In "
John Shaw's Nature Photography Field Guide", John Shaw wrote (page 130):
- "A photo shot with a macro lens will not look different from one shot with a regular lense set at the same focal length, because it is the focal length itself that determines the photo's 'look'.''
- "the real question to ask before purchase a macro is whether or not you already own a lens in the same focal length"
- "what is the difference between a 35-70mm f/2.8 and zoom lens used at 50mm and a 50mm f/2.8 macro lens? The macro focuses closer, but otherwise the two lenses do to an image is identical. Why double up on focal lengths?"
- "To be honest, I don't recommended that your purchase any macro lens unless you plan on shooting a lot of closeups. The money would be better spend upgrading your tripod ..."
- "If you're really serious about photographing closeups I would consider the long macro lens. Both Nikon's 200mm and Canon's 180mm focus from infinity to life size, and are incredibly sharp throughout the range. The longer focal lengths also offer two big advantages: increased working distance and a narrowed angle of view."
There is an entire chapter on closeup photography in this book whereby he discusses what "closeup" is and what are the various ways it could be achieved. As this book was first published in 2000, some of us might find some of its information no longer relevant.