I just use the phone. I just got a Sony A7 IV, I have a 200-600mm telephoto for birding, I’ve been thinking of getting a macro lens for it, but hard to justify the expense when the phone is so good for bugs, but I am interested. Maybe I’ll grab one too!
I have an A9II and find its tracking flexible spot is way better than focusing on my OnePlus 12. Granted, a cellphone will have more depth of field than a camera so maybe this is a moot point. The other advantage to me is speed/reactivity/burst rate. Bees love flowers and flowers sway in the wind. Not to mention that bees don’t stay still for long, lol.
I am somewhat tempted by Sony’s 70-200 f4 ii. It nearly matches the 0.6x magnification of my former setup with 0.5x magnification. At 200mm its minimal focal distance is 16.5" and the lens is about 8" long extended. This means you’ll have 8.5" between the front of the lens and the bee. For comparison, Tamron’s 90mm macro offers 1:1 magnification, but it’s 5.1" long and it’s minimum focal length is 9". This only leaves 4" between the front of the lens and bee. However, it does offer more magnification and is cheaper. I don’t really like normal zooms/use primes for that territory, so the 70-200 f4 ii is somewhat appealing. It can also take teleconverters so you can get more magnification out of it.
I’ll probably start bee season with my phone and see how it goes. I was still rocking a pixel 3a last year.
I just use the phone. I just got a Sony A7 IV, I have a 200-600mm telephoto for birding, I’ve been thinking of getting a macro lens for it, but hard to justify the expense when the phone is so good for bugs, but I am interested. Maybe I’ll grab one too!
I have an A9II and find its tracking flexible spot is way better than focusing on my OnePlus 12. Granted, a cellphone will have more depth of field than a camera so maybe this is a moot point. The other advantage to me is speed/reactivity/burst rate. Bees love flowers and flowers sway in the wind. Not to mention that bees don’t stay still for long, lol.
I am somewhat tempted by Sony’s 70-200 f4 ii. It nearly matches the 0.6x magnification of my former setup with 0.5x magnification. At 200mm its minimal focal distance is 16.5" and the lens is about 8" long extended. This means you’ll have 8.5" between the front of the lens and the bee. For comparison, Tamron’s 90mm macro offers 1:1 magnification, but it’s 5.1" long and it’s minimum focal length is 9". This only leaves 4" between the front of the lens and bee. However, it does offer more magnification and is cheaper. I don’t really like normal zooms/use primes for that territory, so the 70-200 f4 ii is somewhat appealing. It can also take teleconverters so you can get more magnification out of it.
I’ll probably start bee season with my phone and see how it goes. I was still rocking a pixel 3a last year.