Saturday, January 10, 2015


Insiders' tip!

Here is a hot tip for all of you m43 users...

Ever thought about a teleconverter lens but were disappointed by the results? Understandable, because most of those lenses are not worth the money they cost. Maybe with the exeption of those made particularly for a special lens.

But there is and exeption to the rule:  The Olympus C-180!

Originally made of the old filmcamera IS 1000, coincidently it works very well with several current m43 lenses. And I mean VERY WELL!

Having read about it in a german usergroup, I got me one and was blown away from the results.
This converter increases the focal length of the lens by 1.7x, is very small and lightweight and therefore usable for small m43 lenses without putting too much weight on their front elements.

I own the superb Olympus 45mm 1.8 and there was a gap between the latter and my Panasonic 100-300 zoom lens. Since 75mm isn't a focal length I'm using much, buying an expensive 75mm 1.8 makes no sense for me.
The C-180 converts my 45mm 1.8 into a 75mm 1.8 with stunning results. No distortion, no loss of sharpness, even in the corners. And I also like the BQ it delivers.

Here is an example of this combination:


I have even adapted it to my Panasonic 100-300... and it works!



So, for very little money one can get a compact solution to extend ones lens range without much loss in quality. Those C-180 converters are usually readily available on ebay for a few Dollars. So keep your eyes open... :-)

to be continued...

2 comments:

  1. Hi,

    Nice tip that C-180. thanks! Just ordered one.
    Have you got any samples with it on the 100-300mm, on the 200-300mm range?
    Also, can you please comment how is the focus speed with that combo?
    Thanks!
    José

    ReplyDelete
  2. Hi José

    The samples above are made at 300mm.
    Actually, I see no need to use it below that, since the lens offers that range without converter already. But as far as I know, there will be dark corners at lower focal ranges.
    I don't see any loss in focus speed when the converter is attached.

    Tom

    ReplyDelete

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