Some may find the 36mm wide end of the S2 IS limiting, but with the quick-change bayonet mount, adding a wide converter only takes seconds. With a wide conversion lens you can easily change the existing 36mm to as wide as 23.75mm. (To calculate the effect a wide converter will have on the S2, multiply the power of the conversion lens by the focal length of the S2s lens - i.e. the Raynox 6600 is .66x, multiply .66 x 36mm = 23.76mm.)
These Canon S2 IS wide-angle samples were taken using the LensMate 52mm and 58mm lens adapters and a variety of wide converters. The first image shows the full wide setting, and the second shows the lens at the full telephoto end of the zoom to show how the conversion lens performs as a zoom lens.
We used architecture for the sample shots to show barrel distortion clearly. This is a worst case scenario for wide angle converters. In a natural landscape setting, even the worst barrel distortion may go unnoticed. Additionally, this type of barrel distortion can be usually be corrected via software. We will be adding another series of samples shot in a natural setting to show how they perform when architecture is not the prime focus.
Please evaluate these samples carefully if you plan on buying a conversion lens. Your intended use will determine whether the shortcomings of a given conversion lens will be acceptable - for instance, if you don't print larger than 4x6, or 5x7, or only use your images on the web, all of the lenses here would probably be acceptable. Only you can make that determination. Printing the full size sample images here at the size you prefer is the best way to make an evaluation.
*The focal length shown in S2 EXIF is actual, ranging from 6.0mm to 72.0mm. The 35mm film equivalent would be 36mm - 432mm, therefore the multiplier is 6 when converting one to the other.
