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instinct & intuition

Trying Something New: Macro Lens

Posted on December 12, 2021January 30, 2025

Recently I was gifted a Moment macro lens to use on my iPad for photos (a big thank-you to the gracious person who sent it to me), and I’ve been experimenting with it for a few days. It’s unlike anything I’ve used before with photography, except for the fact that it is a macro lens and is able to focus on quite small objects.

Using the lens on my iPad is a bit different than using an actual camera – the lens can’t really be focused, more held up to the subject to make a clear image. Because it’s a macro lens, this means pretty much touching the hood of the lens to whatever you want to capture. This can prove tricky in some situations, but the results impress me.

I tried the lens on mainly capturing microscopic lichens on branches around my yard, and it’s pretty incredible to see the detail in these tiny worlds. I hope these photos of the un-regarded and unseen inspire some wonder in you today.

Tiny orange lichens on a branch. Copyright Hazel Peel-Hodgson, 2021
A close-up of most likely gray starburst lichen. Copyright Hazel Peel-Hodgson, 2021
In the macro world, cedar boughs appear scaly and braided. Copyright Hazel Peel-Hodgson, 2021
A frozen crystal of sap. Copyright Hazel Peel-Hodgson, 2021
Copyright Hazel Peel-Hodgson, 2021
Spot the silhouetted snowflake? Copyright Hazel Peel-Hodgson, 2021
Hazelnut catkins. Copyright Hazel Peel-Hodgson, 2021
Coexistence – various lichens finding harmony on this tiny twig. Copyright Hazel Peel-Hodgson, 2021
Most likely small staghorn fungi. Copyright Hazel Peel-Hodgson, 2021
Copyright Hazel Peel-Hodgson, 2021
Orange lichen. Copyright Hazel Peel-Hodgson, 2021
I’ve never noticed the tiny hairs on these lichens before. Copyright Hazel Peel-Hodgson, 2021

6 thoughts on “Trying Something New: Macro Lens”

  1. B.O. says:
    December 12, 2021 at 1:13 pm

    Nice job, Hazel!

    Reply
  2. Do Stier says:
    December 12, 2021 at 3:08 pm

    Very cool and inspiring Hazel! I like the details you point out, I would not have known that was a cedar bough…Thanks for the beauty you bring to me regularly…

    Reply
    1. hazelraine says:
      December 13, 2021 at 11:26 am

      Thanks, Do!

      Reply
  3. aloha69 says:
    December 17, 2021 at 12:00 pm

    All are awesome views of the diversity of nature! The sap drop and snowflake photos are extreme works of art! These would make fantastic blow ups to hang in art galleries or homes!

    Reply
    1. hazelraine says:
      December 20, 2021 at 2:31 pm

      Thanks Gramps!

      Reply
  4. Pingback: The Evolution of My Photography – Part II – Instinct & Intuition

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