original or 3rd party Telephoto convertor for my A200

dennixg · 19th May 2005

Thinking of buying a Telephoto convertor for my A200.
Went down to AP and saw the Minolta & 3rd party convertor.
Didn't have my camera so couldn't test it.

Which one would you recommend?

mpenza · 19th May 2005

there're many poorly made 3rd party teleconverters which are meant for video cameras (low resolution devices) and won't work well with digicams.

try Olympus ones (e.g. TCON17 ~$130) to see if there's vignetting at the far end of the zoom. Olympus make some of the better converters around and the lens coating is superb.

synapseman · 19th May 2005

I hope this would not be too off-topic, but I'd like to offer my opinions regarding teleconverters (the type that screws onto the front end of the lens).

I'd stay away from them.

Chief reason being that they're cumbersome and slow to use. Screwing them on and off takes time, and they can only be used at the 200mm end (for "tele" teleconverters) or at the 28mm end (for wide teleconverters). Not in between, or there'd be severe vignetting. Plus on top of that, you'd have to go through the menus to set the parameters for use with each type of teleconverter.

So if you're on the field, and you need to shoot a mixture of wide-angle and zoom shots, these teleconverters become more of a liability than an asset.

Other concerns would be the possible strain some of these accessories might have on the lens mechanisms (shouldn't be too much of a problem with mechanically-linked lenses like the Ax series, though), and of course, the price.

Good quality teleconverters aren't cheap, and would be even more so if it spends 98% of the time in your kit bag.

Just my 2 cents, something for you to consider.

But having said that, I've read that the Olympus ones come highly recommended by those who use them.

mpenza · 19th May 2005

Good points. I seldom used them too unless necessary (i.e. too far from action). It's not much different from changing to a tele lens on a SLR/DSLR though

synapseman · 19th May 2005

For consumer/prosumer cameras, because of the fixed lens, all the teleconverters are mounted on the filter thread, hence the strict restrictions regarding useable zoom range (i.e. none!). Thread-stripping could be another worry because the threads are shallow and/or are made of plastic and these teleconverters can be quite heavy.

For SLRs, it's not too bad 'cos the TC is mounted between body and lens, so the entire zoom range of the lens can still be used. You could keep it on the whole day and yet still maintain a large degree of versatility.

dennixg · 19th May 2005

Thanks for the info.
Just found a page with info on all Telephoto convertor by major brands

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

19th May 2005	#1
dennixg Member Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: North East Posts: 88	original or 3rd party Telephoto convertor for my A200 Thinking of buying a Telephoto convertor for my A200. Went down to AP and saw the Minolta & 3rd party convertor. Didn't have my camera so couldn't test it. Which one would you recommend?

19th May 2005	#2
mpenza Moderator Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: New York City Posts: 13,402	there're many poorly made 3rd party teleconverters which are meant for video cameras (low resolution devices) and won't work well with digicams. try Olympus ones (e.g. TCON17 ~$130) to see if there's vignetting at the far end of the zoom. Olympus make some of the better converters around and the lens coating is superb. Last edited by mpenza; 19th May 2005 at 03:43 PM.

19th May 2005	#3
synapseman Senior Member Join Date: May 2003 Location: State of Confusion Posts: 2,142	I hope this would not be too off-topic, but I'd like to offer my opinions regarding teleconverters (the type that screws onto the front end of the lens). I'd stay away from them. Chief reason being that they're cumbersome and slow to use. Screwing them on and off takes time, and they can only be used at the 200mm end (for "tele" teleconverters) or at the 28mm end (for wide teleconverters). Not in between, or there'd be severe vignetting. Plus on top of that, you'd have to go through the menus to set the parameters for use with each type of teleconverter. So if you're on the field, and you need to shoot a mixture of wide-angle and zoom shots, these teleconverters become more of a liability than an asset. Other concerns would be the possible strain some of these accessories might have on the lens mechanisms (shouldn't be too much of a problem with mechanically-linked lenses like the Ax series, though), and of course, the price. Good quality teleconverters aren't cheap, and would be even more so if it spends 98% of the time in your kit bag. Just my 2 cents, something for you to consider. But having said that, I've read that the Olympus ones come highly recommended by those who use them. __________________ The synapseman uses Sony Alpha system & Corel Paint Shop Pro Photo X3.

19th May 2005	#5
synapseman Senior Member Join Date: May 2003 Location: State of Confusion Posts: 2,142	For consumer/prosumer cameras, because of the fixed lens, all the teleconverters are mounted on the filter thread, hence the strict restrictions regarding useable zoom range (i.e. none!). Thread-stripping could be another worry because the threads are shallow and/or are made of plastic and these teleconverters can be quite heavy. For SLRs, it's not too bad 'cos the TC is mounted between body and lens, so the entire zoom range of the lens can still be used. You could keep it on the whole day and yet still maintain a large degree of versatility. __________________ The synapseman uses Sony Alpha system & Corel Paint Shop Pro Photo X3.