Wide Angle FZ30 Consensus

Unda Covalava

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What's the final word on WA lens for the FZ30?

Looking for no vignette, sharp throughout frame, and your experience on what zoom range is useable with the WA attached. Thanks in advance.
 
Thanks Mike!

I found it for $115 shipped. Does that sound right?

Also, the 38mm up within reason.. how far is that? I don't plan to zoom much with it, only if I have to get a shot and don't have time to remove it.
Raynox 6600pro55

35mm = 23mm [has soft edges]
38mm and up (within reason) = 25mm and up [edges are sharp]
 
I meant how far can you zoom with the WA adapter on before things start getting ugly?
the camera starts at 35mm... so 38mm is a minor turn of the zoom
wheel... its just at full wide angle you get soft edges... take it
off just a tiny bit and it'll be better
 
You may want to search earlier threads on this recurring topic. Very few have responded here as this topic literally comes up as a new post every 2-3 days.

If you're looking for high quality, high value, something you'll use occasionally, Olympus B-28 / WCON-08 / WCON-08E (all the same lens) is a very good choice for a 0.8x converter which screws right onto 55mm threads. Available from Olympus themselves on ebay for $20-30 + shipping.

This is optically similar (maybe identical, except perhaps for simpler coatings and lighter body) to the 62mm Olympus WCON-08B CK mentions in his posts.
 
There's a Japanese article out on the web somewhere which tests a bunch of these on an earlier FZ camera, perhaps an FZ1. Have you seen it? If you're able to figure out how to display a translated version of it (using Google or babelfish?), you'll see that he also tests sharpness through full zoom range (something MANY of us don't care about).

As I recall, there were two Raynox converters in that article which maintained sharpness through much of the zoom range, one being the 250DCR if I am remembering correctly; unfortunately though the 250DCR had some odd distortion even at full wide-angle, I think, so in my mind (not caring anyway about leaving the converter on for other than near full wide-angle), this was not a good trade-off.

All this from memory, so please forgive any inaccuracy.
 
You may want to search earlier threads on this recurring topic.
Very few have responded here as this topic literally comes up as a
new post every 2-3 days.

If you're looking for high quality, high value, something you'll
use occasionally, Olympus B-28 / WCON-08 / WCON-08E (all the same
lens) is a very good choice for a 0.8x converter which screws right
onto 55mm threads. Available from Olympus themselves on ebay for
$20-30 + shipping.

This is optically similar (maybe identical, except perhaps for
simpler coatings and lighter body) to the 62mm Olympus WCON-08B CK
mentions in his posts.
I couldn't pass up a B28 for $38 new form Oly-EBay & it's clear & sharp with no softness on the edges till significantly zoomed.. Didn't actually make note of exact positions where I noticed it... And it gives me 28mm, making my 8080 totally redundant & expendable... Might not be the widest choice but it won't take a big bite out of that Dslr budget niether... I'd hazzard it's even better than the B300 with regard to sharpness & adding less fringe to the equation...

This shot



is showing 26mm (not 35mm eqiv.) & is slightly soft @ the very top & also had a little more fringe but it was very little & considering this is one of the usually fringe magnet types of scenarios even when the lens is nekid I thought it did well... This is full wide



& also heavily backlit & I did nothing to rid fringe & it doesn't seem to soften @ the edge niether.. This one



was ripe for fringe but had none @ 1mm shy of full wide... I'm completely happy with it for the $38 it set me back.... I only have to figure out a way to get or make a lens shade for it....
--

The Amateur Formerly Known as 'UZ'pShoot'ERS' 'Happy Shootin'



* [email protected] * http://www.pbase.com/rrawzz * EffZeeThreeZero / CeeEightZeroEightZeroDoubleUZee / CeeTwoOneZeroZeroUZee / EOneHuderedAreEss
 
It looks like a great deal. I'll check it out.
If you're looking for high quality, high value, something you'll
use occasionally, Olympus B-28 / WCON-08 / WCON-08E (all the same
lens) is a very good choice for a 0.8x converter which screws right
onto 55mm threads. Available from Olympus themselves on ebay for
$20-30 + shipping.
 
That B20 looks good - I can't find what Olympus wants for shipping from their eBay store - Do you happen to remember what you paid on yours? I did do some sluthing and found that the camera it is designed to fit takes 55mm filters, same as the FZ30....
--
Tom, http://tswill2.smugmug.com/
 
B28? (see also listings of WCON-08E, same lens) Their ebay listings show S&H in the detail; I believe it's typically $5 to US and Canada only.
 

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