[david94903]

I did a VERY quick trial for you on my studio rig.

Wow! Great to see. Very helpful. It's encouraging me to dig out my Raynox 250. Buried deep in some camera bag

[AggieDad]

Putting a Raynox in front of a reversed lens could be interesting but it will severely curtail the working distance.

You might try putting the Raynox between the reversed lens and the camera. That is, screw the Raynox on to the normal front of the lens and then reverse the pair. The Raynox is designed to bend light rays coming from a nearby object into light rays suitable for a lens focused on a farther object. In the reverse condition, the Raynox will nicely couple the reversed lens to the relatively nearby sensor plane. You'll get more magnification for a given amount of extension and I'd not be surprised if the IQ actually improves.

This is a neat idea and I will have to try it.

One of the things I have done is put together all manner of combinations and record all of the magnification results on a spreadsheet. I have used 100 and 200mm lenses, reversed 50 and 28mm lenses, tubes, bellows, single and stacked Raynoxes, and a 2x TC. In all, some 24 combinations with magnifications ranging from 0.5 to 9.5.

BUT I have never tried the Raynox somewhere other than in front of the lens. It sounds like a project for a 98 degree Houston afternoon. I will report back.

[Thagomizer]

One of the things I have done is put together all manner of combinations and record all of the magnification results on a spreadsheet. I have used 100 and 200mm lenses, reversed 50 and 28mm lenses, tubes, bellows, single and stacked Raynoxes, and a 2x TC. In all, some 24 combinations with magnifications ranging from 0.5 to 9.5.

That sounds like a neat, interesting reference, and a lot of work!

I've occasionally thought about doing something semi-comprehensive with my various macro bits and pieces, but have never got around to doing it. The closest I've managed is to take shots with a particular set-up of our long suffering, but uncomplaining hanging African violet. I'll ooh and ahh, but have yet to do any formal comparisons to see how they stack up against each other and what works best. Too bloody lazy. I see the enormity of the whole potential project and shudder, rather than try to figure out logical subsets into which it could be broken down into manageable chunks. Also, I'd rather be chasing bugs than shooting test targets, but that's just me.

[AggieDad]

This is a neat idea and I will have to try it.

One of the things I have done is put together all manner of combinations and record all of the magnification results on a spreadsheet. I have used 100 and 200mm lenses, reversed 50 and 28mm lenses, tubes, bellows, single and stacked Raynoxes, and a 2x TC. In all, some 24 combinations with magnifications ranging from 0.5 to 9.5.

BUT I have never tried the Raynox somewhere other than in front of the lens. It sounds like a project for a 98 degree Houston afternoon. I will report back.

Well I did half a job. The Raynoxes behind the reversed 50mm showed no appreciable difference. Unfortunately, I don't have all the right bits and pieces to mount the Raynox between the camera and the bellows. If I ever get to do this, I'll report back.

That sounds like a neat, interesting reference, and a lot of work!

I've occasionally thought about doing something semi-comprehensive with my various macro bits and pieces, but have never got around to doing it. The closest I've managed is to take shots with a particular set-up of our long suffering, but uncomplaining hanging African violet. I'll ooh and ahh, but have yet to do any formal comparisons to see how they stack up against each other and what works best. Too bloody lazy. I see the enormity of the whole potential project and shudder, rather than try to figure out logical subsets into which it could be broken down into manageable chunks. Also, I'd rather be chasing bugs than shooting test targets, but that's just me.

It was fun to do, and it whiled some time when I was recovering from some surgery. It was all done shooting a metric scale so magnifications were easy to calculate. I have found the spreadsheet pretty handy to use. One interesting outcome was I found various combinations that yield the same magnifications. Now someday I should (will I?) compare the combinations of a given magnification for any difference in image quality.

[photoptimist]

Well I did half a job. The Raynoxes behind the reversed 50mm showed no appreciable difference. Unfortunately, I don't have all the right bits and pieces to mount the Raynox between the camera and the bellows. If I ever get to do this, I'll report back.

Raynox-ReversedLens-Bellows-Camera and ReversedLens-Raynox-Bellows-Camera should have similar magnifications but I'd expect the ReversedLens-Raynox-Bellows-Camera to have a better working distance and better IQ.

I've got no idea how ReversedLens-Bellows-Raynox-Camera would perform.

[Not a Number]

Well I did half a job. The Raynoxes behind the reversed 50mm showed no appreciable difference. Unfortunately, I don't have all the right bits and pieces to mount the Raynox between the camera and the bellows. If I ever get to do this, I'll report back.

Seems like you may as well use a TC at this point.

[Thagomizer]

One interesting outcome was I found various combinations that yield the same magnifications. Now someday I should (will I?) compare the combinations of a given magnification for any difference in image quality.

John Shaw's Close Ups in Nature does a good job of showing different ways to get to the same magnification.

[AggieDad]

Seems like you may as well use a TC at this point.

Well, I've done that also – actually have used 2 - 2x TCs stacked.

One thing about guys who do macro is that they seem to love fiddling with all of their stuff. Trying all manner of combinations and permutations of lenses, extension tubes, diopters, bellows, etc. is just part of the fun of macro.

---------- Post added 07-02-18 at 08:48 PM ----------

Raynox-ReversedLens-Bellows-Camera and ReversedLens-Raynox-Bellows-Camera should have similar magnifications but I'd expect the ReversedLens-Raynox-Bellows-Camera to have a better working distance and better IQ.

I've got no idea how ReversedLens-Bellows-Raynox-Camera would perform.

There may be some difference in the distance with the Raynox behind the reversed lens vs in front of the reversed lens. However, it would not have been much as I didn't notice anything significant enough to make me check the measurement.

[Mikesul]

I am amazed it worked so well and grateful you tried it out.

[Thagomizer]

One thing about guys who do macro is that they seem to love fiddling with all of their stuff. Trying all manner of combinations and permutations of lenses, extension tubes, diopters, bellows, etc. is just part of the fun of macro.

Guilty as charged!