I’ve been lusting over a macro set-up thats been for sale in the Weymouth branch of Wessex Photographic since before Christmas. The set-up consisted of a Canon MT-24EX twin flash and a MP-e65mm f/2.8 1-5x macro lens.
I finally gave in to temptation on Friday and treated myself to the MT-24EX as a birthday present, and sat thinking about the MP-e65 lens for a while.
Well, today, I went back and got that too. After checking the price of the lens on the internet, including eBay, I realised that I got the entire set-up for less than the lens would cost new.
The flash was in absolutely mint condition, whilst the lens was clean, but missing the tripod collar. This initially put me off, as the genuine Canon article is about £150, a complete rip-off for a piece of metal, but I found an eBay knock off for about £10, so thought I’d give it a go.
Having said that, I’ve had a play with this lens with stationary subjects, and with the flash have managed to get sharp handheld shots up to about 3x magnification. I’m not entirely sure how often I’ll use 4-5x magnification, as that will most definitely require a focussing rail.
This lens is going to be FUN and I can’t wait for the weather to improve so that the bugs come out to play!