Interceptor121 770 Posted January 18 (edited) The Sony full frame housing from Nauticam have an adapter to use Nikonos water contact lenses I have a few questions for users with experience of this lens on full frame cameras 1. Aperture range -> the lens goes to f/2.8 and is equivalent to 20mm topside. How useable it really is at f/2.8 f/4? Especially f/4 seems very interesting for video 2. Hyperfocal distance -> does the lens work as a 20mm topside lens or there is other logic? 3. Working distance -> how close does it focus I am thinking about this lens for video not for photos however I realise most users like @Alex_Mustard use it for photos and most likely have the answers 20mm is not a lot for photos but is almost ideal for video actually and the lens is rectilinear which is another plus Edited January 18 by Interceptor121 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Phil Rudin 461 Posted January 18 The Nikonos 15mm has the same 94 degree as a 20mm and focuses too 30cm. The lens does not work out of water it is a full water contact lens, Nikon did make a 28mm and 80mm for land use. Regarding the 94mm AOV this was the gold standard for U/W photographers during the film days and arguably graced more U/W magazine covers than another film lens. You may also want to consider the new Sony FE 20-70 F/4 announced yesterday. This new lens is a constant F/4 across the zoom range and also focuses at 25cm across the full range, so about 1:2.5 at the 70mm end. I suspect this lens will be ideal for video and stills use. It has all the latest Sony lens tech including the ultra fast focus motors. Sony further announced its intension to release a 300mm F/2.8 soon to help cover the long end with 300, 400 and 600mm. Perhaps they will now consider the other end of the focal range and work on a fisheye. Canon and Sony have both filed pattens for at least four different fisheye designers in the 8-15mm range hoping they will finally release one of those designed. I agree with Alex that while current adapted 8-15mm designs deliver DSLR results a native fisheye zoom for mirrorless should set a new benchmark. The new Sony lens is about the size of the 35mm F/1.8. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Davide DB 493 Posted January 18 8 minutes ago, Phil Rudin said: You may also want to consider the new Sony FE 20-70 F/4 announced yesterday. This new lens is a constant F/4 across the zoom range and also focuses at 25cm across the full range, so about 1:2.5 at the 70mm end. I suspect this lens will be ideal for video and stills use. It has all the latest Sony lens tech including the ultra fast focus motors. Maybe just behind a dome. Zooming it extends a lot! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Phil Rudin 461 Posted January 18 A bunch of 24-70, 28-75 and 24-105's from Sigma, Sony Tamron and more are supported for 180 and 230mm ports. They all have about the same zoom extension and some are longer, I don't think this will be an issue. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Davide DB 493 Posted January 18 Sorry my fault. I thought you were referring to its possible use behind a Nauticam wet lens. That's why I was pointing out the zoom extension. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Interceptor121 770 Posted January 18 1 hour ago, Phil Rudin said: A bunch of 24-70, 28-75 and 24-105's from Sigma, Sony Tamron and more are supported for 180 and 230mm ports. They all have about the same zoom extension and some are longer, I don't think this will be an issue. I have a Tamron 17-28mm it works well topside for the use case I got it for. I have the 180mm port already and I am planning to take it underwater Yet it won't work at f/4 like the Nikonos lens did Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Phil Rudin 461 Posted January 18 I have used the Tamron lens a bunch and reviewed it in 2021 issue #UWP119 using both 180 and 230mm ports. I have replaced it with the Sony FE 16-35mm F/4 power zoom which is a better lens in every way for U/W work. I have also used the Nauticam lens adapter for Nikonos film lenses. It is one of the older Sony specific products and filled a gap back when the Sony lens lineup was not so well filled out on the wide rectilinear end. I was not all that impressed with the results in the F/2.8 to 5.6 range and have never seem it used by anyone in the field. The Nikonos RS 13mm fisheye on the other hand appears excellent adapter to DSLR cameras. Modern rectilinear lenses are designed much differently for mirrorless than the older film lenses where the light could be captured at very oblique angles. I don't expect the corner sharpness at F/4 with the Nikonos 15mm is going to be all that much better than than a 16-35 at F/4 with a large dome. The upside for the Nikonos of course is the size but It would not out perform the WWL-1 with the 28-60mm. The Sony FE 20-70 F/4 is an entirely different zoom range so not really apples to apples with the 17-28mm. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Humu797 20 Posted January 18 2 hours ago, Phil Rudin said: You may also want to consider the new Sony FE 20-70 F/4 announced yesterday. This new lens is a constant F/4 across the zoom range and also focuses at 25cm across the full range, so about 1:2.5 at the 70mm end. I suspect this lens will be ideal for video and stills use. It has all the latest Sony lens tech including the ultra fast focus motors. That range sounds like a good all-rounder, and focusing a bit closer is a plus. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Humu797 20 Posted January 18 (edited) 7 hours ago, Interceptor121 said: The Sony full frame housing from Nauticam have an adapter to use Nikonos water contact lenses I have a few questions for users with experience of this lens on full frame cameras 1. Aperture range -> the lens goes to f/2.8 and is equivalent to 20mm topside. How useable it really is at f/2.8 f/4? Especially f/4 seems very interesting for video 2. Hyperfocal distance -> does the lens work as a 20mm topside lens or there is other logic? 3. Working distance -> how close does it focus I am thinking about this lens for video not for photos however I realise most users like @Alex_Mustard use it for photos and most likely have the answers 20mm is not a lot for photos but is almost ideal for video actually and the lens is rectilinear which is another plus check out this lens comparison on this very forum from 2014. https://wetpixel.com/articles/test-optical-performance-of-nikonos-15mm-flat-and-dome-ports Edited January 18 by Humu797 adding link Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Interceptor121 770 Posted January 18 (edited) 7 minutes ago, Humu797 said: check out this lens comparison on this very forum from 2014. https://wetpixel.com/articles/test-optical-performance-of-nikonos-15mm-flat-and-dome-ports I know that article it has some errors Field of view is 94.38 degrees. The other lenses tested are 14mm so much wider and prone to issues You need to compare the Nikkor 15mm to a 20mm lens behind a dome not to a 14mm lens which for sure will have more issues. I actually have a 17-28mm and soon will have a Nikkor 15mm so will run my own tests The nikkor essentially is a 15mm lens that only works in water, when submerged it has a multiplication of 4/3 so becomes 20mm It balances the distortion and has low chromatic aberration so will product an extremely clean image. However a 20mm modern lens especially prime will have an extremely high resolution and require a smaller dome due to the field of view of 94 degrees. My plan is to use a 180mm dome and I am pretty sure it will be ok actually but at f/16 while the Nikkor will work at f/4 f/5.6 just fine which is what makes this lens very interesting Edited January 18 by Interceptor121 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Humu797 20 Posted January 18 (edited) 15 minutes ago, Interceptor121 said: I know that article it has some errors Field of view is 94.38 degrees. The other lenses tested are 14mm so much wider and prone to issues Yes, you're right. But the takeaway is that the Nikkor 15mm is a damn good lens. I have one, along with the Nauticam adapter, but I have yet to put it to the test with mirrorless. Have you seen this: https://www.stevehuffphoto.com/2016/12/05/the-sony-a7r-underwater-with-the-iconic-nikonos-15mm-lens-by-scotty-graham/ Edited January 18 by Humu797 adding for clarification Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Interceptor121 770 Posted January 18 1 minute ago, Humu797 said: Yes, you're right. But the takeaway is that the Nikkor 15mm is a damn good lens. I have one, along with the Nauticam adapter, but I have yet to put it to the test. Have you seen this: https://www.stevehuffphoto.com/2016/12/05/the-sony-a7r-underwater-with-the-iconic-nikonos-15mm-lens-by-scotty-graham/ I know a few people that have it. What is most interesting for me is the video capability as 20mm rectilinear is really great Likewise pictures with divers but frankly for photos I do not think the manual aperture manual focus is really the way forward and will keep shooting a canon 8-15mm 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
