$150 US is the list price.

The Canadian distributor is http://www.edmamarketing.com/, no doubt they can refer you to a dealer.

1st impressions.
 

My only experience with W/A lenses is on my old SD TRV900.

Well got my Raynox 7062 lens last night. Only had time to do a non moving fixed image indoor test. My 1st impressions are minimal barrel distortions, but a very noticeable drop in resolution. Image with camcorder looked tack sharp. With the Raynox attached, everything looked like it had a slight haze. The lens did have full zoom through, with an increase in haze with more zoom, especially around the edges.

I did the test 2x. Once 10" away and once 20" away. I think this was a tough test as most of the time I will not be that close to the subject and the detail/resolution loss will not be as noticeable. I think a moving image will also help hide the lens weakneses. I'll have to do some more testing closer to how I actually intend to use the lens to see if I will buy the much more expensive Century Optics.

The resolution drop was noticed on a Sony Bravia 26" HDTV. Camcorder lcd and viewfinder could not see the res drop.

Did some benchmarking last night. I don't have a large HD display, and didn't see a general haze/reduced resolution on small (17") display. On a smaller display it is very evident that when you zoom in, certain highlight areas will develop a distinct, and objectionable glow/haze around them. Seems to occur when a highlight is over a dark background, and is masked (or maybe isn't there) when a highlight is over medium to light tones. I was zoomed in pretty far.

With SD wide angle adaptors I often left them on the lens for general shooting. I don't think I'll be doing that with the 7062, only putting it on when I need the WA. Given that my immediate use will be for SD DVD, I'm going to keep on using the 7062.

Still in the hunt for a decent .5x as well (these are never zoom-through).

Seth,
Do you per chance have a rez chart you can shoot? I'm on the hunt for a wide as well, outside the very large Schneider that's supposed to be shipping soon.

Do you mean the 0HD-65CV-SH6 .65X WIDE ANGLE CONVRT HD SONY?

Here is link to a raw clip shot with the Raynox 7062

http://www.megaupload.com/?d=KKJV4MHI

It's a big file and I know people hate megaupload, but I can't complain about free file sharing.

I've also attached some screen captures done in vegas.

For $150, I can't complain. I will do some more testing to see if I feel a need to make the $ jump to the Century. Anyone have experience with the Redeye ?

I don't. Is there something I can download/print that would be worthwhile at all? Perhaps I can borrow one from a friend, I'll check.

I do need to do more benchmarking this weekend, the training wheels need to come off for a shoot next week.

Lens Hood?
 

This lens certainly looks likes its worth the money. I can't seem to find the proper hood for it though, any recomendations on where to look?

Don't know if the more experienced people have had a chance to look at my sample video and/or pics.

Although, I think the Raynox works well for a $150 lens, I would like something with better detail and resolution. The Century lens is not out yet, but for the additional $, what kind of improvement should I expect ?

Will the sharpness be the same between the Century non zoom through vs. the zoom through ?

Some points.

Piotr - a focal length of 15 mm (say) is 15 mm however you get there. You can use your naked zoom or you can attach your wide-angle converter and zoom to 15 mm to give the same framing. If you're shooting at the same aperture you'll get exactly the same DoF, so Stu is incorrect.

Not only that but you'll actually get very slightly less DoF as the three elements of the wide converter will soak some light, making your camera's iris open up a small fraction of a stop with the converter in place.

Greg - you say ''I don't get it - if the 6600 diameter is smaller than the V1 lens, surely there's at least some minor vignetting with the 6600-V1 comination?''. The thing to remember is that the front element of the zoom has very little to do with the diameter of the filter thread chosen by the designers, and so too the exit pupil of the wide converter has no bearing on the fitting thread diameter.

Also - always best to check for vignetting in underscan mode - or on a PC screen.

The Raynox 6600PRO has very little barrel distortion - the trade being that you can't zoom past the mid-way point or it softens noticeably. Raynox are very up front about this, but do you want door frames to bow outwards as you track through them? Not for me, thanks.

tom.

My buddy with a chart is out of town right now (sunshine!), but I could easily shoot on Monday afternoon, as I'll be at his shop anyways.


Attached is a vegas framegrab that shows the fringing around my son's right ear. Doesn't show up in other areas, just where there is a mid-to-highlight bordering a dark area.

***this is only when zoomed in***

Maybe you could use the $500 Raynox HDP-6000EX then? It's 640 lines at center and zooms thru from 1x-20x. It's slightly less wide, but seems to be impressive for the money. 4-elements in 3 groups.

Maybe someone reading this has used this lens already? I didn't search...

http://www.raynox.co.jp/english/video/hdrfx7/index.htm

Guys, avoid MX-3062PRO at any cost! It is a ridiculously low res lens, the pic it produces is unbelievably soft and blurred, entirely useless.
I can't imagine how was it possible to place it on the page offering lenses for high def cameras.
Well, it is 62mm thread, maybe thats why.
I am very disappointed with it, although it was not that expensive.

So far I only have positive experience with the 6600 wide and the 2020 tele lens. Both have CA in contrasty situations and have zooming limitations, but in the range they operate, the pic quality is pretty ok.

I will save up for Century...*sigh*...anyone can suggest an online shop selling them in Europe?

From the Raynox site:

HD-7062PRO High Definition
Wideangle Conversion Lens 0.7X
The model HD-7062PRO high definition Wideangle conversion lens is made of the high index optical glass elements with new concept of lens designing using a three-group/three-element lens formula. This new concept in designing the lens made it possible to achieve an amazing high definition wideangle lens of 540 lines/mm resolution power at center (MTF30%).
It's compatible with whole zoom area and stays in focus**.

**The lens is made compatible in using with a 20X zoom lens. However, when zoomed up to the end of the telephoto with the lens on, the image quality of the picture will be lowered except the center area, and the deterioration of resolution power at corners will occur.
This model is 62mm direct mounting size.
Magnification :
Nominal 0.7X Actual 0.7X Diagonal, 0.7X Horizontal
Lens construction : 3-group/3-element, all surfaces fully coated
Front Filter thread : 82mm, Mounting thread: 62mm
Dimension/Weight : 43mm x 86mm, Weight: 313g(11oz)
Zooming capability : 1X - 20X**,
Minimum focusing distance with HD-7062PRO : 1cm
Accessories included : Lens caps, Lens porch, Instructions.
Specifications

Available in mid April 2007.

We've got one coming from BH, so we'll see if it really is usable. I'm not real happy about the loss of resolution (compared to the 6000 EX), but ... price certainly is right, especially when money is tight.

Usually you get what you pay for, but sometimes...just sometimes...it's worth trying these out.