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[OM] [off list] Fisheye on a Budget

Subject: [OM] [off list] Fisheye on a Budget
From: "John A. Lind" <jlind@xxxxxxxxxxx>
Date: Sun, 04 Feb 2001 21:46:43 +0000
Chris,

At 20:14 2/4/01, Chris O'Neill wrote (in part):
John Lind, a darned good photographer, recently spake thusly:

I had to find my hip waders after reading this.  :-)

Full-circle fisheyes on a budget:

Spiratone, many moons ago, made a 0.18X full-circle 180 degree fisheye auxiliary lens that screws onto the front of a regular one. Stash about $100 USD aside (don't know what the current conversion is) and watch for one. They do come up from time to time; approx. $75-$100 USD. I had one last year and sold it to a fellow list member. They aren't the same as the 8/2.8 Zuiko, but given the cost it's the next best thing. In used camera departments they usually sit in the odds and ends area as they are generic and not camera system specific. This means they can be overlooked. However, when unearthed, they disappear quickly if in good condition. There's a demand for them for stitched panoramics, especially with digitals.

These are best used on a 50mm f/1.4 or f/1.2 wide open and focused at infinity. Although the entire image circle doesn't show in the viewfinder it will on the film (don't know why). The adapter has no focus; it's permanently focused at infinity, but with an 8mm fisheye focal length it doesn't matter. The DOF is from a foot to infinity! There are two rings on the adapter. One is an aperture setting (use the one on the adapter!) and a ring for the focal length of the lens. Set the focal length for the lens you put it on and set the aperture for the exposure. All it does is calibrate the f-stop markings for the focal length you are using. You can meter through it manually or use the TTL Auto on an OM-2[n] or OM-4[T]. On a 50mm lens, wide open on the adapter is f/5.6 which is rather slow, and they're sharper on the edges when stopped down a couple of stops. If you put it on a 100mm lens, it's like having a 16mm full-frame fisheye.

The back end has something like a 24.5mm or 25mm thread and they came with very heavy adapter plates for (typically) 49mm, 52mm and 55mm filter threads. Most people threw away or lost the ones they didn't need. It should have one on it. Even if it isn't a 49mm, a good heavy-duty step-up or step-down filter adapter will work (Tiffen and B+W make the hefty ones). I don't recommend a flimsy no-name generic filter adapter; these fisheye aux lenses are heavy. It's how these get used with 80mm MF lenses that have bigger filter rings (my Mamiya is 58mm). You want at least a front cap for the thing to protect the dramatically protruding eyeball front. A back cap and a case are even better (the rear element is protected pretty well by being recessed).

Sending this off-list 'cause it's kinda long.
-- John


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