Ultra-Wide Landscape Photography on Dartmoor with the Laowa 15mm
How wide do you go with your landscape photography? I love using ultra-wide angle lenses for my landscape photography and in this video and blog post, I attach a Laowa 15mm f/2 Zero-D lens to my Nikon Z7 and head to Dartmoor to capture some sunset photographs.
The Laowa 15mm f/2 Zero-D Lens
Since purchasing my Nikkor Z 24-200 f/4-6.3 lens I have been reasonably satisfied with my collection of Z mount lenses for my Nikon Z7. However, things change, and I recently found myself with a gap in my lens collection. The gap had appeared because of a big photography trip I have planned for the end of 2021 and with that trip came the need for a lens that would be good for astrophotography.
Except for my Laowa macro lens, all my lenses are f/4 and even with my limited knowledge of astrophotography I know that’s not fast enough. It’s not to say that you can’t get good astro shots with an f/4, it’s just that the general principle of having a fast lens is beneficial.
After asking some trusted photographers what I might look for in an astro lens I decided to pick up the Laowa 15mm f/2 Zero-D lens. It’s ultra-wide, 2 stops faster than my other lenses (f/2 compared to f/4) and manual focus. Given that I’ll be using it for astro, the fact that it is manual focus doesn’t bother me.
Rather than leave this lens at home until my big trip in November I thought I’d take it out and shoot some landscapes with it. With Monty the dog super keen on a big walk, and an interesting weather forecast, I headed to a location on Dartmoor that I thought would be ideal for capturing ultra-wide landscape photographs in dramatic weather…Belstone Common. Watch how I got on in the video below.
Belstone Tor, Dartmoor Landscape Photographs
In the video you will have seen some photographs of wild garlic that I also took with the Laowa lens. I’ll be sharing those in a future blog post.
Irishman’s Wall, Belstone, Dartmoor National Park, Devon - Nikon Z7, Laowa 15mm f/2 Zero-D, 1/15th sec at ISO 64, f/11, Kase Filters K9 CPL.
A Spring Sunset on Belstone Common #1, Dartmoor National Park, Devon - Nikon Z7, Laowa 15mm f/2 Zero-D, 0.4 sec at ISO 64, f/11, Kase Filters K9 CPL.
A Spring Sunset on Belstone Common #2, Dartmoor National Park, Devon - Nikon Z7, Laowa 15mm f/2 Zero-D, 0.4 sec at ISO 64, f/11, Kase Filters K9 CPL.
A Spring Sunset on Belstone Common #3, Dartmoor National Park, Devon - Nikon Z7, Laowa 15mm f/2 Zero-D, 0.8 sec at ISO 64, f/11, Kase Filters K9 CPL.
Bite-Size Blog Post #7 - A Journey into Macro Photography
In this bite-size blog post I take a journey into the world of macro photography!
Learning Macro Skills
As you might have guessed this blog post is not going to contain landscape photographs but is instead going to be focused on the wonderful world of macro photography. Regular readers of this blog will know that I’ve been dabbling in macro photography for a while now. It started last year when I went out with a friend to photograph some butterflies and continued when I bought my macro lens a few months ago.
I promised myself that when I purchased a macro lens, I would also spend some money on getting myself some 1-2-1 tuition as well. You can learn a lot from fellow photographers, books and YouTube videos, but it’s hard to beat the value you can get from a 1-2-1 session with a professional.
For 1-2-1 tuition I’ve always valued the services of Ross Hoddinott. Ross has been paramount in my development as a landscape photographer and fortunately for me, he is also a highly-skilled, award-winning, close-up photographer as well. I had no hesitation in booking a 1-2-1 session with him.
Though I had some basic skills already, there was much for me to learn. Not only were there specific camera techniques to learn, but I also needed to learn how to find and identify insect species. And then when I found them, not scare them off with sudden movements!
It was a wonderful day, and even though I know my camera well, learning a whole new set of camera skills with was demanding. I managed to capture some images that I was happy with. They aren’t particularly unique or outstanding, but that wasn’t the point of the day. The point was that I learnt loads, got some images I was happy with, and I had a great day out.
I now feel I at least have the fundamental knowledge to head out into the wilderness myself and capture macro photographs.
Nikon Z7, Laowa 100mm f/2.8 2x Ultra Macro
Nikon Z7, Laowa 100mm f/2.8 2x Ultra Macro
Nikon Z7, Laowa 100mm f/2.8 2x Ultra Macro
Nikon Z7, Laowa 100mm f/2.8 2x Ultra Macro
Nikon Z7, Laowa 100mm f/2.8 2x Ultra Macro
Nikon Z7, Laowa 100mm f/2.8 2x Ultra Macro - shame about the distracting background on this one!
Nikon Z7, Laowa 100mm f/2.8 2x Ultra Macro - and this one!
A Detour to Daymark
A sudden change of plan finds me visiting one of my favourite locations but with dreary grey conditions, was it worth the diversion?
A Last-Minute Change of Plan
If you are a long-time reader of my blog, you’ll know that I can be a little indecisive at times. I spend a lot of time procrastinating on where to go next. A few weeks ago, I found myself being a little more assertive and made some definite plans to explore a new location along the south Devon coast. That decision went right out of the window as I reached the end of M5 and started heading up Haldon Hill.
As I was driving along the final few miles of the M5 I suddenly remembered that I hadn’t photographed Daymark Tower this year. As I’d been in lockdown for much of spring many of my seasonal favourites had passed me by this year. I prefer to photograph Daymark Tower just before the crops are due to be harvested and as I was driving along it suddenly dawned on me that I might not be too late to catch the crops.
I could have carried on to my original destination, but I thought this could be my first and last chance to shoot Daymark with the crops so I made a left turn instead of a right turn. I hadn’t checked the weather for Daymark Tower, but I didn’t think it would be any worse than the forecast at my original destination, so I had nothing to lose.
A Macro Lens for Landscapes?
After parking the car and walking along the path to the tower I was pleased to see the crops hadn’t been cut and this wasn’t going to be a wasted trip. The weather was looking a bit overcast and the chances of getting any nice evening light were slim. However, I thought this would be a wonderful opportunity to try and be a little bit more creative.
My go-to composition at Daymark is a wide-angle shot of the tower from the path near the gate. This works well when you have good light from behind but as that wasn’t an option, I decided that some longer lens shots would be in order. My only problem was that the 70mm end of my 24-70mm wasn’t long enough, and I’m still waiting for delivery of my 24-200mm lens. I did, however, have the foresight to pack my Laowa 100mm macro lens. Just because it’s a macro lens doesn’t mean it can’t shoot landscapes!
Daymark Tower #1, Devon - Nikon Z7, Laowa 100mm f/2.8 2x Macro at f2/.8, 1/50th of a second at ISO 64.
Without the evening light to provide contrast to the foreground, and a surprising lack of tractor lines in the crops I decided that the only subject worth focusing on was the tower. I decided, therefore, to open the aperture on the lens to f/2.8 and focus just on the tower, effectively throwing most of the foreground out of focus. This had the effect of simplifying the scene and though I prefer my compositions of Daymark that have the light on them, these shots work well considering the conditions. What do you think? Let me know in the comments.
Daymark Tower #2, Devon - Nikon Z7, Laowa 100mm f/2.8 2x Macro at f2/.8, 1/50th of a second at ISO 64.
Just a short blog post from me this week. I’m having a little time off from everything to spend it with the family. Don’t worry though, I’ve got another blog post ready to go for next week where I tell you about how some stormy weather produced some unexpectedly pleasing images.
Starting My Journey into the World of Macro Photography
In the blog this week I finally head out with the Laowa 100mm f/2.8 2x Ultra Macro and start my journey as a macro photographer!
First Steps
If you’ve been reading my blog for a while you may remember that I tried macro photography for the first-time last year. You can see some of the results here. Regardless of the quality of those first few steps into the world of macro photography, I was sure of one thing and that was I wanted to do more of it!
Just over a year after that last blog post I’ve finally given it another try. Why wait so long I hear you ask. Having used a dedicated macro lens for those first few attempts I knew that I also wanted my own dedicated macro lens. As with many of my purchasing decisions I needed to wait until I had sufficient funds to cover the purchase cost. As I had many other commitments around that time, I decided that the purchase could wait until early 2020. That way I would have the new macro lens just in time for spring.
Around September 2019 I changed from the Nikon DSLR system to the Nikon Z mirrorless system. If you want to know why then check out this blog post here. As part of that change I decided that wherever possible I would only purchase a new lens if it was a native Z mount lens. As the Nikon Z lens line up was and still is limited, my options for a macro lens were extremely limited.
Common Blue, Berry Head, Devon - Nikon Z7, Laowa 100mm f/2.8 2x Ultra Macro, 1/500th second at ISO 500.
Laowa 100mm f/2.8 2x Ultra Macro
The Nikon Z mount lens roadmap does include a 105mm macro but with no release date that was not going to be an option. Then I heard that Laowa were going to make a native Z mount version of their well rated 100mm f/2.8 2x Ultra Macro. Though the lens is manual focus it can be purchased for a reasonable £469. I thought given the price, focal length, native Z mount and the good reputation of the lens I was worth pre-ordering it.
It was originally due to arrive around mid-March but then the world started to suffer from the coronavirus pandemic. Not that the delay in the arrival of the lens really mattered anyway as I wouldn’t have been able to go out and use it because of lockdown.
Fortunately for me the delay in the lens wasn’t that long and it arrived in April. I tried it out by shooting various still life subjects in the house, but I really couldn’t get passionate about photographing flowers in my office.
Common Blue, Berry Head, Devon - Nikon Z7, Laowa 100mm f/2.8 2x Ultra Macro, 1/160th second at ISO 200. Please note: While I placed and setup my own camera for this shot, the original composition was thought out by Neil Burnell. Neil is a super talented photographer and if you want to learn how he works his magic then be sure to check out his 1-2-1 sessions or workshops here.
Returning to the Outdoors
As soon as the UK Government started to ease the restrictions on being outside, I decided that one of the first things I was going to do was try out my new macro lens. As I’d had so much fun last year at Berry Head photographing the butterflies, I thought this would be an excellent place to start.
I contacted my friend and fellow photographer Neil Burnell as he is a bit of a local expert and super talented macro photographer. We knew we could still maintain good social distancing and as we were in a wide-open coastal location, we felt it was safe to meet.
Small Blue, Berry Head, Devon - Nikon Z7, Laowa 100mm f/2.8 2x Ultra Macro, 1/50th second at ISO 1000.
We were both incredibly pleased to find Berry Head full of the expected small blue and common blue butterflies. Neil soon got to work doing what Neil does best I got on with the job of just trying to get things in focus!
Lot’s to Learn
Throughout this blog article you’ve seen the images that I took that evening (and some the following week). Sure, they won’t win any awards, but they are enough to remind that I made the right decision with the purchase of a macro lens and this is an area of photography I wish to develop my skills in.
Small Blue, Berry Head, Devon - Nikon Z7, Laowa 100mm f/2.8 2x Ultra Macro, 1/125th second at ISO 400.
There’s a lot to learn but this is also what makes it so exciting. I will at some point make a video of my experiences of macro photography but for now I need to concentrate on the job at hand. I’ve got a plan on how I will increase my skills and I will share my progress here on the blog.
I hope you enjoyed the images in this blog. Are you a macro photographer? Are you thinking about taking up macro photography? Let me know in the comments below.
Small Blue, Berry Head, Devon - Nikon Z7, Laowa 100mm f/2.8 2x Ultra Macro, 1/250th second at ISO 1600.