There is alot of good info about setups for photographing flies but I only heard mention of a Nikon D50 which is a digital SLR. I hade a really old digital point and shoot that took great macro pictures. I recently bought a more updated camera and I am very disappointed with it’s macro mode. When I zoom in or move close enough to frame the fly, I can’t get it to focus on the fly. I can move farther out and sometimes get it to focus properly but only about 1 in five photos is good and then I have to crop the photos in photoshop because the fly doesn’t fill the photo. I would be interested to hear what digital cameras people like for taking macro photos of flies. Do I have to get into a digital SLR?
I use a fujifilm 5500. No problems other then when using it I have to make sure the batteries are fully charged while in Marco mode
I use a Nikon 4800. Basically a point and shoot with a pretty good macro feature, focussing to less than 1/2 inch.
Here’s a size 22 fly my wife tied for a swap for an example.
A digitaal SLR is a sweet camera to have, but unless you are getting into professional photography, there are much less expensive options just to take casual closeup pictures. I use a Panasonic DMC-FX30 which I’m told is now out of production. Paid about $200 for it about 3 months ago.
Here’s a recent macro pic from my trip to the Caribbean.
Here’s a macro shot of a stimulator:
Good luck in choosing There are so many good choices to choose from.
Joe
I use the Pentax WP30
Here is a pic a fly I photograph…
Older Nikon Coolpix 3100 point and shoot.
Not all of the macros are equal. Check the minimum focusing distance spec. and try it out in the store if you can.
Sony Cyber Shot H7. Still don’t have a good spot to take the pic though. Just need more of a set up for that now.
flyfshr: I think I am in the same boat as a lot of other people. I have an old HP camera that takes poor pictures most of the time and once in a while I get a presentable shot of a fly. I like all the pictures shown so far and I decided to attempt to do some research on that camera of Joe V’s. That is one pretty flower. I went to this site: http://www99.epinions.com/ and entered the info on that specific camera. There were two reviews plus comments and prices, etc. I have not done this with the other cameras but I plan to. This thread will be quite useful to me if I buy another camera.
Thanks everybody for the great pictures.
Tim
I am using a Nikon Coolpix P50 point and shoot camera.
In macro mode I only get decent focus when the telephoto is in the widest angle possible.
Is this a quirk of Nikon cameras???
Also I use the single focus setting.
In the specs they give macro focusing ranges for wide and telephoto setting. But for taking pics of flies I’ve only gotten good results in wide angle.
BTW some of the best images I’ve taken of flies have not been with a camera but with my HP scanner.
Ed
BTW you guys are taking great pics!!!
I use a Fujifilm Finepix A345. It really is an awesome camera. Great macro as well as distance shots.
This is a macro of some fungus on a tree that was about the size of a penny.
And a flower,
And Finally a fly, 
the camera to pick would be the one with the best macro (to get in there close) or one that has a high megapixels (to get in there and crop for a close up without getting pixelated fotos)
I do shoot with a DSLR, but one on the low end of the specturm. It’s a Canon Rebel XTi 400D. I love it’s performance and the crispness of a DSLR versus point and shoot is evidence enough for me. I’m not a professional photographer and the only reason I bought mine is so that I could manually control everything in the shot (shutter speed, aperture, ISO, white balance, filters, etc.). One thing to consider is you’re looking for a camera that takes great pics (be it macro, wide angle, telephoto, whatever) is that you want a camera with minimal digital noise. Digital noise is what causes grainy-looking photos. A common mis-conception is that a higher megapixel capacity with give you better overall shots. While this is somewhat true, it really only depends on how large you want to make your shots. If you plan on only putting your shots on your computer, I wouldn’t worry too much about high megapixels. If you plan on printing some, especially 8x10 or larger you want really high megapixels. Just for fun, here a some links to some of my shots. I don’t claim them to be anything but mine (certianly not outstanding).
This next album was taken using a Canon Power Shot that is a couple years old. While some shots are pretty good, you can really tell the difference in graininess on the darker photos.
Happy hunting!
I would strongly recommend that you go to FAOL home page and in the “search” window I would type in “Digital Photo” and then click on “enter”. Al Campbell has some very well written articles on taking “close ups” and there are several articles. These articles are packed full of information and should help you with finding exactly what you are looking for in a camera.
I have been using the Pentax Optio wp. I love this camera. As a fishing camera it is great since you can take underwater pics and movies with it. So, with the optio wp you no longer have to worry about getting it wet or if it falls in the water.
Here is a pic of a size 22 midge.
You can’t go wrong with the p&s models suggested, but the larger the sensor the better the image quality. I prefer a DSLR. I would love to have a Hasselblad H3II-39 with 120mm f/4 HC auto focus lens, but at around $40,000 I don’t think my wife would let me. :lol:
T-Fly, odd you say that, considering you’ve always told ME; “I SPEAK and my wife, JUMPS!” She doesn’t even ask “Why Jump?”, just “Jump, how far, dear?”
Hmmm, maybe I have this turned around a bit. never mind.
flybinder,
You are confusing me with Joey V. Joey is the one who says his bride goes around saying “yes dear” while adding a roll of the eyes.
Linda, if you happen to be reading this, Paul said something about owing you big time! I think he meant taking you out to a very nice (read pricey joint) eating establishment and a show afterwards.
Paul,
Do NOT go to a “French” Restaurtant; Quote; PARIS: Napoleon was killed not by a British assassination, but by dreadful French food, according to a new study." End Quote.
Doug 
flyfshr,
I was having the same problem you are describing. Before you go out and upgrade your camera $$$$. Try holding a solid background behind the fly in a vise. That solved my problem.
If not check the owners manual, you know that really thick book that came with the camera, check the evaluation settings.
It just sounds as if your camera is trying to do too many calculations at once and not focusing on what you want. The cool feature about digital camers is you can affordably change the settings (play with the camera) and delete the photos that don’t work with out using a ton a film.
Man I wished I had a digital camera when I was a Press photographer. The only good part I wasn’t paying for the film, the paper was! 
Jim
Getting decent fly pics is a trial and error, learn as you go thing. While my pictures are not great, overall they are far better now than when I first tried a few months ago. Just keep the basics in mind.
Use a tripod. Use the self timer. Experiment with lighting. I need a bunch of pics, so I invested in a light box for 50 bucks. Adjust your camera’s white balance setting. Oh, the obvious, put the camera in macro.
Good photo editing software helps big time. You do not need to get the full blown Photo Shop, but the basic Photo Shop Elements is a very good program. It cost less than 100 bucks.