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UltravioletPhotography

Poll: if there was an affordable full spectrum lens, what MM would you buy? (Assume 4/3 or APSC sensor.)


Johan

what MM full spectrum lens would you purchase for a mirrorless body?  

19 members have voted

  1. 1. Please choose which mm you'd purchase first for a mirrorless body thank you

    • 0-10mm
      2
    • 11-20mm
      5
    • 21-30mm
      4
    • 31-40mm
      0
    • 41-50mm
      2
    • 51-60mm
      1
    • 61-70mm
      0
    • 71-80mm
      0
    • 81-90mm
      0
    • 91-100mm
      0
    • 100-150mm
      0
    • 151-251mm
      0
    • 251mm+
      0
    • Macro Capability
      5


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Hi,

 

If there was an affordable full spectrum lens for a mirrorless system, what mm would you purchase first? One choice only to force a choice.

 

Disclosure - commercial interest, I'm working with a company that's considering such a thing. I'm under NDA so no questions please, thank you. Assume 4/3 or APSC sensor size. I know they're different but that's the rough size, all the info I can give thanks.

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Wide angle of view would be my preference. That is not easily obtained in any of the formats currently used for recording UV.
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Second the call for a wide angle, especially a short wide angle. Dedicated UV lenses are almost all short-to-mid telephoto length, because they are designed for flower macros or other scientific specimen work. Most wide angles have thick glass, so getting one with good UV bandpass is a struggle. I fantasize about an all-quartz full-frame 14/2.8 (fat chance of that...)
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I voted macro capable as that is what I shoot. But in making that selection, the focal length is missing. So for me at least it would be a 35mm macro, if on M43rds.

My most used lens ever on 43rds was the 35mm f3.5 Olympus macro. Even though my favorite lens is my Sigma 150mm f2.8 macro. I seem to be drawn to the 30/35mm. I am now using the Sigma 30mn f2.8 a lot. Especially since it is partially uv capable. It useful down to 370nm.

The other focal length I am pulled into is 15mm. This I think comes from my favorite medium format lens, a 55mm f2.8 shift lens for pentacon six, having an apearent field of view of 30mm.

So for M43rds either a 15mm or 35mm macro would work for me. I do have an excellent 85mm f4.5 lens covered.

I think for some reason most M43rds users want really wide angles. But I don't know if they actually use the really wide angles. Just its hard to get to, so they always ask for more.

That being said since I own the Wollensak 25mm f1.5, which is really a 28mm field of view with useful range only to 370nm, the Sigma 30mm f2.8 (370nm), igoriginal 35mm f3.5 (335nm), Steinheil 50mm f2.8 (335nm), nikor 80mm f5.6 (335nm) and UAT 85mm f4.5 (<300nm), I might acually buy a 15mm or true 25mm lens. I have thought about getting the UKA optics 25mm f2.8 lens. But usually talk my self out of it.

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enricosavazzi

Wide angle of view would be my preference. That is not easily obtained in any of the formats currently used for recording UV.

Same here, it is not difficult to find good and affordable legacy lenses 35 mm and up.

 

Conventional macro lenses that work well in UV are not common. Designing a simple optical scheme with few elements and no cemented groups that works well in a broad magnification range is a challenge. It probably requires floating elements, or an additional magnification ring like the Schneider Macro Varon if implemented as a bellows lens.

 

The 63 mm Zeiss Luminar is said to perform well enough in NUV within its optimal magnification range of roughly 1x to 2.5x (I have two but never got around to trying). In principle, for work below 1x, reversing the 63 mm should work better than using the lens in its normal orientation (which is optimized for work above 1x). Reversing the lens requires a custom adapter (or a simple sleeve). The UV-pass filter is best mounted between lens and bellows/extension tubes for work above 1x. This is not an affordable lens, though. Its performance in NUV comes down to having just 3 elements, none cemented.

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Jonathan, about your survey...

I got myself hung up on the usual "confusion". I would love a really good wide angle UV-dedicated lens at 28mm or 35mm over full frame. But the specification above was for a smaller sensor - either 4/3 or APSC. So how would that translate? For 4/3 (2x angle-of-view-factor) I would want a 14mm or 18mm? For APSC(1.5/1.6 angle-of-view-factor), I would want an 18mm or 22mm?

 

I suppose the correct vote would be for 18mm, more or less? I need to go back and change my vote.

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Yes, you're right Andrea. I failed at the first, by not reading the post properly. I just read the title, and didn't think about the sensor size.
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Loving the results thus far, very interesting. Many thanks everyone!

 

really hope we get a few more votes on their - it's in our interest :)

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Johan,

What date does your NDA expire and you can tell us about the new lens?

 

With the current low cost of fused silica lenses elements and the new FLD glass I am hoping that afordable is around $500. Although I don't know if FLD has the same transmission as fluorite. But was reported to have similar corrections at lower cost from Hoya.

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