HMC40 and Century 0.5x Wide Angle [PICS]

My Test Results

My Test Results

I was going to start a new thread, then I remembered we had this one already, so I'm posting images from the Century 0.5x Wide Angle Adapter.

SUMMERY OF TESTS:

While you can zoom into the image up to about 52 to 53, the corners of the image go soft. The more you zoom, the worse it gets. You might be able to do a zoom 10, but beyond that, it really gets soft in the corners. Just use this adapter at the widest angle setting for sharpest results.

At close to wide open at the widest setting, you can see a bit of softness in the corner. (Look at the grass in the lower right corner.) As you close the iris to F4.5, it's not bad and by F10.5 it looks normal.

F10.5:
WA_Adapter-F105.png


F4.5:
WA_Adapter-F45.png


F1.9:
WA_Adapter-F19.png



Bob Diaz
 
Bob,
The other noticeable aberration, and I noticed with mine also, is the chromatic aberration, which in your pictures is most prominent against the power lines (purple fringing), though you can see it elsewhere.
 
A friend of the family is getting married next week and I'm shooting the video. IF there are shots in the reception where the WA Adapter might be needed, I'll use it.


Bob Diaz
 
Bob,
I use mine a lot since I am shooting outdoor stuff at the Comanche Springs Astronomy Campus. I have some success avoiding too much visible CA by watching my shooting angles, but sometimes it just can't be avoided (you can minimize it a bit in post). A polarizing filter, mentioned later here, can help, though. Generally here are my lessons learned with this WA adapter:

1. you have to be just slightly zoomed in a bit (about 10 or so) if you have a polarizing filter on the front or you will have some vignetting.
2. Like you mentioned, if you zoom in too much, you will have some severe coma around the edges (the blurring stuff). You just can't do it much with this adapter on. However, this is where having a steadicam type mount (Glidecam in my case) works well so you can just move in or out instead of zooming. It isn't a perfect substitute, but can give some dimensions and movement to the zoom.
3. Brightly lit scenes with dark sharp edges against lighter shades will make the CA (purple) really apparent. A polarizing filter can knock that down plus just carefully planning your shooting angles. A warming filter can be effective with this in some situations, especially if you are getting yellow CA (which can show up in sunlit, lighter contrast spots). Sometimes it just can't be avoided, though.
 
use of teleconverters

use of teleconverters

I was wondering whether anyone can advise on the use of a teleconverter on the HMC40, which I'll need to shoot action shots at distance.

Thinking of getting a Century Optics 2.0 (58mm) and use a step-up ring 46-58.

Will this reduce vignetting at all, due to the larger lens size?
How will the camera balance with a 500 g lens on the front?

Or would it be better to use eg. Canon TL-H46 (does not have external filter ring).

Thanks
 
I just bought the Century 0.5 adapter. You can zoom through to about 50%. Also if you remove the so called inner lens hood you will get no vignetting. Looking for some type of matte box lens shade since the original no longer fits with this adapter

Look at page 16 of the operating manual for the HMC40
 
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I was reading this topic and I found out that the HMC40 has an inner lens hood. I've been trying to remove it, but I can't get it to budge. I looked at page 16 in the PDF guide, but all it shows is that it can be detached without unscrewing.

Is there something else I have to remove first before trying to remove the inner lens hood? The outer lens hood is obviously removed; no filters or additional lens are on the camera. I can see two tabs going through two holes and I tried using leverage with a few tools to lift up the larger tab from the bottom to no avail (I tried the other side also). This inner lens hood better not be simply just too tight because I don't want to use more force for fear of slipping and scratching the lens. So, any insight on this would be a great help.
 
Dendron - the inner lens hood does in fact require unscrewing.
The outer ring of the hood will rotate, while the hood portion will remain in place... just keep unscrewing it until the entire piece comes off.
 
That was the very first thing I tried; it didn't seem to even be able to do that. What sort of tool must I use? Just now, I tried a few square/rectangular items that would fit in between the outer ring and I tried twisting to unscrew it. I tried twisting counter-clockwise, which is the correct rotation direction, correct? If that's not the issue, what should I do? It would be helpful to see a video of the process to make sure I'm doing this right.
 
WIth mine, I just screw it counter-clockwise, gently, to remove. The two little spigots don't really come into it at all, they just help you to align it when putting the inner hood on.

Filters do get stuck sometimes. In these cases, I use a pair of rubberised gloves (like you use for dishwashing) to try to get more grip on the filter. It can also help to use the palm of your hand and try to unscrew it with that.

I would strongly recommend not to put any device in there to try to loosen it other than a proper filter wrench (which any photo store should have).

I'll try to post a video shortly, though it ain't easy without a second video camera!
 
Thank you for the video. After trying several times with my bare fingers again, I looked for a rubber glove. I donned it and did my best in getting the inner lens hood free. Just when I was about to give up with intense pain coursing through my fingers, the inner hood finally gave. I stored it, never to use it again. I tried on my cheap telephoto and wide angle lenses on and they seem to do a better job now. The cool thing is that I can just leave the step-up ring and still be able to put the outer lens hood on.

Thanks!
 
Good job. :)

I had the same problem over Christmas here when I was out filming. The extreme cold weather must've done something to a screw-on ND filter and I couldn't get it off, so the struggle and techniques were fresh in my mind!
 
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