The best things come in small packages. You enjoy the more beautiful things in life, and now you want to be able to capture them in their full glory.
It is incredible to see the detail of life from the stomata in a leaf to the intricate detail of a spiders web. Well, you can capture all this on your camera and much more.
Here you will have a quick breakdown of the best macro lenses for Nikon, Canon and Sony all under £1000 so you don't (entirely) break the Bank.
Best Nikon Macro Lens: Nikon 105mm f/2.8 G VR
Nikon 105mm f/2.8 G VR
For Nikon users, this is one of the most popular lenses. You can use it for macro work as well as a portrait lens. The focal length makes composition a breeze. Image quality is fantastic. The bokeh is comparable to the 85 f/1.4, contrast is excellent, as well as the colours. Occasionally you might get flare shooting against bright backgrounds, but it's limited to f/2.8, and sometimes it's not very noticeable. The lens sharpness is also comparable with the 85mm f/1.4.
Sadly, nothing is perfect. It is a big, heavy pro lens, whereas macro lenses are often small and light. There is plenty of working distance; however, it doesn't substitute as a sharp midrange prime. When wide open, its depth of field is difficult to get precise when doing macro work, and occasionally, the autofocus has to labour a bit to find its target. It's an expensive non-speciality macro lens around by a wide margin. For example, Canon has lenses that focus well beyond 1:1. It would be great to see Nikon's discontinued macro 70-180 zoom and a 200 mm macro make a comeback!
Overall, even though it is bulky and expensive, this is a fantastic lens. If you shoot anything about 6 feet of the camera, right down to 1:1, then this is the lens for you. It's probably too expensive to use as a 105mm VR prime if you'll never focus closer than 6 feet, but it is more than acceptable in that role as well.
Best Canon Macro Lens: Canon 100mm f/2.8 IS L
Canon 100mm f/2.8 IS L!
A good lens used to photograph detail as well as portraits in general. The 100mm f/2.8L Macro Lens is Canon's mid-telephoto macro lens. Unlike the Nikon lens, it includes image stabilisation which works when getting closer to your subject. Comparable optics with the leading brands, with near-silent ultrasonic focusing and life-size close-up capabilities without an adapter, the EF 100mm f/2.8L Macro is unmatched.
The focus is quick, and images are of high quality. It has a very sharp and fast/accurate autofocus. The hybrid image stabilisation efficiently compensates for both angular and shift camera shake during close-up shooting. The resolution, colour and bokeh are all excellent. Its solid plastic body build allows it to lightweight and ultra-portable. It is also relatively cheaper in comparison to other lenses give you higher value at a lower price.
There are several issues with this lens. When shooting full-frame, the vignetting is noticeable at F2.8 at the edges; however, this might be useful when doing a portrait or street photography. The bokeh is not smooth like an 85mm and the focus ring not as smooth. In particular, the autofocus/image stabilisation hunting is very noticeable. When shooting in a quiet room, it can be noticeable, and the sound will get picked up by the microphone if you're shooting video.
If you plan on doing mostly macro work, with the occasional telephoto work, this lens will be a good match for you. If however you are predominantly doing telephoto work, with casual macro work, invest in the 85mm f/1.8 with an extension tube. The 85mm is a more dependable portrait lens and when used with an extension tube; it becomes a useful macro lens.
Best Sony Macro Lens: Sony FE 90mm f/2.8 Macro G OSS
The images captured with this lens are very sharp, and the bokeh is buttery. It has a simple, solid build, and delivers pin-sharp images at all distances with its excellent optical stabilisation.
Sony FE 90mm f/2.8 Macro G OSS
The lens is heavy, and when shooting low apertures, such as f/2.8 and f/4, you will get edge softness. If you are focus stacking (the combination of multiple images taken at different focus distances resulting in a picture with a greater depth of field than any of the individual source images) on this lens can be challenging at times.
When changing the focus distance and you see the size of the image shift in and out slightly so when you try to focus stack, you will get blurriness on your image. Users have on occasions found their lenses have stopped working, especially when changing/using different batteries. The autofocus is quite slow and hunts, so not great for portrait photography.
There is also the possibility of this lens not being very well sealed, so if you're looking to shoot in more tropical climes, you should invest in some weather sealing accessories. Finally, it is quite an expensive lens!
Overall, if use shoot macro often, get this lens, it will allow you to capture beautiful images. Otherwise, if you are predominantly shooting portraits get the 85mm f1.8.