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(More customer reviews)Ever since I picked up my Canon VIXIA HFS10 camcorder, I've wanted to add a wide angle lens converter. Of course, the macro converter that Canon sells (the WD-H58) is pretty expensive and since I wouldn't use it very often I couldn't justify the cost.
Then I noticed this Zeikos lens and thought at this price it was worth a try. I'm pretty happy with it.
First, it looks great on my camcorder. It doesn't look cheap, and matches the style and look of the Vixia HFS10 very nicely. It comes with a "fit on" cap for the Wide Angle end of the lens and a "screw on" cap for the attachment side.
It does what I was looking for, expanding a bit on the angle I can capture up close and extending the range of imagery that's in focus on a longer shot. The main thing I wanted was to be able to shoot a bit wider up close, since I sometimes use a green screen in my office and can't get my camera back very far from the screen. Though I was hoping it would go a bit wider than it does, this definitely helps.
I'm not exactly sure what the .45x means, since as far as I can tell (based on measuring the relative size of objects with and without the lens on) this really gives about .8x magnification. I assume it may have to do with the fact that what you really have here is a "Macro" lens + a .45 Wide Angle lens and the net effect is to give a .8 magnification. What I didn't know when I bought this is that the "Macro" component of the lens and the "Wide Angle" component are separable. With the "Macro" filter alone you can get VERY close to objects like flowers and insects - and you can ONLY focus on things that are very close (between an inch or so to about half a foot). If you wanted to fit only "Wide Angle" component onto the Vixia HFS10 you'd need another adapter. Anyhow, the roughly .8 magnification of the whole set up is not quite as wide as I'd hoped but it does mean there is pretty minimal curvature effects around the edge of the frame - if you look closely at the attached video you'll see there is SOME curvature at the edges, noticeable on the right and left hand sides when the converter is attached.
Anyhow, I wondered why Canon only sold a .7 converter when you could get an inexpensive .45 converter from another company - I assumed to begin with that was because .7 is as far as you can go without vignetting (change in light levels from the center to the periphery) or fisheye-like curvature, and so I worried a bit that this lens would show those effects. Luckily it doesn't show them to an unacceptable degree, but what my tests suggest is that this lens with its roughly .8 magnification is probably pretty close to what you actually get with Canon's own lens, and their numbers likely assess the "true" conversion rate of the lens as a whole, whereas the .45 only applies if you were to use only the "Wide Angle" portion of the lens. (If anyone knows more about this than I do I'd love to read about it in the comments.)
One thing that is probably evident from this footage is that with the lens on there seems to be a slight loss in the light levels. That's to be expected, but it's something you can compensate for in the settings. I can't compare this to Canon's own lens, but since I picked this up at less than 10% of the cost, and it does most of what I wanted from it, I'm not complaining.
Click Here to see more reviews about: Zeikos ZE-WA58B 58mm Wide Angle Lens
Zeikos 58mm professional, multi coated, high definition, 0.45X Wide Angle Lens. Includes a Macro adapter and a protective case. Adapters are available separately to step up or down for other sizes.
Click here for more information about Zeikos ZE-WA58B 58mm Wide Angle Lens
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