Wide-Angle Macro Lens

alex what brand of single element diopters are the ones to go for and are they any lower in profile than the 500D? i am looking at a heliopan as my 500d wont fit behind my dome on my 12-24.

ta

This kind of shooting doesn't really interest me, but small domes for fisheye work do. These can certainly be adapted to this technique via an extension ring that accommodates the teleconverter, and have the added utility of being compatible with the full fov of the lens.

We made a proof of concept for a small, light weight, and relatively inexpensive acrylic dome for Nikkor 10.5, 16, and Tokina 10-17 and Subal housings that I really like to use:

Unfortunately, the lens I most want to use with it is Sigma's 15mm fisheye on full frame, but the shade of that lens is to large to be compatible and I'm having a lot of trouble convincing myself to cut it off.

I also really like Nexus' FP-120, which is glass, and use it on Sea & Sea housings:

This too is incompatible with Sigma 15, but works well with Tokina 10-17, Nikon 10.5, and Nikon 16.

Ryan,

I'm confused.......How can these "mini-domes" work with a Nikon 10.5mm and 16mm FE plus the Tokina 10-17mm FE but not the Sigma 15mm FE?

Is it the physical length when one adds a TC to it?

Inquiring minds want to know

dhaas

Nice Ryan.

The mini domes work fine even with 180 degree fisheye. Corners are not as sharp as with a bigger dome - but if stopped down and carefully composed most would be very hard pressed to spot the difference.

Just to avoid any confusion the domes I was discussing earlier are not as curved and not fisheye compatible. This photo shows both. On the D700 housing, left, is the shallow curvature dome I used in all the photos above. On my F100 housing, right, is the fisheye mini dome.

I hadn't realised that the mini-dome was incompatible with the Sigma 15mm hood. Good info Ryan.

Alex

alex what brand of single element diopters are the ones to go for and are they any lower in profile than the 500D? i am looking at a heliopan as my 500d wont fit behind my dome on my 12-24.

 

ta

I'd like to hear this too.

R

Most single element dioptres are considerably lower in profile than the 500D. I have not tested all the varieties of dioptres so I have no informed opinion, but B+W filters are considered good quality.

Alex

We made a proof of concept for a small, light weight, and relatively inexpensive acrylic dome for Nikkor 10.5, 16, and Tokina 10-17 and Subal housings that I really like to use:

Ryan,

I have all of the lenses you mentioned (Nikkor 10.5, 16 and Tokina 10-17) and use a Subal housing. Is this small, lightweight and relatively inexpensive acrylic dome available to purchase? If so, how much does it cost?

I could see that a small dome like that would be great to have, especially for travel.

Thanks.

Ellen

Dave-

The large hood on Sigma's 15mm strikes the dome when placed correctly, and when you push it forward so it doesn't bump it vignettes.

Alex-

The mini dome you have uses a different dome than I have access too, and looks to be a little larger, so it might work wit Sig 15.

Ellen-

Just researching at this point, but it does seem like there is enough demand to offer this, and we will continue to investigate it. There are some problems that still need to be solved, but we are making progress.

Has anyone had any focus issues with any of the fisheye's behind such small domes. I was just thinking about it, and if the infinity virtual image is 2 Diameters away, then with a four inch dome, the infinity virtual image should only be 8" away (6" infront of the dome). I imagine the newer fisheyes should be OK, but the 16mm nikon shouldn't work at all with a minimum focusing distance of 10.2"

Ryan,

I would be interested in one of these domes for my D300 and Subal housing. Probably using the 10-17.

Would this dome work with the Tokina 35 macro DX?

Thanks

Dave B.

Don,

Visit My Website

This is a page of my first day shooting this lens in SoCal

I have to find where I posted my shots from Fiji

Try this link for Fjii.

I used the 35 macro for some of these shots.

Fiji

Hi Don,

 

Equally important to having the right lens is also having the correct port. Subal's 4" domes are ideal. These are what allow you to light right on the dome - otherwise you end up lighting up the sides of fish, but not the faces. You can do the technique with a big dome - but you don't get the same quality of light as the small dome.

 

 

 

Alex

Thanks for the advice and also sharing those stunning images.

Did I miss it in these posts? Has anyone tried the Tokina 10-17 with a Kenko 1.4 or 1.5 Teleconvertor?

Regards,

Bob

Did I miss it in these posts? Has anyone tried the Tokina 10-17 with a Kenko 1.4 or 1.5 Teleconvertor?

Regards,

Bob

The Tokina is like the EF-s lenses and won't work (I think) with the teleadapters which only work with the EF lenses.

Bill

The 10-17 works with the Kenko 1.4x converter.

The 10-17 works with the Kenko 1.4x converter.

Thanks Craig. I think the manufactures have little idea what experimenters like you and Dr. Mustard are trying to do with your images. Checking on some lenses, using a teleconveter on less than 50 mm is not recommended. It great to be able tap into your KB.

Regards,

Bob

Just a teaser...

We have the glass (and it is beautiful), and a talented young mechanical engineer and I have completed about 13 different housing adapter designs.

Coming soon, to just about every housing near you:

Just a teaser...

 

We have the glass (and it is beautiful), and a talented young mechanical engineer and I have completed about 13 different housing adapter designs.

 

Coming soon, to just about every housing near you:

Any idea on when these might be available? Any idea on price?

Or are you truly just teasing us

Ellen

Conservatively I expect we'll ship in quantities mid July. Price is not decided yet, but definitely under a grand. I chose to only produce glass, which will keep the price up, but will make for a much better product.