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Olympus XZ-1 Telephoto Samples
In this test, we'll take a close look at the two teleconverters that produced the best results on the XZ-1. The Raynox DCR1540 (1.54x) has a 52mm thread (as well as a 67m front thread for filters) and mounts directly to the Lensmate XZ-1 lens adapter. The Olympus TCON17 (1.7x, though it's closer to 1.68x) has a 55mm thread (no front thread) and was attached using a 52-55 step ring.
All samples shot at default settings, Image stabilization off, iso100, f4.
All raw files were converted in Lightroom 3.4 at default settings. We didn't (or couldn't) use jpgs out of the camera for this comparison because the in camera noise reduction obliterates fine detail even at iso 100. We didn't use Olympus Viewer 2 to convert our raw files because it applies noise reduction even with that setting turned off.
These full frames show the difference between native maximum optical zoom 112mm, Raynox 1540 1.54x (172.5mm), and Olympus TCON17 1.7x (188mm).
Click on a thumbnail for the full image.
These 100% crops show the difference between native maximum optical zoom 112mm, Raynox 1540 1.54x, and Olympus TCON17 1.7x.
Native maximum telephoto
112mm
Raynox 1540 Maximum telephoto
172mm equivalent
Olympus TCON17 Maximum telephoto
187mm equivalent
Comparing native, Raynox 1540 and Olympus TCON17 100% crops near the bottom edge.
Native 100% crop
Raynox 1540 100% crop
Olympus TCON17 100% crop
Here native 112mm is uprezzed 168% to match the Olympus TCON17 @100% to demonstrate the superiority of a good conversion lens over digital enlargement.
Native
Olympus TCON17
These samples show how far you can zoom back from full telephoto when vignetting begins. Slight advantage to the Raynox 1540 at 119mm vs the Olympus at 140mm.
Raynox 1540 at 119mm
Olympus at 140mm
Native 112mm (no converter) f2.5 vs f4. We wanted to see how good the Zuiko lens is wide open. There is no apparent advantage to stopping down this lens at full zoom. Shown are center and left edge crops.
f2.5
f4
f2.5
f4
The XZ-1's lens has a bit of inherent pincushion at 112mm which is slightly exacerbated with both of these teleconverters. It would probably go unnoticed unless you were framing rectilinear shapes like the high rises in these samples. In Lightroom, -7 on the distortion slider straightened things out nicely. Mouse over the image to see before and after.
Physical size comparison. There's only an ounce of weight difference between the two converters (Olympus 10 oz vs Raynox at 9 oz). The Olympus is 3.4" long x 3.3" in diameter with end caps. The Raynox is 2.9" long x 2.8" in diameter. Both appear to have coated optics.
Conclusion. Both conversion lenses do a great job with little image degradation. The Olympus TCON17 has the focal length advantage (188mm vs 172.5 for the Raynox) and the slightest edge in resolution. The Raynox DCR1540 is lighter, more compact, and has a front thread for filters.
We also tested several other popular converters like the Canon TC- DC58N (Canon G3), the Sony VCL-DH1-1758, and the Raynox DCR2025. The Canon and Sony lenses performed poorly except for the center of the image and the Raynox vignetted badly and performed poorly all around. The Canon TC-DC58C 2x and TC-DC58D 1.4x both have a 58mm mounting thread with an extension beyond the thread which precludes their use with step rings.
