Tele Lens for Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ15

Anyone know of a good but inexpensive Tele add-on lens for a Lumix FZ15
camera? Seems like I saw a Raynox 1.5x Tele lens somewhere that fit
the bill but I don't remember the Model No. and what step-up or
step-down rings might be required.
Any help on this subject would be appreciated.......Bob Williams

http://www.raynox.co.jp/english/digital/egfujis602.htm

Bob, I have the Raynox DCR-2020PRO 2.2X and I use it on a Panasonic fz30
and find it very good

Cheers Reg

"Bob Williams" wrote in message
news:50k4g.211747$Oe2.121895@fed1read07...
Anyone know of a good but inexpensive Tele add-on lens for a Lumix FZ15
camera? Seems like I saw a Raynox 1.5x Tele lens somewhere that fit
the bill but I don't remember the Model No. and what step-up or
step-down rings might be required.
Any help on this subject would be appreciated.......Bob Williams

Jessie James wrote:
http://www.raynox.co.jp/english/digital/egfujis602.htm

Bob, I have the Raynox DCR-2020PRO 2.2X and I use it on a Panasonic fz30
and find it very good

I use the Raynox DCR-2020PRO on an FZ20 and can second that. There are
a couple of downsides that you have to be aware of beforehand, though,
such that you don't get disappointed after your purchase. First, It can
essentially only be used at full zoom (so having it on essentially
turns the FZ20 from a camera with a zoom of 36-432 mm (FF FOV
equivalents) to a camera vith a 924 mm prime.

Also, it exagerrates the chromatic aberration of the original lens, and
it diminshes the contrast - but this is to be expected from any
teleconverter. There also is a significant light falloff also at full
zoom used on an FZ20 - but the lens correction filter of Photoshop CS2
takes care of that speedily. An additional problem is that the OIS of
the Panny's own lens does not seem to work as well with the DCR-2020PRO
on. While I can usually gain three stops of shutter time over the
expected 1/(focal length in FF FOV equivalents) with the FZ20 itsellf,
I'm normally only able to gain one stop with the teleconverter on.
(Again, this is probably common to all TC:s) Combine this with the fact
that there is considerable more CA at full zoom wide open than stopped
stopped down one stop, this means that except in very bright light, you
shouldn't expect to be able to handhold the combo, OIS or no OIS.
(OTOH, what other setup for the same effective focal length is
hand-holdable in precitce, either?)

But it is surprisingly sharp, and you get a combo that takes you to an
FF equivalent of 924 mm weighing slightly less than a kilogram. Try to
find that otherwise...

Jan Böhme

Hi Jessie and Jan,
Thanks for the speedy replies.
I'm sure that is the info I was looking for ....and more.
I did not know Raynox made a 2.2X TC. That is probably better for me
than the 1.5X that I had previously seen.
My interest is in Backyard Birding. I will always be shooting from a
tripod so the diminished ability of OIS will not be a show stopper.
However, I would want a bird in sharp focus to show considerable detail
in the feathers. Do either of you have a picture with good detail that
you could send to me. Send a high resolution image (something like a 4MP
jpeg). I am on a Cable connection and my mail server will accept large files
Where did you purchase your lens?
Did the proper adapter rings for the FZ 15/20/30 come with the kit lens?
To reply

Thank you very much......Bob

Jan Böhme wrote:
Jessie James wrote:

http://www.raynox.co.jp/english/digital/egfujis602.htm

Bob, I have the Raynox DCR-2020PRO 2.2X and I use it on a Panasonic fz30
and find it very good


I use the Raynox DCR-2020PRO on an FZ20 and can second that. There are
a couple of downsides that you have to be aware of beforehand, though,
such that you don't get disappointed after your purchase. First, It can
essentially only be used at full zoom (so having it on essentially
turns the FZ20 from a camera with a zoom of 36-432 mm (FF FOV
equivalents) to a camera vith a 924 mm prime.

Also, it exagerrates the chromatic aberration of the original lens, and
it diminshes the contrast - but this is to be expected from any
teleconverter. There also is a significant light falloff also at full
zoom used on an FZ20 - but the lens correction filter of Photoshop CS2
takes care of that speedily. An additional problem is that the OIS of
the Panny's own lens does not seem to work as well with the DCR-2020PRO
on. While I can usually gain three stops of shutter time over the
expected 1/(focal length in FF FOV equivalents) with the FZ20 itsellf,
I'm normally only able to gain one stop with the teleconverter on.
(Again, this is probably common to all TC:s) Combine this with the fact
that there is considerable more CA at full zoom wide open than stopped
stopped down one stop, this means that except in very bright light, you
shouldn't expect to be able to handhold the combo, OIS or no OIS.
(OTOH, what other setup for the same effective focal length is
hand-holdable in precitce, either?)

But it is surprisingly sharp, and you get a combo that takes you to an
FF equivalent of 924 mm weighing slightly less than a kilogram. Try to
find that otherwise...

Jan Böhme

On 28/04/2006 09:26 Jessie James wrote:

I have the Raynox DCR-2020PRO 2.2X and I use it on a Panasonic fz30
and find it very good

How do the Raynox lenses compare with Panasonic's own? I'm thinking of
getting Panasonic wide angle for my FZ30 at £140 but I can get a Raynox
from the USA for £45 + carriage.

--
Frank
(Beware of spam trap - remove the negative)

F skrev:

On 28/04/2006 09:26 Jessie James wrote:

I have the Raynox DCR-2020PRO 2.2X and I use it on a Panasonic fz30
and find it very good

How do the Raynox lenses compare with Panasonic's own?

For the FZ20, Panny's proprietary converters are prohibitively
expensive, (the telecomverter costs more than the camera, today) and I
know nobody who has even tried them.

I'm thinking of
getting Panasonic wide angle for my FZ30 at £140 but I can get a Raynox
from the USA for £45 + carriage.

Depends a little on what you want. If you want a modest WA effect, but
one that can be used over a reasonable zoom range, the best non-Panny
lens around, for the FZ20 at least, is Olympus' WCON-8B. It's a 0.8x
teleconverter that can be used at least over the 1x - 3x zoom range of
an FZ20, giving a zoom range of (at least) 29 -87mm FF FOV equivalents
(would be 28-85 on an FZ30). I don't know how it compares to Panny' own
TC for the FZ30 - they should be pretty equivalent pricewise. Please
note that this converter is quite a heavy piece of glass, which will
change the balance of your camera considerably.

If you want more wide angle, Raynox DCR6600 comes in a version called
DCR6600 HD, witn a 55mm filter thread, ostensibly custommade for the
FZ30. On the FZ20, ít's similar to the DCR2020 - that is only really
useful at the wide end of the zoom, turning the lens inte oa 24mm prime
(or, possibly, a 24-36mm zoom). The FZ30 version might work better with
the FZ30, bing made specifically for it.

If you want more info, you might want to try the Panasonic forum óver
at dpreview.com, which has considerably more traffic than this group,
and is populated exclusively by Panny owners.

Jan Böhme

Bob Williams skrev:

Hi Jessie and Jan,
Thanks for the speedy replies.
I'm sure that is the info I was looking for ....and more.
I did not know Raynox made a 2.2X TC. That is probably better for me
than the 1.5X that I had previously seen.
My interest is in Backyard Birding. I will always be shooting from a
tripod so the diminished ability of OIS will not be a show stopper.
However, I would want a bird in sharp focus to show considerable detail
in the feathers. Do either of you have a picture with good detail that
you could send to me.

I'll try to se if I can cmoe up with a good and illustrative example
for you, but I am pretty busy this weekend, so I'm not certain that
I'll be able to make it before next week.

Send a high resolution image (something like a 4MP
jpeg). I am on a Cable connection and my mail server will accept large files
Where did you purchase your lens?

Scandinavian Photo at Bankeryd, Sweden. Not certain that it would help
you much in your location, but they are good and knowledgeable,
although not the cheapest web-based vendor in Sweden.

Did the proper adapter rings for the FZ 15/20/30 come with the kit lens?

No, you have to see to get the proper adaptor for your camera. If you
buy the converter at a place that knows its stuff, it should be enought
to tell them what camera you want to use it for. If not, Raynox's
website at http://raynox.co.jp/ (note no www in url) has a lot of info
on wich adaptors and steprings to use with which camera.

Jan Böhme

On 28/04/2006 20:44 Jan Böhme wrote:

If you want more info, you might want to try the Panasonic forum óver
at dpreview.com

I'll do that. Thanks for the help: appreciated!

--
Frank
(Beware of spam trap - remove the negative)

Hi Jessie,
I have been checking on the Raynox DCR-2020 Pro on sale for $189.
See:
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/cont...=337263&is=REG
What I can't quite figure out is how the Raynox attaches to the Lumix.
My FZ15 has a 62mm thread but it is MALE thread on the EXTERNAL surface
of the camera. The Raynox also hs a 62 mm lens, but I can't tell from
the picture whether the thread is Male or Female.
Can you enlighten me?
Bob

Jessie James wrote:
http://www.raynox.co.jp/english/digital/egfujis602.htm

Bob, I have the Raynox DCR-2020PRO 2.2X and I use it on a Panasonic fz30
and find it very good

Cheers Reg

"Bob Williams" wrote in message
news:50k4g.211747$Oe2.121895@fed1read07...

Anyone know of a good but inexpensive Tele add-on lens for a Lumix FZ15
camera? Seems like I saw a Raynox 1.5x Tele lens somewhere that fit
the bill but I don't remember the Model No. and what step-up or
step-down rings might be required.
Any help on this subject would be appreciated.......Bob Williams

Bob Williams wrote:
Hi Jessie,
I have been checking on the Raynox DCR-2020 Pro on sale for $189.
See:
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/cont...=337263&is=REG

What I can't quite figure out is how the Raynox attaches to the Lumix.
My FZ15 has a 62mm thread but it is MALE thread on the EXTERNAL surface
of the camera. The Raynox also hs a 62 mm lens, but I can't tell from
the picture whether the thread is Male or Female.
Can you enlighten me?

As I understand it, the FZ10/15/20 cameras all have a decorative
ring that must be removed to expose male threads. The lens hood
screws onto these threads, apparently. If you remove the hood
from the tube, you will see female threads for filters or adapter
lenses.

The adapter tube Panasonic bundles with these cameras is apparently
longer than it needs to be, so there are several third-party
substitutes. Here is a nice summary of the options:

http://www.cs.mtu.edu/~shene/DigiCam.../Adapters.html

Note that I don't own one of these cameras, so what I know is just
from looking at pictures on the web and reading the words of others.

Have fun!

Paul Allen