EM5II + 40-150 f2.8 + Raynox DCR 250 + Ring Light

allanleung wrote:

Diswantsho wrote:

Your results are beautiful.

I do not have that lens yet, but I think you might possibly get rid of the vignette if you use extension tubes instead of that small filter. The tubes work for me on the 35-100 Panasonic lens.

What is a good extension tube is good for my setup? I'm relatively new to this.

I am using Kenko. Their tubes for m43 are very solidly constructed, and they pass the electronic contacts through, so the aperture stop-down, EXIF and focus work properly. Most people use manual focus for macro, but it is still convenient to control the aperture, and I use AF to bring the focus close before I fine-tune manually. The cheap tubes have no electronics.

https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/859014-REG/Kenko_AEXTUBEDGM43_DG_Extension_Tube_Set.html/?c3ch=CSE&c3nid=98

I did not use the 40-150 yet, so I am not sure if the two tubes will bring the 40-150 as close as you want. Here's a link to an article about tubes, and a calculator to estimate what effect the tube has on your lens. You will see the article says the effect of a tube is less on a telephoto than a filter. Longer telephoto lenses need more extension than shorter focal lengths. You will probably find that you will need both tubes combined when you shoot at 150mm. The article includes calculators, so you may want to do some maths to compare the effect with the Raynox before you buy.

https://www.cambridgeincolour.com/tutorials/macro-extension-tubes-closeup.htm

You may want to read this thread as well, on Kenko tubes with a 40-150 lens (probably not the 2.8).

https://www.dpreview.com/forums/post/50961348and also google around for more macro users with the 40-150 to make sure before you buy. I have seen some stunning examples before from that lens, such as this: https://www.olympuspassion.com/2017/04/01/photographing-butterflies-olympus-40-150mm-f2-8/

If you are OK with a shorter focal length, and really want to get in to macro, you might end up eventually with the Olympus 60mm macro lens. It is very sharp, and allows you to go close with no extra extension or filters. Your current zoom lens might however still be preferable for butterflies, dragon flies, etc, as you can stand a bit further away from insects than you can with a 60mm lens. The tubes combined with the 60mm macro give a really good magnification. Macro is a bit like the proverbial rabbit hole - once you get into it, there's often no turning back - not good for the wallet.

[Edited to add about focus and more about tubes]