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Shooting with the Nauticam WACP, Porthkerris - June 2018
Nauticam's Wide Angle Corrector Port - Testing and Review
This summer I spent some time using Nauticam's Wide Angle Corrector Port (WACP), on loan from Alex Tattersall at Underwater Visions Ltd.
Pictured here is an edible crab and diver shot from the Helford estuary in Cornwall.
This lens uses a different approach to optics and is an optically corrected water contact lens that does away with the customary wide angle lens and dome port combination. It was orininally designed for full frame digital SLR cameras to give better picture quality, especially towards the edges of the frame and when shooting at wider apertures.
I used the WACP paired with the Nikkor 28-70 f3.5-4.5 D lens, giving me a zoom range and with an impressive 130 degrees of coverage at the wide end, through to 57 degrees at the long end. This lens is a lot of fun and the ability to focus with subjects right on its glass front element is very impressive.
My initial impression is that this is a highly versatile lens that could replace any current rectilinear wide angle lens behind any dome port. With a 28-70 it feels like the ultimate mid range zoom. However, It does not replace a fisheye lens and dome port combination for when 180 degrees coverage is still needed. The images achievable from the lens are nothing that couldn't already be taken but from my limited testing, the promise of higher image quality seems justified. For me, the final verdict on whether this expensive lens and its hefty 3 kg weight suits my photography, needs further consideration.
Nikon D850, Nikkor 28-70 f3.5-4.5 D zoom @ 28 mm with Nauticam WACP, Inon S2000 strobes.
Pictured here is an edible crab and diver shot from the Helford estuary in Cornwall.
This lens uses a different approach to optics and is an optically corrected water contact lens that does away with the customary wide angle lens and dome port combination. It was orininally designed for full frame digital SLR cameras to give better picture quality, especially towards the edges of the frame and when shooting at wider apertures.
I used the WACP paired with the Nikkor 28-70 f3.5-4.5 D lens, giving me a zoom range and with an impressive 130 degrees of coverage at the wide end, through to 57 degrees at the long end. This lens is a lot of fun and the ability to focus with subjects right on its glass front element is very impressive.
My initial impression is that this is a highly versatile lens that could replace any current rectilinear wide angle lens behind any dome port. With a 28-70 it feels like the ultimate mid range zoom. However, It does not replace a fisheye lens and dome port combination for when 180 degrees coverage is still needed. The images achievable from the lens are nothing that couldn't already be taken but from my limited testing, the promise of higher image quality seems justified. For me, the final verdict on whether this expensive lens and its hefty 3 kg weight suits my photography, needs further consideration.
Nikon D850, Nikkor 28-70 f3.5-4.5 D zoom @ 28 mm with Nauticam WACP, Inon S2000 strobes.
