WA Adapter on 2/3" HD lens at DVinfo.net

Paul Cronin · February 8th, 2011, 07:49 AM

Has anyone had good results putting a wide angle adapter on their 2/3" HD lens? I know a second lens is the way to go but not in the budget right now.

Bill Ward · February 8th, 2011, 01:32 PM

Take this with a grain of salt, but:

When I first bought my HDCam, and had a rather expensive Century Optics wide eye that I used on my 22x Fuji switchable SD lens, I called the lads at Century and inquired whether they would be producing an HD version of the wide angle adapter.

The guy there just laughed and said the optics on my adapter already exceeded what I would be getting from an HD lens.

YMMV.

Paul Cronin · February 8th, 2011, 01:45 PM

Thanks Bill,

Did you ever try it on an HD lens?
Do you still own it?

I know Fujinon makes one but none in the country.

Hope you moved the camera.

Daniel Epstein · February 8th, 2011, 02:11 PM

Hey Paul,
I use a Wide Angle Adapter from Century internal Focus .8x adapter on my Fujinon XA17x7.6 lens. It just starts to vignette so I have to keep an eye on it. Picture quality wise I don't see a difference on the HPX-500 but maybe i would with a higher rez chip. Makes a big difference in angle of view so it is worth it. A newer design may not vignette.

Paul Cronin · February 8th, 2011, 02:21 PM

Thanks Daniel,

I wrote to Century to see what they have for my lens. Appreciate the input.

Paul Cronin · February 9th, 2011, 11:22 AM

Century wrote back and they have a .8x multi element zoom through and a .5 one element no zoom. Now I am waiting on 16x9 to see what they recommend. I know they have WA on their site but I like to know what they recommend for my 2/3" ZA17x HD lens.

Any others that people can recommend that are up to the HD quality with no vinetting and high distortion?

Bill Ward · February 9th, 2011, 11:31 AM

Paul:

It only fit on my Fuji 22x SD lens (which is still a great lens), but I used it for years on the HDCam, with excellent results. It only gets a tad soft at the full zoom range...but then, so do most lenses.

No vignetting at all, and almost no curvilinear distortion, unless literally right on top of a door jamb.

It is heavy, if you're doing a ton of handheld, but you get used to it.

Paul Cronin · February 9th, 2011, 11:59 AM

Thanks Bill,

The Century sounds nice and the weight is not a problem. One of the many, many nice reasons to own a shoulder camera for handheld work.

Do you keep your UV filter on or take it off with the WA?

There .8x is on the top of my list. Now to see what 16x9 has to say.

I did try an older .8x Century but it was too soft. Model FA-8XIF-85.

Paul Cronin · February 9th, 2011, 12:36 PM

16x9 wrote back and said their product is for 1/3" and 1/2" cameras and will not work properly on 2/3" chip.

Bill Ward · February 10th, 2011, 09:01 AM

Paul:

mine is the FA-8x20-00 model.

I usually just slipped it right over the clear filter.

Paul Cronin · February 10th, 2011, 09:12 AM

Thank you Bill appreciate the model number and filter info.

The number I put up was the adapter ring. The one I tested was model .8x IF WA Converter so it is an older one.

February 8th, 2011, 07:49 AM	#1
Paul Cronin Inner Circle Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: Rhode Island Posts: 4,048	WA Adapter on 2/3" HD lens Has anyone had good results putting a wide angle adapter on their 2/3" HD lens? I know a second lens is the way to go but not in the budget right now. __________________ Paul Cronin www.paulcroninstudios.com

February 8th, 2011, 01:45 PM	#3
Paul Cronin Inner Circle Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: Rhode Island Posts: 4,048	Thanks Bill, Did you ever try it on an HD lens? Do you still own it? I know Fujinon makes one but none in the country. Hope you moved the camera. __________________ Paul Cronin www.paulcroninstudios.com

February 8th, 2011, 02:21 PM	#5
Paul Cronin Inner Circle Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: Rhode Island Posts: 4,048	Thanks Daniel, I wrote to Century to see what they have for my lens. Appreciate the input. __________________ Paul Cronin www.paulcroninstudios.com

February 9th, 2011, 11:22 AM	#6
Paul Cronin Inner Circle Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: Rhode Island Posts: 4,048	Century wrote back and they have a .8x multi element zoom through and a .5 one element no zoom. Now I am waiting on 16x9 to see what they recommend. I know they have WA on their site but I like to know what they recommend for my 2/3" ZA17x HD lens. Any others that people can recommend that are up to the HD quality with no vinetting and high distortion? __________________ Paul Cronin www.paulcroninstudios.com

February 9th, 2011, 11:59 AM	#8
Paul Cronin Inner Circle Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: Rhode Island Posts: 4,048	Thanks Bill, The Century sounds nice and the weight is not a problem. One of the many, many nice reasons to own a shoulder camera for handheld work. Do you keep your UV filter on or take it off with the WA? There .8x is on the top of my list. Now to see what 16x9 has to say. I did try an older .8x Century but it was too soft. Model FA-8XIF-85. __________________ Paul Cronin www.paulcroninstudios.com

February 8th, 2011, 01:32 PM	#2
Bill Ward Major Player Join Date: Jul 2005 Posts: 580	Take this with a grain of salt, but: When I first bought my HDCam, and had a rather expensive Century Optics wide eye that I used on my 22x Fuji switchable SD lens, I called the lads at Century and inquired whether they would be producing an HD version of the wide angle adapter. The guy there just laughed and said the optics on my adapter already exceeded what I would be getting from an HD lens. YMMV.

February 8th, 2011, 02:11 PM	#4
Daniel Epstein Trustee Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: New York, NY Posts: 1,267	Hey Paul, I use a Wide Angle Adapter from Century internal Focus .8x adapter on my Fujinon XA17x7.6 lens. It just starts to vignette so I have to keep an eye on it. Picture quality wise I don't see a difference on the HPX-500 but maybe i would with a higher rez chip. Makes a big difference in angle of view so it is worth it. A newer design may not vignette.

February 9th, 2011, 11:31 AM	#7
Bill Ward Major Player Join Date: Jul 2005 Posts: 580	Paul: It only fit on my Fuji 22x SD lens (which is still a great lens), but I used it for years on the HDCam, with excellent results. It only gets a tad soft at the full zoom range...but then, so do most lenses. No vignetting at all, and almost no curvilinear distortion, unless literally right on top of a door jamb. It is heavy, if you're doing a ton of handheld, but you get used to it.

February 9th, 2011, 12:36 PM	#9
Paul Cronin Inner Circle Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: Rhode Island Posts: 4,048	16x9 wrote back and said their product is for 1/3" and 1/2" cameras and will not work properly on 2/3" chip. __________________ Paul Cronin www.paulcroninstudios.com

February 10th, 2011, 09:01 AM	#10
Bill Ward Major Player Join Date: Jul 2005 Posts: 580	Paul: mine is the FA-8x20-00 model. I usually just slipped it right over the clear filter.

February 10th, 2011, 09:12 AM	#11
Paul Cronin Inner Circle Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: Rhode Island Posts: 4,048	Thank you Bill appreciate the model number and filter info. The number I put up was the adapter ring. The one I tested was model .8x IF WA Converter so it is an older one. __________________ Paul Cronin www.paulcroninstudios.com