Using a semi-dome port with a macro lens?

[jlr]

I've recently added a semi-dome port onto my housing, as I was getting a fair amount of distortion when using a flat port with an ultra wide lens. In the sparse documentation for the semi-dome, though, I noticed that the port vendor (different from the housing and camera vendor) says that the macro lens I use also works with their semi-dome.

Does anyone have any feedback on if using a macro lens on a semi-dome is really a good idea? I believe it will reduce the magnification (versus a flat port), but I'm not sure.

The motivation to doing this is to reduce the amount of gear I have to travel with. Also, my housing is fairly user un-friendly with port changes, and the contortions I had to do to change ports pretty much rules out ever doing this on a boat. Maybe in a hotel room, with some time and a screw driver.

The specific camera is an Olympus E-M5II, with the Olympus housing. The macro lens is the 60mm Oly one.

Thanks for any advice!

 

[James R]

I would not use a dome with macro lens. Can't use wet diopter with it, among other reasons. Also, a flat port doesn't take much space -- fill it with stuff like sync cables, lens cloth, etc

 

[bvanant]

It will work fine but adding a diopter is not easy. Depending on the curvature of the dome, you might need a diopter on the 60 to get sharp corners and you will get less magnification (the flat port magnifies and the dome port sort of has negative magnification).
Bill

 

[Furnari]

If you're shooting through the Zen dome for the 9-18, I can confirm that the 60 works fine in it. You do loose some magnification, but the convenience is worth something as changing the PEN style ports is a pain- it's too bad Olympus went away from the easy port change like their other OMD housings. In theory, you can use the Olympus PMLA macro adapter with the Zen dome. I put some of the tough 3M velcro on the dome shade to make an interference fit, and it worked ok with the 14-42. Did not try it with the 60, but it's a little tough to use that lens with a diopter anyway IMHO as I wouldn't shoot M43 over F10. For what it's worth, the 60 still works good behind a 170mm dome, too (in case anyone is interested or finds this thread decades from now in a search.)

 

[Larry C]

I sometimes use my 5" Bare dome with my 60mm macro. It works fine. The picture will become slightly wider, but the bigger issue is proximity while shooting macro. You'll tend to scratch the dome while trying to get close enough to macro subjects. Less of an issue if your macro lens has a longer minimum focal distance.

 

[James R]

I have seen a few divers press their dome into a critter b/c they couldn't tell how close it was. It makes sense that it would be easy to scratch the dome on rock and such too. Yikes.