Close-up and Macro with the Panasonic Lumix FZ80/82

 

Considering the fact that the FZ80/82 has a 1200mm EFL lens how good are the results when this is coupled with a close-up/macro lens.

In this article I will show you the options available and some of the results obtained.

The close-up lenses are a set of three #1,#2 and #4 dioptre, the Raynox 150 and the Polaroid 250D lens.

The measurements were with the camera manually focused to the closest focus point on the manual scale to give an indication of the maximum image size.

 

My test set up to find the subject "field of view" and the lens to subject distance at each focal length tested.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

One of the test results using the Polaroid +250D (#4 dioptre) close up lens.

This first chart shows the Raynox 150 lens and the subject field of view (width) with 4:3 aspect ratio and with the lens set to manual focus at the closest focus distance.

Lens at focal length (EFL) subject width (cms) Lens to subject distance (cms)

 200

 3.3 15 

400

2 16

600

 1.2 17

800

1.1 17.1

1000

0.9 17.2

1200

0.8 17.3

The next chart shows the same views with a #1 close-up lens

Lens at focal length (EFL) subject width (cms) Lens to subject distance (cms)

 200

54

400

7 57

600

57

800

3.5 57

1000

3.0 57

1200

2.2 57

The next chart shows the same views with a #2 close-up lens

Lens at focal length (EFL) subject width (cms) Lens to subject distance (cms)

 200

5.8 28

400

3.7 32

600

2.6 33

800

2.2 37

1000

1.9 37.5

1200

1.7 38

The next chart shows the same views with a #4 close-up lens

Lens at focal length (EFL) subject width (cms) Lens to subject distance (cms)

 200

3.8 18.5

400

2.2 19

600

1.5 19.8

800

1.2 21

1000

1.1 21

1200

0.9 21.5

The three close-up lenses used for the tests were single element lenses and do suffer from colour fringes (chromatic aberration) and have poor edge definition however they do give a very cost effective way to start close-up photography and allow you to experiment to find out which dioptre would be the most suitable one for your photographic needs.

Remember that the higher the magnification the shallower will be the depth of field.

This makes working with the Raynox 150 and the #4 dioptre lenses quite challenging when using them at their closest working distance. Here the DOF might only be a few milimetres. Techniques like "focus-stacking" might be needed if you want to have a greater depth of field in the image.

This however requires a tripod and some way of advancing the lens nearer to the subject for each plane of focus.

Flash is the preferable light source for this type of photography as it arrests any camera/subject movement during exposure.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Showing the shallow DOF even at F8 at 160mm EFL.

The figures are stacked 1 cm behind each other and the focus point was the third figure from the left hand side.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

changing to 200mm EFL

you can see the DOF is beginning to become just about 1 cm.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Now zoomed to 600mm EFL. DOF becomes just a few millimetres now.

 

If you want to learn more about lenses and close-up lenses my free download is available in the "Downloads Page"

 

Modifying the DCC6 Dummy Battery Box to Display Battery Status

 

The standard DCC6 dummy battery box allows external mains powered adaptors or external lithium-ion batteries to be used with the FZ100, FZ150, FZ80/82 cameras.

When used with the original mains power supply then the battery status is largely irrelevant. However, if you have used an external 8.4v Lithium-ion battery pack then it is important to know what charge is remaining in the battery.

 

The modification here performs that purpose. - Full details on my Electronics for Photographers page 

 

Tripod Mounting Plate for FZ80/82 Cameras

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The dimensions of the tripod mounting plate

 

The 1/4-20 countersunk screw needs to be cut to 6mm long.