| Author: | | Site Supporter Registered: February, 2009 Location: Indianapolis Posts: 527 | | Review Date: December 23, 2020 | Recommended | Price: $114.00
| Rating: 9 |
| Pros: | Able to get 4-4.5X magnification, very inexpensive | | Cons: | 3 aperature blade, challanging lens to use, can be put on camera wrong | |
First of all you have to know what you are getting here. Basically this is a microscope lens placed in something that allows it to be used on a camera. As someone who uses microscope a lot you have to appreciate at these magnifications your depth of field is razor thin. So to be honest probably the best way to use this lens is on a macro slider, take multiple shots, and then combine the images using software. That noted the lens, amazingly has a the ability to be stopped down to f16 (range f4-f16) with it's bizarre three aperture blades.I do this to increase, perhaps infinitesimally, the depth of field. When I do stop the lens down and haven't seen a terrible loss of sharpness, but I haven't really evaluated this lens scientifically. To be clear here, YOU FOCUS BY MOVING THE WHOLE CAMERA. Yes, I have used it in the field with a macroslider and some additional light source needed with this lens. I use a telescopic with two LEDs and it works well. It is easier with the K1 because you can use the moveable screen for macro work.
Personally I use it mostly to document some of my really tiny seashells, we are talking about ones that are less than a cm in size, some of them half that. I have also used it professionally to photograph tick nymphs for id. It does open a whole world for you IF that is where you want to go. I don't have it but a couple of the Laowa lenses are its best competitor, more functional anyway, but probably twice as much.
DON'T make this your first macro lens; you will hate it. Do get this lens if you are on a budget and want these kinds of magnifications. Make sure you have a macro rail/slider and additional lighting.
WARNING: Being careless I put the lens on without matching the red dot. I was getting an insect image, was in a hurry. Anyway, unlike every other lens I have it unfortunately went on my K1 in the wrong slots and couldn't come off! I ultimately had to have the lens cut off! I replaced it, lesson learned. If you get the lens, don't make my mistake.
 | | | | | | | Site Supporter Registered: October, 2009 Posts: 983 | | Review Date: March 11, 2020 | Recommended | Price: $200.00
| Rating: 9 |
| Pros: | Well built, inexpensive | | Cons: | Takes time, good support gear, and patience to learn to use well. | | Sharpness: 9
Aberrations: 9
Bokeh: 10
Handling: 10
Value: 10
Camera Used: K-1
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I did not understand what a 4-4.5x lens meant when I purchased it. Initially I was disappointed, and put the lens away for six months.
The lens is a great value when you consider what it is designed to do, and the low cost of the lens.
It is probably best described as a microscope objective for the front of your camera, not a traditional lens. As such, it is not designed with a focusing ring. One focuses by moving the camera forward and backward until the object is in focus.
The extreme magnification & shallow depth of field means that a handheld image in good focus is in not possible for me, even if I could find an object shallow enough to make a good photo. If there are any dust spots on your sensor, expect them to really show up at this magnification.
The lens is designed for very tiny objects, or focus stacking of sightly bigger objects. The depth of field at f2.0 is so shallow that a manual macro rail, while possible, is challenging to use. It would be best to use an automated rig if you can afford one.
I've only used this lens for one session, as I don't have much time for the time consuming edit one must do to put together a decent stack.
Here is an image stack (76 images) I took of the top half of a butterfly weed flower using the K-1 with the lens at 4x, 1/200 second. The shutter should be faster. I took it with a narrow aperture (did not record), so it is diffraction challenged. The instructions recommend you use it at f2.0. I do not believe that I can advance the macro rail manually in fine enough increments at f2, so it was a compromise. There were plenty of slices missing as it was.
It is also natural light, outside, on a medium duty tripod with manual macro rail. Best result would be studio lighting and/or flash with an automated macro rail.
With that in mind, here is what I was able to accomplish with less than optimal conditions and gear.
Not bad for $200. It is less expensive and easier to use than the Nikon plan acromat microscope objective I purchased for tiny objects.
The first image is the stack and edit, downsized for easier viewing. The second is an actual pixel crop.
Butterfly Weed at 4x
Butterfly Weed at 4x - Crop
Butterfly weed with photo-bomber | | | | | Veteran Member Registered: July, 2011 Location: Australia Posts: 1,094 | | Review Date: May 27, 2018 | Recommended | Price: None indicated
| Rating: 2 |
| Pros: | well built | | Cons: | Can't get any detail at all | | Sharpness: 2
Handling: 2
Value: 5
Camera Used: K1
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A tragedy
Just as well the lens is cheap. I can't get any usable photos from this lens. Maybe I have a bad copy, but the images look disgusting. I have a very solid rig to mount the camera to a focusing rail. To confirm the rig works, I used a canon camera with the X5 60mm canon ultra macro lens. I get excellent photos from this setup even though I would get less shake from my pentax setup. It's difficult to understand the difference unless my Zhongyi Mitakon 20mm is shonky. The lens will gather dust in my lens cabinet.
Happy for any users of this lens to provide their advice.
| | | | | New Member Registered: October, 2013 Location: Richmond, VA Posts: 21
3 users found this helpful
| | Review Date: November 27, 2017 | Recommended | Price: $199.00
| Rating: N/A |
| Pros: | extreme macro | | Cons: | no focusing ring | | Camera Used: K-1
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I picked up this lens expecting it to work like my other macro lenses. I didn't do my research and understand what this lens really is before I bought it, and that's on me. This lens is an extreme macro lens. There is no focusing ring, you focus it by moving the camera. To achieve focus you need to be 0.8" (20mm) from the subject. While there is an aperture ring, even with it stopped all the way down, the area in focus is crazy thin. Because of that, using a tripod is a near necessity. Due to the size of the front element, you'll need a lot of light on the subject which in some instances will be a challenge due to how close you have to be to achieve focus. One more quick note, there is no aperture actuator like you'll see on other K-Mount lenses - this is basically an extension tube with a tiny lens on the front. It is possible to get some good images with this lens, but be aware that it's a different kind of animal than you may be not used to and that it will take some trial and error to get it right.
EDIT: I was asked to upload some sample images, so here you go. These were shot handheld in natural light at 1/200 and ISO 12800
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