NiSi Close-up
Lens Kit
●£109●en.nisioptics.com
WHENI starteddabblingin
close-upphotography 20 years
agoa macrolenswasoutof
reach,soI madedowitha setof
close-upattachmentlensesfrom
a charityshopfor£3.These
lensestraditionallycomein
differentpowers(diopters),and
workbyreducingtheminimum
focusingdistanceof yourprime
orzoom,allowingyoutofill the
framewithyoursubject.However,
thecheapestversionsareoften
madeof singlecorrectiveglass,
whichcanleadtoimagesoftness
andchromaticaberration.Plus,if
youscrewmultiplepiecesof glass
tothefrontof yourlensyou’llrisk
vignettingspoilingyourshot.
Sincebuyingmy105mm
macrolensovera decadeago
myclose-upattachmentlenses
havebeenrelegatedtotheloft.
However,Chinesefilterbrand
NiSirecentlyreleaseda superior
version,thatreallycaughtmy
attention.TheNiSiClose-upLens
Kitcomprisesa high-quality
attachmentlensmadeof double
opticalcorrectiveglasswitha
multinano-coating,a protective
pouch,andtwoadapterrings(at
presentthelensis onlyavailable
in a 77mmfilterthread).The
glassfeelsreassuringlyweighty,
but the payoff came by way of
lenscreepwhenmy24-105mm
lenswaspointeddownwards.
Aspromised,opticalqualityis
excellent,withnosignsof fringing
orsoftnessin thesuggested
aperturerangeof f/8-f/16.
Truemacromagnification(1:1)is
possiblewithlensesaroundthe
200mmfocallength,butformy
purposesthe24-105mmat its
furthestreachprovedfine.It’sa
nicepieceof glass,anda great
toolforexploringtheworldup
closewithoutblowing the budget.
Tracy CalderAXIS BACKPACKSTakeyourphotographyand
videographyequipmentwithyou
to the most testing environmentsLEARNMORE:Getting theretenba.com/collections/axisOpticalqualityis excellent,with no
signsoffringingorsoftness
24-105mm, 0.3sec at f/11, ISO 320Recommended