desk lamp is handy, and it may be worth considering getting a pair of forceps for rearranging small items to be photographed.
• Surprisingly, the view through the viewfinder is different from live preview on the LCD when using the reversing ring. The viewfinder may be clear, but the sensor has this tendency of giving a soft haze under strong lighting. With the live preview on the LCD as well as the recorded photograph, it's almost as if a soft focus lens was used. Hopefully, it's not due to dust getting inside the camera body.