Sooner or later, most photographers develop an interest in seeing the world from a close-up point of view. The camera industry, now more than ever, has accommodated this desire by manufacturing a multitude of different focal length zoom lenses-many of which offer a macro or close-focus feature - as well as close-up filters, extension tubes, and true macro lenses. All of this equipment is designed to allow photographers to explore worlds that would otherwise pass by unnoticed. Sometimes, you may find yourself getting so close to your subject that reality fades away and worlds geometric and microscopic elements emerge.
Since close-up, or macro, photography offers unlimited possibilities of exploration. Consider the world view from the perspective of an ant and it soon becomes apparent that the world has just gotten bigger-much, much bigger. And when this new ground is explored solely with the vision of the close-up or macro lens, it is no surprise that, even in one hundred lifetimes, one would have barely scratched the surface.
Close-up or macro photography involves, not surprisingly, a lot of unusual camera positions and subsequent points of view. Again you will find yourself spending a great deal of time on your knees and belly, as well as on your back. There's also the added complication of shallow depth of field due to the close focusing distances even when using apertures as small as f/22. One of the surest ways to overcome this limited range of sharpness is to keep the film place parallel to the subject whenever possible and use a firm and steady pair of elbows or a tripod that has collapsible legs that spread all the way to ground level.
