DIY Macro Lens Reverse Mount Extension Tube

The following is a tutorial on how to create an extension tube / reverse mount for a standard 18-55mm lens using common plumbing supplies found at your local hardware store.

I would highly recommend NOT doing this, you'll more than likely get dust inside your camera like I did. It's cool to check out but really, it's not worth it. DIY'er beware!

02.20.2007

A little background, taken from the Macro Wiki.
Placing an extension tube between the camera body and the lens. The tube has no glass in it; its sole purpose is to move the lens farther from the film or digital sensor. The farther the lens is, the closer the focus (and the bigger the magnification). Also, less light will reach the film or sensor, therefore a longer exposure time will be needed. Reversing the lens using a "reversing ring". This special adapter attaches to the filter thread on the front of a lens and makes it possible to attach the lens in reverse. Excellent quality results up to 4x lifesize magnification using fairly cheap, "standard" (not specially designed for macro) lenses can be produced. Magnification ratio is calculated by dividing the focal length of the normally mounted lens by the focal length of the reversed lens (i.e., when a 50 mm lens is reverse mounted on a 200 mm lens a 4:1 magnification ratio is achieved). So having said that let's get it on. Here is what you are going to need, mostly from the plumbing department at your local hardware store.

Materials

2 Inch Couplings. You may only need one or you may need two, depending on the set up you go for.

Epoxy Glue

2 Inch diameter piece of PVC pipe

*note - After completing this tutorial and testing the finished product, you can get similar results with one coupling and only a few inches of PVC. Other Materials - Black paper with a felt / velvety covering which you can get at Michaels or Hobby Lobby for cheap. Typically it's found near the mat cutting section. I actually already had some laying around. Flat black spray paint. Tools Something to cut the PVC pipe, I used a hacksaw.
A flat head screwdriver.
A dremel or some kind of cutting device (or torch it like I did).
Sandpaper.
Tape measurer or ruler.

Instructions

Cut the PVC - I placed the PVC in a vice grip and used a hack saw. Cut the first piece to 6 inches. Again, I also tried the lens without this 6 inch piece and was pleased with the results. You can see the diagram below to see what I'm talking about. Sand and spray the inside - This isn't totally necessary but I'd do it if I were you. If you've ever worked with PVC you know how it carries a lot of static electricity. Sanding, cleaning and painting the PVC really cut down on a lot of the dust that the piece will be allowed to attract.

Tip: After you sand and before you paint, use rubbing alcohol to clean the inside.

Do the same steps above using a 2 inch piece - Make sure to tape one of the ends completely so you don't spray where you're going to glue.
Tip: Use the factory cut side to glue. This way you know you're going to get a good seal.

Cut the adaptor - This is the piece that protects your camera innards while the lens is not mounted.

Cut along the inner circle. I didn't have any spare dremel bits so I used a propane torch and a piece of scrap metal and cut it like buttah. It was messy and it smelled bad so I'd recommend getting a bit for your dremel.

Sand the piece down smooth and clean it with alcohol to prep it for the epoxy.
Glue it -

Piece it together -

Stopping here (the next photo) would be totally cool. I did test the lens in the end of the coupling you see below and actually preferred the shorter extension.

Roll the Paper -

Put the lens in -

The end of the lens fits quite nicely into the rubber coupling. You shouldn't need to use the clamp but it's there if you need it. Essentially the rubber coupling allows the lens to be reversed, that's where the 'reverse ring' comes in. The coupling and the pvc extension holds the lens further away from the camera, which is where the magnification comes in. ALSO, you still have full control over the focus. This is especially nice when you finally get everything lined up and it's just a touch out of focus, now you can make minor adjustments without moving the lens or the subject. Here is a rough diagram to show the assembly with the two different set ups (Long and Short). Diagram

Finishing up - So if you want to go for the shorter extension, you're looking at around $5-$10 cost for this nice addition. The longer extension will cost you another coupling which is approx $3.

The setup

Examples

I wish I had more to show but I didn't really use this a lot. This is a shot I did of my ring. The first example is with a standard 18-55mm lens. The second is with the reverse macro ring. Example

Back Up

Comment
Tag
Link

Comments

# h 02.20.2007: totally radical! thank you for building this page!
# jyoseph 02.20.2007: You Bet!
# Konrad 02.20.2007: Dude! Im sooo building this!!!
# Konrad 02.20.2007: well without the plastic... maybe metal
# Damien Sim 02.20.2007: Was wondering, is your camera a DSLR or a SLR? Some lenses require it to be hooked up to the camera for the focal ring to work. How do I get around this (using an E500 setup... kit lens going to waste so was thinking about the reversal ring setup)
# jyoseph 02.20.2007: A response to a comment posted by Damien Sim (#):
Hello! I use a DSLR. The example was done with a Canon 300d. If your camera requires that the lens is mounted you may have to find out how to override it. That may risky business and you could possibly void your warranty which is never fun, been there. Dig around though, there may be others who have tried.
# MIKE 02.20.2007: Hey, i know you advised against this, but i had to try, i made everything to key, but my focus is out of thwack if thats a word! it doesnt seem to focus at al on anything with the brightest of lights....do u know hwy this could be?
# jyoseph 02.20.2007: A response to a comment posted by MIKE (#):
Hmmm, that's a tough one to troubleshoot. I can say for my first time it took a long time to get a good focus. It's hard to tell but in the first photo under "The Setup" you'll see that the lens is so close to the subject that you can't even see it in the photo. I remember really having to try a lot of different lengths and if memory serves me the shorter length was easier to get a good focus.

But we're talking like, literally half a millimeter and you're out of focus. Hope that helps, good luck!
# Craig 02.20.2007: What lenses did you use for this?
# jyoseph 02.20.2007: A response to a comment posted by Craig (#):
I used a cheapy 100mm Promaster macro lens and most of the shots you see as examples were taken with the Canon 18-55mm kit lens. That produced better results.
# Chris 02.20.2007: I did this a bit different but with similar results. I took two filters, a warming and a uv I think, and taped them together to make a male-male reversing ring. Coupled with a 62-52 stepdown ring, I can reverse my 50mm onto my 70-300mm zoom. I like that yours has some depth of field though, my rig squeezes it down to almost nothing. I like being able to see the fibers in the carpet, but would like more than a half millimeter in focus.
# jyoseph 02.20.2007: A response to a comment posted by Chris (#):
Very clever rig, I didn't even think to use two filters back to back! That seems way less risky than all of this cutting and burning.

And I know what you mean about the depth of field. It seems a little too extreme in my examples. I'm sure there is a way to fix that but only for those who have more patience than I do! :-)
# Grant Bourne 02.20.2007: Hey that's really cool and the photos look great. Another way is to use a cheap plastic microscope. Now this will come across as adevertising I know but check this out

http://testntools.co.nz/image.php?object_type=detailed&image_id=1620

To take it I just put the camera lens right up against the eyepiece and held it still. It took a few shots to get it right but with a bit of practice it works really well. My camera is a Canon S45 which is not a DSLR so there's no option of easily adding lenses to achieve what you have done.

The phot was taken to demonstrate to customers what they could see, otherwise I'd forever have people asking how big an item would look.

Cheers!
# Dan 02.20.2007: Best results I find are with reverse mounted lens direct on camera, one lens only reverse mount, 50mm gives excellent results easy to focus, the wider the angle, the greater the magnification (unless you use extension tubes as well of course).

reverse mounts can be had on ebay for real cheap.

I use old manual film prime lenses for high quality + aperture control of the lens.
# Joe 02.20.2007: I second Dan. Last time I checked, extension tubes of Ebay were $17 shipped. If you like building stuff, go for it. If not, get the cheap tubes.
# A.V akilzadeh Ebrahimi 02.20.2007: Great shots, actually it shows your ring gems are not as perfect as they should be ;)
# jyoseph 02.20.2007: I know! I was actually thinking that same thing! That and you can see all of the dirt/grease on the diamonds, yuck! :-)
# saxk 02.20.2007: i have tried this, followed it exactly, but im getting alot of light distortion, and a uber small DOF, that you cant really see anyhting from.
# Nico Rahardian 02.20.2007: how long should the PVC be? will the length effect something? like the focus, focal length etc?
# Joe 02.20.2007: Yeah the length definitely changes your ability to get a good focus. In my example there's a long and short lens. Good thing is you can change the length by sliding the pvc and couplings in and out. But the actual pvc I cut one 6 inches and another at 2 inches.
# Nico Rahardian 02.20.2007: thanks for the answers. how about if there is an DIY adjustable PVC length? can it be like an adjustable focal length and magnification?
# jyoseph 02.20.2007: Actually yes, that's sort of how it works now. The coupling and pvc can be adjusted in and out for the correct length. I remember needing to adjust it only a few millimeters and how much of a difference that made.
# Mac Tips 02.20.2007: Which way around is the lens. From the image is looks as if the "front" of the lens is facing the camera. Surely the front should face out at what you are taking a picture of. Is this correct or am I being a noob somewhere.
# jyoseph 02.20.2007: Nope you had it right the first time Mac Tips. The lens is reversed so what would normally be pointing toward your subject (the larger glass part of the lens) is now pointing toward you.