Wide angle from another angle at DVinfo.net

Carl Adams · November 22nd, 2007, 01:27 PM

Hi all,
I would just like to start by saying this is my very first post on this or any other forum. I have been watching and reading this forum since I bought my HDR-A1E a couple of months ago. I am mighty impressed with what I have read so far.

I know wide angle lens have been discussed a lot, and I have read all the posts I can find. After reading & researching I decided that I want to buy a Sony VCL-HG0737Y and a Cavision LH77 hood.
After setting my heart on this I went looking to buy the lens, only to find out Sony have discontinued this and replaced it with a VCL-HG0737C.

My problem is that the C version has not been discussed or reviewed much. And from what I have read, is not up to the quality of the Y version and has more barrel distortion. Also I think there would be problems with the LH77 hood attaching, as I am unsure to what size the front of the lens is.

My first question is: Does anyone know where I can buy a Sony VCL-HG0737Y version, any stores with old stock still knocking around?

My second is: Has anyone used the C version or compared the two, and which lens hood would be best with the C version?

I know about all the alternative lens and would like to keep this thread specific to the two Sony wide angle lens as much as possible please.

Any help or suggestions on this would be great
Now all I need to do is wait for some replies, hopefully!

Keep up the good work

Carl (:-])

Andy Wilkinson · November 22nd, 2007, 02:12 PM

Just to say that I have the Sony VCL-HG0737Y 0.7X wide Angle and the Cavision 77mm hood for it (on my Sony HC1) and I'm very impressed with it....in fact my mate with his Sony V1 and 0.8X Sony Wide Angle adapter is also impressed with it. Why?, well less barrel distortion despite wider view than he gets.

It's very impressive but, be warned, REALLY heavy (make the camera very nose heavy unless - as I mostly do - you are on a tripod.) The lack of a thread on the front is also a bit of a negative.

Andy W

Carl Adams · November 22nd, 2007, 03:11 PM

Thanks for the reply Andy.

The lack of barrel distortion is what I have read about and sounds impressive. With all the good reviews this lens has had, it makes me wonder why Sony discontinued it.
I do try to use a tripod as much a possible and the weight is something I have thought about, though it is not the balance that worries me. This can be compensated for or counterbalanced. What concerns me more is the pressure of the weight on the camera thread. I have thought that maybe getting a matte box and rod system to support this is a better option over the LH77, possibly!

Have you seen any comparisons between the Y & C version lens?

The lack of thread on the front is a bit slack of Sony and does make me look at other lens slightly. But I keep getting pulled back towards the Sony.
Maybe, if I can't get the Y version I shall look at other options.

Do you know anything about the C version? any pro's and con's.

Cheers

Carl (:-})

Dave Blackhurst · November 23rd, 2007, 02:57 PM

Carl - I've got both, the Y is a heavy beast, as already noted, but probably as good a piece of glass as you can get - the C is not bad, I'll try to take a couple stills and post something in a day or two. You'll get a bit more lens flare with the C and there is a bit more barrel distortion, but stills will let you see for yourself.

I'll also check the diameters, but you can probaly find that on the web if you check specs for the two lenses.

Carl Adams · November 23rd, 2007, 03:50 PM

Thanks for the reply Dave- it's nice to have found someone on this forum who has both lens. So you would agree with many others, that the Y version is the better of the two with regards to quality and less barrel distortion.

I look forward to seeing the stills so I can see the difference for myself.

Everyone says this lens is a heavy beast! Is this a problem on the camera thread? Would you say it needs supporting rods or something?

I see myself pulling towards skipping the C version and holding on and finding a Y version, in old stock somewhere or second hand.

Don't go out your way, I shall find the measurements online if I end up getting the C version. And then I shall worry about what hood or Matte box I buy, depending on which lens I get.

I see your in Apple Valley California! I envy you living there as I am 100% Mac man all the way, since the days of my old Mac SE/30

Cheers
Carl (:})

Laurence Kingston · December 3rd, 2007, 03:44 PM

I have both as well and would echo the sentiment that the "Y" lens is slightly better. I use the "C" lens on my tiny CX-7 which feels entirely too front heavy with the bigger "Y" lens. Cavision doesn't make a hood that fits on the "C" lens. I wish they would.

Having said that, the "C" lens is still a really good lens. I would say it is the best 37mm thread zoom through lens currently available. It is much better than the more expensive Century Optics model.

Ryan Avery · December 4th, 2007, 12:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Laurence Kingston

I have both as well and would echo the sentiment that the "Y" lens is slightly better. I use the "C" lens on my tiny CX-7 which feels entirely too front heavy with the bigger "Y" lens. Cavision doesn't make a hood that fits on the "C" lens. I wish they would.

Having said that, the "C" lens is still a really good lens. I would say it is the best 37mm thread zoom through lens currently available. It is much better than the more expensive Century Optics model.

Note to all,

We are working day and night with boiling beakers and lab coats on. We will have an HD revision of the .65x 37mm attachment soon. The .65x works the best on the Sony cameras but was not designed for HD use.

Ryan Avery
Schneider Optics

Carl Adams · December 4th, 2007, 03:19 PM

Wow I feel honored, Laurence Kingston on my first thread I've posted or is that, post I started a thread on!
It's because of Laurance, his knowledge, experience and of course his famous little A1 setup that I started reading this forum.

I could not wait to find a Sony VCL-HG0737Y lens, but would buy one if one comes up in the future. In the mean time I have had the opportunity to purchase a (bargain on ebay) 37mm Century .65 HR Wide angle (C117558)
The Century Optics & Raynox lens were others I was debating with myself wether or not to get.

I have tried it on my A1 and tested the zoom through and distortion. I am mighty impressed, there's no distortion to the point where it's noticeable and it stays the same right through the zoom range. I shall be shooting some footage with it tomorrow, so it will be interesting to see the picture once it has been captured in Final Cut. Though I must say it looks optically very clear with good quality glass.

Ryan, you say it's not designed for HD use. I thought the HR in the title stood for High Resolution meaning HiDef? It will be interesting to see the HD revision when it comes out, and how it stands up to the Sony lens.

I like the fact that there's filter thread. Could you tell me what the filter thread size it is, as I have not found that out yet?

Thanks for your help guys

Carl (:-})

Ryan Avery · December 4th, 2007, 06:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Carl Adams

Wow I feel honored, Laurence Kingston on my first thread I've posted or is that, post I started a thread on!
It's because of Laurance, his knowledge, experience and of course his famous little A1 setup that I started reading this forum.

I could not wait to find a Sony VCL-HG0737Y lens, but would buy one if one comes up in the future. In the mean time I have had the opportunity to purchase a (bargain on ebay) 37mm Century .65 HR Wide angle (C117558)
The Century Optics & Raynox lens were others I was debating with myself wether or not to get.

I have tried it on my A1 and tested the zoom through and distortion. I am mighty impressed, there's no distortion to the point where it's noticeable and it stays the same right through the zoom range. I shall be shooting some footage with it tomorrow, so it will be interesting to see the picture once it has been captured in Final Cut. Though I must say it looks optically very clear with good quality glass.

Ryan, you say it's not designed for HD use. I thought the HR in the title stood for High Resolution meaning HiDef? It will be interesting to see the HD revision when it comes out, and how it stands up to the Sony lens.

I like the fact that there's filter thread. Could you tell me what the filter thread size it is, as I have not found that out yet?

Thanks for your help guys

Carl (:-})

The HR on our .65x 37mm does stand for hi-resolution but only in regards to standard definition. We are tasked with a difficult proposition of guessing what most of these manufacturers are going to do and what the lenses will be like. Unfortunately, we aren't in the guessing business so we have to go off what we have in front of us. We designed the 37mm attachments for standard def cameras with higher resolution lenses. We really didn't expect the manufacturers to make such a high quality small cameras. Also, we have bigger fish to fry so to speak and have been working on many other projects. Either way, we are working on it and should have something soon.

The .65x HR 37mm lens accepts a standard 62mm Filter thread on the front of the lens. To my knowledge, this makes our attachment unique for filtration options.

Ryan Avery
Schneider Optics

November 22nd, 2007, 01:27 PM	#1
Carl Adams New Boot Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: London UK Posts: 14	Wide angle from another angle Hi all, I would just like to start by saying this is my very first post on this or any other forum. I have been watching and reading this forum since I bought my HDR-A1E a couple of months ago. I am mighty impressed with what I have read so far. I know wide angle lens have been discussed a lot, and I have read all the posts I can find. After reading & researching I decided that I want to buy a Sony VCL-HG0737Y and a Cavision LH77 hood. After setting my heart on this I went looking to buy the lens, only to find out Sony have discontinued this and replaced it with a VCL-HG0737C. My problem is that the C version has not been discussed or reviewed much. And from what I have read, is not up to the quality of the Y version and has more barrel distortion. Also I think there would be problems with the LH77 hood attaching, as I am unsure to what size the front of the lens is. My first question is: Does anyone know where I can buy a Sony VCL-HG0737Y version, any stores with old stock still knocking around? My second is: Has anyone used the C version or compared the two, and which lens hood would be best with the C version? I know about all the alternative lens and would like to keep this thread specific to the two Sony wide angle lens as much as possible please. Any help or suggestions on this would be great Now all I need to do is wait for some replies, hopefully! Keep up the good work Carl (:-])

November 22nd, 2007, 02:12 PM	#2
Andy Wilkinson Inner Circle Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: Cambridge UK Posts: 2,853	Sony Wide Angle Just to say that I have the Sony VCL-HG0737Y 0.7X wide Angle and the Cavision 77mm hood for it (on my Sony HC1) and I'm very impressed with it....in fact my mate with his Sony V1 and 0.8X Sony Wide Angle adapter is also impressed with it. Why?, well less barrel distortion despite wider view than he gets. It's very impressive but, be warned, REALLY heavy (make the camera very nose heavy unless - as I mostly do - you are on a tripod.) The lack of a thread on the front is also a bit of a negative. Andy W

November 22nd, 2007, 03:11 PM	#3
Carl Adams New Boot Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: London UK Posts: 14	Sony Wide Angle Thanks for the reply Andy. The lack of barrel distortion is what I have read about and sounds impressive. With all the good reviews this lens has had, it makes me wonder why Sony discontinued it. I do try to use a tripod as much a possible and the weight is something I have thought about, though it is not the balance that worries me. This can be compensated for or counterbalanced. What concerns me more is the pressure of the weight on the camera thread. I have thought that maybe getting a matte box and rod system to support this is a better option over the LH77, possibly! Have you seen any comparisons between the Y & C version lens? The lack of thread on the front is a bit slack of Sony and does make me look at other lens slightly. But I keep getting pulled back towards the Sony. Maybe, if I can't get the Y version I shall look at other options. Do you know anything about the C version? any pro's and con's. Cheers Carl (:-})

November 23rd, 2007, 02:57 PM	#4
Dave Blackhurst Inner Circle Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Apple Valley CA Posts: 4,874	Carl - I've got both, the Y is a heavy beast, as already noted, but probably as good a piece of glass as you can get - the C is not bad, I'll try to take a couple stills and post something in a day or two. You'll get a bit more lens flare with the C and there is a bit more barrel distortion, but stills will let you see for yourself. I'll also check the diameters, but you can probaly find that on the web if you check specs for the two lenses.

November 23rd, 2007, 03:50 PM	#5
Carl Adams New Boot Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: London UK Posts: 14	Thanks for the reply Dave- it's nice to have found someone on this forum who has both lens. So you would agree with many others, that the Y version is the better of the two with regards to quality and less barrel distortion. I look forward to seeing the stills so I can see the difference for myself. Everyone says this lens is a heavy beast! Is this a problem on the camera thread? Would you say it needs supporting rods or something? I see myself pulling towards skipping the C version and holding on and finding a Y version, in old stock somewhere or second hand. Don't go out your way, I shall find the measurements online if I end up getting the C version. And then I shall worry about what hood or Matte box I buy, depending on which lens I get. I see your in Apple Valley California! I envy you living there as I am 100% Mac man all the way, since the days of my old Mac SE/30 Cheers Carl (:})

December 3rd, 2007, 03:44 PM	#6
Laurence Kingston Major Player Join Date: Aug 2004 Location: Clermont, FL. Posts: 941	I have both as well and would echo the sentiment that the "Y" lens is slightly better. I use the "C" lens on my tiny CX-7 which feels entirely too front heavy with the bigger "Y" lens. Cavision doesn't make a hood that fits on the "C" lens. I wish they would. Having said that, the "C" lens is still a really good lens. I would say it is the best 37mm thread zoom through lens currently available. It is much better than the more expensive Century Optics model.

December 4th, 2007, 03:19 PM	#8
Carl Adams New Boot Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: London UK Posts: 14	Wow I feel honored, Laurence Kingston on my first thread I've posted or is that, post I started a thread on! It's because of Laurance, his knowledge, experience and of course his famous little A1 setup that I started reading this forum. I could not wait to find a Sony VCL-HG0737Y lens, but would buy one if one comes up in the future. In the mean time I have had the opportunity to purchase a (bargain on ebay) 37mm Century .65 HR Wide angle (C117558) The Century Optics & Raynox lens were others I was debating with myself wether or not to get. I have tried it on my A1 and tested the zoom through and distortion. I am mighty impressed, there's no distortion to the point where it's noticeable and it stays the same right through the zoom range. I shall be shooting some footage with it tomorrow, so it will be interesting to see the picture once it has been captured in Final Cut. Though I must say it looks optically very clear with good quality glass. Ryan, you say it's not designed for HD use. I thought the HR in the title stood for High Resolution meaning HiDef? It will be interesting to see the HD revision when it comes out, and how it stands up to the Sony lens. I like the fact that there's filter thread. Could you tell me what the filter thread size it is, as I have not found that out yet? Thanks for your help guys Carl (:-})