This is the cheapest I can find that is shipped (albeit a grey import) from Australia and has an Australian warranty.
SPECIFICATIONS
Focusing Distance 90mm
Maximum Aperture F/2.8
Angle of View 27ยบ
Lens Construction 9/10
Minimum Focus Distance 0.29m
Maximum Magnification Ratio 1:1
Filter Size 55mm
Length 97mm
Diameter 71.5mm
Weight 405g
i bought almost 2 years ago from the same store around $450 i think. cant remember mine is VC or not
90mm with VC not released long ago.
Your one must be a non-VC one and VC one is much more expensive
Very tempting if I move to full frame - would be a nice replacement for the Canon EFS 60mm f/2.8 macro I'm currently using.
Excuse the ignorance… What's VC?
And also another random question. If the minimum focus distance is 90mm and the lens itself is 97mm long, does that mean that the min focal point is inside the lens somewhere? From my understanding the min focus distance is measured from approx where the mounting flange for the lens is. Is this wrong?
vibration compensation.. same as VR (vibration reduction) on a nikon or IS (image stabilization) on a Canon
it helps to counteract camera shake from ruining yiour image
oh ok mine is pentax so i think there is no VC on pentax lenses, since pentax has VC in the camera body itself.
yep, pentax and sony bodies have built in VC
VC add weight to the lens as well as to the price
IMHO VC/VR/IS is not quite recommended while shooting macro anyway!
It is an excellent lens for macro photography.
So if you take a lot of shots of flowers and inscts, and do not have a macro lens, get it.
Great lens. These are the two things I did not like about it:
The maximum aperture of f/2.8 will change as you change focus. Start using it as a macro lens and you will suddenly your maximum aperture will be f/5-ish (don't have the lens here to check the exact number).
I expected this from a zoom lenses but not from a fixed focus lens.
At least with Nikon mount there is no manual dial to set aperture. In other words you cannot adjust aperture if you combine this lens with the cheap extension rings.
No canon lenses have mechanical aperture control but there is a workaround - mount directly, set desired aperture in manual or aperture priority, hold down dof preview button and dismount.
Didn't work on Nikon mount. The lens has a spring which pushes the aperture back.
I did not know about that problem with f stop.
If it is the case than it is a big problem as another good application for this lens would be portrature.
Focal length and F stop would allow you to make very good portraites but … if F stop is changing while you are focusing it is just too painful to keep an eye on it all the time.
For portraiture it won't be changing so much. The biggest change is in the macro region.
I did a little test where I set the f number to maximum (2.8) and started changing the focus. The distances with corresponding f numbers below are read from the dial so they are not very accurate:
f/2.8 = infinity -> 2m
f/3.2 = 2m -> 0.6m
f/3.5 = 0.6m -> 0.45m
…
the last one at shortest focus is f/5.6
Hope this helps with your decision.
Thanks for that.
It is not actually as bad as I thought.
infinity -> 2m is pretty much what you need for portraits.
For macro F stop 8 is probably your best starting point.
Shooting macro at 2.8 would be useless anyway… In my experience the depth of field would be no where near enough for a useable photo unless you are taking a pic of a sheet of paper. Just my opinion…
i think thats the old model.. the new one should have VC