Nauticam Port Advice for Olympus M.Zuiko Digital 14-42mm f/3.5-5.6 II R

[JayceeB 52]

Folks,

I own a kit lens that I would like to use as a mid-range zoom, mainly for ambient light, big animal photography :

Olympus M.Zuiko Digital 14-42mm f/3.5-5.6 II R

I would like to avoid purchasing a dedicated port for this lens.
36136 (macro port 56)

Instead, I'm wondering if I could get by using one of the following Nauticam ports that I already own, and just purchasing the zoom gear:

36135 (macro port 45) + 36620 (mini extension ring 20) - Used for Oly 60mm macro.
36133 (6" dome) - Used for Panasonic 7-14.
36132 (4.33" dome) - Used for Panasonic 8mm. (** Could add the 36620 mini extension ring 20 if required).

Does anyone have experience trying any of these combinations?

Thanks.
 

[bill1946 16]

I have this lens in another housing. I would not purchase an expensive port for ambient light. It is best with a strobe. 

[tursiops 81]

"36135 (macro port 45) + 36620 (mini extension ring 20) - Used for Oly 60mm macro."

This combo is a little long....65mm total, and you only need 56. You could help yourself by using the 17mm extension ring 36617 rather than the 20mm, but that still only gets you down to 62mm. What you'd lose would be your 14mm wideangle end; the 42mm telephoto end is still fine.

Why do you have a 36135 port? I thought that only fit the 30mm macro lens? Do you want more telephoto than 30mm but less than 60?

[JayceeB 52]

2 hours ago, bill1946 said:

I have this lens in another housing. I would not purchase an expensive port for ambient light. It is best with a strobe. 

Thanks for the feedback.  I don't plan on purchasing a port for this lens, just wondering if i could use it with one of my existing port combinations temporarily, until I can afford a 12-40 + port.  So all i would be purchasing is a zoom gear.

[JayceeB 52]

50 minutes ago, tursiops said:

"36135 (macro port 45) + 36620 (mini extension ring 20) - Used for Oly 60mm macro."

This combo is a little long....65mm total, and you only need 56. You could help yourself by using the 17mm extension ring 36617 rather than the 20mm, but that still only gets you down to 62mm. What you'd lose would be your 14mm wideangle end; the 42mm telephoto end is still fine.

Why do you have a 36135 port? I thought that only fit the 30mm macro lens? Do you want more telephoto than 30mm but less than 60?

Thanks for your reply, tursiops.

I have a 30mm macro which I use for fish portraits and a 60mm macro which i use for nudis.  This is why i have both the 45mm port and 20mm extension.  45mm port for the 30mm lens.  45mm+20mm extension for the 60mm lens.  I don't plan on investing much in the 14-42 kit, but I already have the lens.  Was trying to see if i could utilize my existing ports and extension.  I actually tried this out in a tub today with the lens set at 14mm with the 45mm+20mm extension.  Although the 65mm is longer than required, there was no vignetting at the wide end of this lens, so I think it will work if I just purchase the zoom gear.  There may be other optics factors at play here, but it appears to work.

The situation i'm trying to gear up for is a local dive with resident tigers.  Sometimes the sharks approach very closely, but other times further away.  This is why i would like a more flexible zoom range than my current wide angle 7-14 setup gives me.  Eventually I would like to add the 12-40 and port, but this is a pricey option.  Also, sounds like Olympus has an 8-25mm F4 Pro in their future roadmap (if that ever gets fullfilled), which would be a nice combination.

[ChrisRoss 150]

The problem with the 14-42 is it becomes about a 17.5mm at the wide end in a flat port, which means you would have to back off quite a bit to shoot big animals, 35mm full frame equivalent focal length is not that wide. 

If you have the 6" dome try it in there and see if vignettes - that would be what I'd choose if it worked.  It's not going to have the optimal spacing but it is most likely sharper than the 14mm through a flat port.  The 4" wide angle port is recommended for it and that has a long extension as well.

BTW the Panasonic 12-35mm f2.8 uses the 6" wide angle port, doesn't focus quite as close as the olympus 12-40 but it's another option.

Here's the Nauticam port chart for reference:  https://drive.google.com/file/d/1PzZ346RG3N7XTt6s8EUC9pBL2FfxQzIE/view

 

[JayceeB 52]

On 7/11/2020 at 2:31 AM, ChrisRoss said:

The problem with the 14-42 is it becomes about a 17.5mm at the wide end in a flat port, which means you would have to back off quite a bit to shoot big animals, 35mm full frame equivalent focal length is not that wide. 

If you have the 6" dome try it in there and see if vignettes - that would be what I'd choose if it worked.  It's not going to have the optimal spacing but it is most likely sharper than the 14mm through a flat port.  The 4" wide angle port is recommended for it and that has a long extension as well.

BTW the Panasonic 12-35mm f2.8 uses the 6" wide angle port, doesn't focus quite as close as the olympus 12-40 but it's another option.

Here's the Nauticam port chart for reference:  https://drive.google.com/file/d/1PzZ346RG3N7XTt6s8EUC9pBL2FfxQzIE/view

 

Thanks, Chris.  I'll test out the 6" dome in my test tank.  Also, I was so focused on the highly recommended 12-40 that I didn't consider the 12-35mm option.  Will look further at that, since the 7-14 and 12-35 share a common port.  If the tradeoffs in autofocus and image quality are acceptable, might be worth considering.

[ChrisRoss 150]

Make no mistake, the 12-40 is a great little lens - focuses just about down on the dome and very sharp.   The 6" port is also probably a little small for the 12mm end so the corners won't be as good as the recommended 170/180mm domes for the 12-40.  But if you are on a budget the 12-35 certainly is an option. 

[JayceeB 52]

 

On 7/11/2020 at 2:31 AM, ChrisRoss said:

The problem with the 14-42 is it becomes about a 17.5mm at the wide end in a flat port, which means you would have to back off quite a bit to shoot big animals, 35mm full frame equivalent focal length is not that wide. 

If you have the 6" dome try it in there and see if vignettes - that would be what I'd choose if it worked.  It's not going to have the optimal spacing but it is most likely sharper than the 14mm through a flat port.  The 4" wide angle port is recommended for it and that has a long extension as well.

BTW the Panasonic 12-35mm f2.8 uses the 6" wide angle port, doesn't focus quite as close as the olympus 12-40 but it's another option.

Here's the Nauticam port chart for reference:  https://drive.google.com/file/d/1PzZ346RG3N7XTt6s8EUC9pBL2FfxQzIE/view

 

I tested the 14-42 with the 6" dome in a test tank.  No vignetting.  I'll try this in the wild and see how it works.  Thanks, Chris, for your suggestion.