Customer Reviews

Sony VCLECU1 High Definition Wide Angle Conversion Lens (Silver)

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

This converter is designed for use with the 16mm f/2.8 lens for the Sony NEX cameras. It attaches to the front of the lens through a bayonet attachment which is hardly noticeable on the lens, and clicks into place, to prevent incorrect mounting and eliminate any danger of it being mis-aligned or turned while in use.

To my amazement, the first results with this converter show that images have higher resolution WITH the converter than when the 16mm lens is used without it. This shows that the lens and the converter were clearly designed with a view to being used together. Images produced with the converter in place are sharper and appear more contrasty, although this may just be a consequence of the increased sharpness, which in turn may in part be caused by the greater depth of field when the converter is in place.

In evaluating the need, or otherwise, for the converter, it must be borne in mind that the NEX 3 & 5 cameras have an APS-C-sized sensor. For those used to thinking in 35mm "full-frame" film camera terms, when mounted on the NEX, the 16mm lens on its own therefore provides coverage equivalent to a 24mm lens on a 35mm-format camera - nowhere near as wide as one may have thought. Adding this converter, which has a focal-length reduction factor of 0.75×, the resultant actual focal length is 12mm, equivalent to an 18mm lens on a full-frame 35mm-format camera. By any definition, this is a very wide-angle lens.

So, resolution, contrast and colour are excellent. What about chromatic aberrations and distortion? With the 16mm lens on its own, chromatic aberration (colour fringeing) is extremely low. In this respect, the 16mm lens is excellent. Adding the VCL-ECU1 does not result in ANY increase in chromatic aberration. Because of the resolution referred to above, it actually looks LOWER than when the lens is used on its own, and as the two components have been designed to work together, this may in fact be the case.

As regards distortion, there is some barrel distortion with the 16mm lens when used on its own. However, this is so low that it is unlikely to be noticed in real-life pictures unless there are straight lines very near the edges. It is easily correctable with standard software. Adding this converter results in a small increase in distortion, which appears as slight barrel distortion along the long edges of the frame. If you have rectangular shapes near the corner, you may observe that the image also appears to be pulled out slightly into the corners. Correcting for both of these distortions in software is not going to be easy. (If it were, one must presume that the lens designers would have corrected for it at the design stage.)

However, with most interior shots - with lots of vertical lines from walls, furniture, etc - in a real-life situation this very slight distortion is almost certainly not going to be noticed. With such a wide-angle lens, you are more likely to get standard perspective distortion (for instance, converging verticals), which is not a lens fault but a consequence of composition. If you want better than this, you will probably shoot - on a tripod! - with a top-end digital SLR with a wide-angle lens that will cost probably ten times the cost of this converter.

These results were much better than those seen on the web with the only picture that I could find that had apparently been taken with this converter. I assume that it must have been taken with a prototype version of the converter, which was subsequently improved. (We have certainly had to wait for it to become available!)

In normal interior shooting conditions, no vignetting (darkening of the corners) is noticeable with this converter in place. This is a remarkable result. Tests outdoors with a clear blue sky (not yet carried out), may show some variation in brightness, which one would expect to improve with stopping down of the lens.

The instructions warn that if the lens-converter combination is used with the tiny attachable flash, the converter may cast a shadow on part of the image. I have not tested this yet, but doubt if the flash would provide adequate coverage for such a wide angle anyway (nor would most flashes with most cameras).

The converter is supplied in a very smart, round, zip-up hard case that should provide excellent protection when it is off the camera. The petal-shaped lens hood or shade is an integral part of the lens, and front and rear caps are provided.

If you are shooting with a NEX 3 or 5 (or thinking of getting one), the combination of the 16mm lens and this converter will give superb wide-angle shooting, for interiors and cityscapes (with the limitations indicated above), landscapes, etc. Combined with the tiny camera body, this makes a superb back-up wide-angle outfit for people with very demanding expectations of image quality. For some people it will also be a superb main (or only) outfit - although these people are likely also to find a need for a longer lens (probably the excellent 18-55mm "standard" lens) for much general photography.

This converter is much better than expected and is unreservedly recommended.

I have not found that the 16mm+ECU1 is sharper than the 16mm by itself as tra_tra have found but will concur with this reviewer for the rest. Optically and mechanically the converter is made for the 16mm and the resulting combination is really nice.
I have tried third party converters on the 16mm lens:
- a Sony VCL 0637A (combo equivalent 16mm in FF/35, x.06) which vignettes heavily (completely dark corners, almost a circle size inside the frame as the converter I believe was made for video) and dreamily soft
- a Raynox DCR 720 (x0.72, equivalent 17mm)which slightly vignettes but acceptable good results.
- an Olympus WCON x0.8 (equivalent 19mm)which covers the frame but is very soft, even in the center.
The Raynox costs as much as the Sony VCL-ECU1 ($120) and you need a step down ring 52-49mm. The combo is monstrous in size and rather fragile on the camera. The Sony wins this contest optically. On the practical POV, there is no contest.
The other way to go the UWA route is to get a Tamron 10-24mm, Tokina 11-16mm, Tokina 12-24mm,Sigma 10-20mm etc... and the appropriate mount adapter. I don't know if AF will work with a third party lens on Sony Alpha mount, but if it does, it will be probably very slow. You may not need AD on a UWA but it is always nice to have. These UWA zooms are in the $500 range and a Sony 16mm+ECU is $400. For that price you actually have 2 focals, 16mm and 12mm which acts like a 12-16mm/2.8 zoom while most of these zooms are slower, F3.5-4.5.
I also have the Sony Fish Eye converter which works as good as the UWA converter. For $550 you have an equivalent Fish Eye+18mm+24mm/2.8 in a very convenient and pocketable package.The only trouble is to distinguish the UWA converter from the FE converter in a snap. They look like twins!
Of course, optically I assume this is not going to beat your Nikon 14-24mm. I do have a Tokina 16-28mm though on a Canon 5dmkii (I don't have the Canon EF-Nex adapter yet) at 18mm there are notable differences. But I do not carry the 16-28mm in my car all the time so I highly recommend this converter!

Requires Sony 16mm f/2.8 lens.

Pros:
Get 12mm f/2.8 (effective) for not much money in addition to the 16mm f/2.8.
Easy to Use
Improves minimum focus to 7" (18cm).

Cons:
Slightly worse flare performance (but still good)
Camera doesn't recognize that the adapter is attached so it doesn't show in EXIF
Can't mount filters

Bottom line this lens retains most of the performance of the 16mm f/2.8 but gives you 12mm f/2.8. If you are happy with the 16mm f/2.8 you will like this lens. If you don't like the 16mm f/2.8, you won't like this lens. It is acceptably sharp, especially stopped down, it has fairly minor, but complex distortion. It does show lateral CA (color fringing near the edges of the frame) that is easy to correct in post processing. I give this lens 4 stars, as that is the same rating I give the 16mm f/2.8.

I am a bit torn--given that the point of the 16mm lens for the NEX5 is to keep the camera nearly pocketable--with this lens attached, the camera as large as when paired with the SEL1855. I'd have preferred a wide angle prime, but at least the connection between the two is solid, and I knew what I was getting beforehand. Still, the lens adds considerably to what is captured in the frame over the 16mm lens. It also seems to add a little extra light to shots over that lens as well. Yes, there is some softening and some spherical disortion that is noticeable, especially indoors, but most wide-angle's introduce both, and I would not say that this one adds more than others. (For under $100, I frankly expected much much worse than it produces). Overall, the build quality is excellent, and distortion is totally acceptable. I was surprised to find that a fair number of my shots with this lens showed improved depth of field over the SEL16F28. Overall, <emphasis>especially for under $100</emphasis>, I'd buy this lens again. I am looking forward to taking some "background defocus" (thanks for that, Sony marketing team) and macro shots with this lens soon. I will also get some video test with this lens on YouTube soon, since current test examples with this lens are pretty hard to come by.

This lens is a realy well made lens. well constructed. It fits very well onto the Nex5. Its excellent to use. and has a good wide angle of view. The only minor problem that I have with it, is that it is not as sharp as my Lumix 7-14 lens. My lumix lens as very crisp and shrap, and does not need Sony VCLECU1 High Definition Wide Angle Conversion Lens (Silver)much work done in Photoshop. The Sony lens I find is a little soft with the image, and needs to be sharpened up a reasonable amount before any other image adjustments are made. But as I said, its only a minor complaint. The lens is a great buy, and I would recommend it to anyone

This wide angle add-on did its job to capture more contents within a short distance of the objects. It used with 16mm len (pancake len) and easy to click it on with the len and solid material. The good thing is that, it comes with a very nice bag and 2 covers (front and back) and I like it very much. The only drawback is the price is still to expensive after the price dropped.

Excellent converter. At this price, it's a no brainer in being able to shoot this wide. When added to the pancake lens, total length is about the same as the 18-55.

It's not as wide as I would have liked, the extra 4mm it gives doesn't make nearly as much difference as I'd hoped. Maybe I should have gotten the fisheye instead.

Nevertheless, the price can't be beat. This is well worth it if you want to increase the width of the already wide 16mm lens. It's surprisingly good optically, it of course has some distortion but far less than you would expect. Search online for sample images, they will impress you.

THis lens had the WORST purple fringing I have ever seen. IT wasn't even correctable in photoshop or any other programs. It was so bad I had to return the NEX 5 camera as well because I needed a wide angle lens and this was the only wide angle lens Sony offered for the NEX 5. TOo bad, cause I liked the camera as well as the kit lens it came with.