For food photography with a Macro lens do I have to get a particular size of dishes?

Question

From Rfusca's comment here: Why isn't the background towel visible in this still life?

She might have used a macro lens, but this definitely isn't a macro shot. Its not nearly 1:1 unless those are the smallest glasses ever,

I am about to get a reversing ring.
If I want to get the whole two vessels in the scene, and also wish to show every detail of the food, then will the normal serving dishes do, or I have to get some "tiniest" dishes?

Or
I have understood his point wrong?

Asked by Anisha Kaul

Answer

I shoot food photos with a macro lens. However I am usually a meter or more away from the food. So I am using the lens like a portrait lens. Many food photographers would probably use a 70-200mm lens - you can get a shallow depth of field, but not like true macro, where the lens is virtually touching your subject and the depth of field is a mm or two.

If you use a reversing ring, that is completely different than a macro lens. With a macro lens you can back up from the food and frame it any way you like. But with a reversing ring, you will not be able to control focus with the lens. You will have to move the camera towards the food until it is in focus, and you will be very close. Again imagine your lens almost touching the food.

In the image you referenced, the camera was probably as much as a meter away from the subject, not a matter of a few cms. So yes, she used a macro lens, but it's not a macro shot. Reversing rings are not what you want for food. You want something between normal and moderate telephoto (50mm to 200mm). The macro lens she used is 100mm, so in the middle of that range.

Answered by MikeW

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