I epoxied a Sensei 46mm-43mm step down filter to the front of the lens That may be obvious in retrospect, but it's a good trick that I had not thought of and do not recall hearing mentioned. BTW, I have no hands-on experience with either of these lenses. Still just reading with interest... --Rik Wi...

Lothman, those test results for the AstrHori are a little puzzling. It looks sharpest wide open at f/2.8. But it is clearly not diffraction-limited at that aperture. So why would it get worse on stopping down? That is unusual. My best aperture for the Laowa is about 1/3 to 1/2 stop above f/2.8. I do...

The working distance of the Laowa is fine, larger than that of most microscope objectives, and I have no trouble with the lighting. It might work for you, but that doesn't mean it'll work for everyone. And the lack of a filter thread is an issue for me, for once I can't use polarisers (which I ofte...

In the end I suppose it comes down to how we use our lenses. There is no "best" solution for everyone. But I love my Laowa lens and the AstrHori could be even better because of its wider magnification range and greater number of exotic glass elements. Fair enough - but for me the short focal length...

I do find that the Mitu 7.5x pushed down on a good 150-135mm tube lens is significantly better than the Laowa at around 4.5x to 5x, and I sometimes use that For 5x I use Mitu 10x with EF 100L Macro. For 2.5x Mitu 5x and EF100L Macro. The USM motor of this macro lens has very small steps and a very ...

I sure hope someone trustworthy and capable tests this very important lens.....these two lenses (AstrHori and Laowa) are unique for macro work and one of them should be in the toolbox of almost any macro photographer. Which one? Curious macro photographers want to know! Hello Lou, I don't have eith...

There is an incredible long working distance high-NA objective on eBay right now. NA= 0.80 and working distance 3mm!!!! Very expensive though ($4000). But it shows the advantages of working under water for large working distances. I have a relatively affordable Nikon 40x 0.80 with a WD of 2mm. I als...

I sure hope someone trustworthy and capable tests this very important lens.....these two lenses (AstrHori and Laowa) are unique for macro work and one of them should be in the toolbox of almost any macro photographer. Which one? Curious macro photographers want to know!

The HMS Challenger expedition was the world's first big oceanographic expedition. It lasted over a thousand days, from 1872-1876, and cost several lives. They charted ocean currents and water temperatures and collected aquatic animals and plants from around the globe. The Antarctic portion of the tr...

I have been thinking about using a burning laser (like the kind used to engrave stuff) to burn off the fungus from internal elements. I've tried it a little bit but it is tricky since reflective surfaces on the lenses can send the laser into your eyes, burning off your retina instead of the fungus....

I have been thinking about using a burning laser (like the kind used to engrave stuff) to burn off the fungus from internal elements. I've tried it a little bit but it is tricky since reflective surfaces on the lenses can send the laser into your eyes, burning off your retina instead of the fungus. ...

Thanks Adi and Haken, that's very curious.

Beautiful image. When I first glanced at it, I thought someone had just finished their meal of take-out chicken.
Why do the fine slits on the front side allow us to see the things behind them, while those on the back side are almost invisible?

This is very valuable info, please don't be put off by the misinterpretations. That's normal. I've been through it myself here. The forum members are intelligent and eventually misunderstandings will be cleared up! Rik, the graph you present surely refers to finite objectives, right? I can imagine t...

here you can have a look on the test of my Sigma 105. A comparison of a 16x pixelshift reveals that at f2.8 the Sigma outresolves the sensor of a Sony A7R4/5 since the pixelshift shows much more details as a single frame :D http://www.photomacrography.net/forum/viewtopic.php?p=288434#p288434 Of-cou...