Using your macro lens for more than just close ups

When I was a small child I had a shoebox full of cards, letters, and other sentimental keepsakes.

Every now and then I’d pull that box out and pour over cards from my great-grandmother, read funny notes from my brother, and later, reread letters my mom wrote me during my teenage years.

I still love pulling out these old and treasured keepsakes.

My love for details didn’t stop with cards and letters. Very shortly after I got started with photography I found myself focusing on capturing details, and I knew that I had to learn the art of macro photography.

My love for Macro photography began after I took an amazing Intro to Macro workshop through Click Photo School.

I quickly fell in love with the detail and clarity my macro lens was able to capture. At first I focused on flowers and food, which both remain two of my favorite subjects today.

As much as I loved capturing these beautiful subjects I found myself wanting to use my macro lens with my girls.

My girls are young and close together in age. As any parent of young children knows, it feels like each day passes in a busy blur. I definitely feel like I’m deep in the (wonderful) trenches of parenthood.

Things such as naptime, lunchtime, mismatched outfits, boo-boos, and messy ponytails are a daily part of my life. As hard as it is to imagine I know someday I might forget all the little details of this short and sweet time.

As I thought more about these tiny details passing by, a new idea for a personal project began to form. My “One Year, One Lens” project has committed me to using my most coveted lens, my 100mm f/2.8, each and every day.

I love the challenge of using this lens to find a small detail of my day and I know that down the road looking at these images will take me back to today.

I don’t want to ever forget how my girls look when they sleep, how their tiny feet look when they try to wear my shoes, their serious attachment to their “lovies,” and how they ate three times as many blueberries as they picked.

One thing this project quickly taught me is not being fooled into thinking this lens is meant for macro alone. It’s absolutely incredible for portraits. So many of my favorite, slightly more traditional images, have come from this lens as well.

I challenge anyone who is lucky enough to have this amazing piece of glass to start using it in some less conventional ways.

Want to remember how your youngest insisted on the exact same breakfast each and every day? Want to remember the first time your daughter had her nails polished? Want to remember how your son always insisted on mismatched socks?

Your macro lens just might be the perfect way to help you remember all those special details that are passing by.