Hi @Alex_Mustard and @MatthewSullivan ,

I remember seeing a post somewhere where you were asking for ideas for future episode topics for the Underwater Photography Show ( #UWPS ) on YouTube. I can't remember where it was, but it reminded me of something I'd genuinely love to see discussed on the show.

I recently watched your "Nauticam Optics Primer" episode, which I really enjoyed. It covers a great range of Nauticam optics, and of course the EMWL earned its own dedicated episode.

However, it left me wondering: was there a particular reason why the Nauticam MWL-1 wasn't mentioned at all? Was it and I just cannot remember? I've always found the concept behind such a lens fascinating, converting back from macro to true wide angle on a dive.

There is also a review by Matthew, about its main (or so far only) competitor, the Kraken KRL-09S: Testing the Kraken KRL-09S Macro Wide-Angle Conversion Lens which makes him highly qualified to show some test images and discuss the pros and cons of such a lens. It would be really interesting to hear both of your opinions on this whole category of optics. The MWL-1 never really seemed to gain widespread adoption, and I've often wondered why. Was it image quality? Sharpness? Handling? Cost? Or was the concept itself simply too niche? I know if was mainly developed for the Nikon AF-S 60mm, but seem also to work on some Canon and Sony Macro 90-100mm lenses with less AOV as a result.

I'd especially be interested to hear how you think the MWL-1 compares today with more recent water-contact optics such as the Nauticam MFO-1, MFO-3, and now the Marelux MacroView MV-60. These products seem to point towards an interesting philosophy: instead of owning separate dedicated wide-angle and macro systems, perhaps photographers could build a very flexible setup around a single 90–100 mm macro lens (Canon, Sony, Nikon, etc.) and then simply swap between one or two wet optics during a dive depending on the subjects they encounter. Do you think this concept has a future, or do the compromises still outweigh the advantages? Has this category quietly evolved, or was it ultimately a technological dead end?

I'd love to hear your thoughts in a future episode.
AND MOST IMPORTANT: see some you your excellent sample images discussed in such an episode!

Furthermore everybody is invited to discuss experience and photos with these lenses in this thread on waterpixels.

Edited 2 hours ago2 hr by Adventurer

Here is a set of 4 photos taken with the Kraken 09s and Nikon 60mm., all on the same dive. The first three are of an 8 foot long Sixgill shark taken from just a few inches away. The fourth is a 1cm hermit crab taken with the 60mm and MFO-1.

The Kraken (and I presume the MWL) is very versatile. Excellent for CFWA, and then you have the option for true macro with the 60mm. I tend to use it on dives where they might be a chance for bigger subjects, but also good macro opportunities. The Sixgill dives are ideal for it. You spend about 30 minutes (hoping to see a shark) at 90-100 feet until you exhaust NDL then you head up to shallow water with great macro subjects. Aside from that I like to use it for CFWA scenes and not standard wide angle subjects. Corners are not awesome, but that is not always relevant as you can see below.

Nikon Z8 w/Nikon 60mm lens, Kraken KRL09 WA, f8@1/50s iso800, pair of Backscatter HF-1 strobes

Nikon Z8 w/Nikon 60mm lens, MOF, f18@1/160s iso250, pair of Backscatter HF-1 strobes

BTW, one of my regular dive buddies has been borrowing my Kraken for the last several muck dives we have done off the beach in West Seattle. He is really having fun with CFWA shots of giant nudibranchs and loves shooting the Kraken.