Well nothing is wrong with it. This post isn’t to say I’d broken it…
Some keen-eyed friends of LUX might notice that my 4th Online Gallery is overdue. As that is being prepared, alongside a physical exhibition in Göttingen (which on the background corresponds to an entirely new system through which I organise and sort my photos), I thought I do something different.
Since I purchased it second-hand in September 2022, my 105mm Macro lens has had a unique position in my creative arsenal. It’s heavy, so I have not brought it out more than a handful of times. However, it’s sharp enough to really help me capture unique images when I did.
On the one hand it is a reasonably sharp and fast prime lens for normal uses, on the other the lens boasts a 1:1 reproduction in macro mode – if the subject is held at about 35cm away, 1mm of real world length translates to 1mm on the camera sensor. At my Nikon D810’s native resolution, that means I can resolve as small as 5 micrometers per pixel. Now, this number is still hopelessly macroscopic compared with what many lab scientists (especially physicists) care about, but I see it as enough as a glimpse into the intricate detail of nature, from the frost in the staff room fridge, to the early spring buds on a tree twig.
In the gallery below I show some of the standout photos I’d managed to snap with the lens, in chronological order from the first trial run to today (22 Mar 2026). Some photos will have captions to describe them.
The cover image was the lens seeing itself thanks to some clever mirrors at Phaeno Wolfsburg.
First trial photo.FW’s contribution to the communal hallway.Zoom in shot of my 24-120mm lens.Australasian swamphen (Porphyrio melanotus)Hot Wheels Coupe ClipWestern Springs, AucklandCygnets at Western SpringsFabry-Perot interferometry of HeliumLow pressure Hg vapour lampFrank Shi’s chess setDischarge ball on office tableCopper CoilHot Wheels Sky Dome under a helium lampThe FWPhys Dodecahedral Calendar (2023)Pottery work by Claire PreenApple LIsa @ Auckland Bob Doran Museum of ComputingConcert by Jan Elliott at Auckland RSAZoom-in of a Fog, Series 1Fern sporesOn the ground in front of Sydney City MuseumBlue Mountains little waterfallCascade shufflingOffice PeaBubble BurstBubble interferenceA decaying leaf from … Auckland University Tramping Club O-Camp 2023Auckland Airport …Auckland AirportAnalogue Lorenz AttractorCarbon fibre sheet belonging to UoA FSAE Team“Freedom” – the one time I am truly impressed by the autofocusMagnet CityZeeman Effect in labMatchbox VW Golf Mk. IIIthe Magnetic Sun Acrylic blockOffice FrostUoA Optometry Ball 2023Entemnotrochus rumphii (Shandong Provincial Museum)Tui (Prosthemadera novaeseelandiae). New Zealand photographers’ favouriteMy first diorama, a fictional campgroundAUTC General MeetingSomeone’s not happyOffice HappinessOffice AvocadoLego Store AucklandNew cars with my childhood Matchbox playsetInterference of firework sparkles(1:1) SnowflakesAuckland Physics Liquid N2 Ice CreamCMB and a pendulum ballMorning feastTongli Old Town, ChinaFW thesis bound copyGoettingen Old Botanical Garden at nightWKBMy first bean in GermanyMangoZoom-in of a Fog, Series 2Dr Safianova’s labwork shoot.FW’s degreeGoettingen University model stellar neighbourhoodSchwangau, BavariaA Berlin trainHot Wheels DeLorean (treasure hunt)Lego DandelionFrozen SpiderwebFrozen SpiderwebSuperfest glass from BerlinTangyuanReal dandelionFW’s birthday present to selfPotato cutlet grows root!Hamburg Miniatur WunderlandTo hide a cat in the Lego GalaxyUGö Forestry’s Moisture Monitoring DeviceMoistureGold from CopenhagenWater Drop (Three Body Problem Homage)Wrocław SunsetUGö experimental botanical gardenA carpenter bee?Blackbird is not impressed
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