I needed to photograph some products for a presentation. It was a studio ‘table top’ setup, with one Profoto pack and one head in a medium softbox, with some reflector cards. I had been merely cropping my 5dMk II files to get closer, but i always felt i was losing too much of the file/image quality in the process. I didn’t want to spend the money for a dedicated macro lens, as this was a self-generated project, and i have little use for a macro lens otherwise.So, i receive the filter. I have had some experience with a Pentax 67 closeup filter in the past, but only for informal portraits. The Heliopan went onto a Canon 50/1.4. From all the internet babble, i was expecting to see obvious image degradation. I was expecting to find out that my ‘cheap’ way out was, indeed, a compromise versus a real macro solution (i also considered extension tubes). But, when i opened the files, i didn’t find anything to suggest ‘compromise.’ The photos were sharper than i expected — they seemed as sharp as i would have expected them to be without the filter. But, of course, they allowed closer focusing, so i didn’t have to crop anything, and i could use the full resolution of the camera.In fact, i didn’t see anything that would allow me to believe that a real macro lens could have done better. I just don’t know where you could get ‘more detail.’ I’m sure i’m wrong, as i know a dedicated macro lens in itself is sharper than a typical prime of the same focal length. But, with this filter, i was not left wanting anything more.In the interest of full disclosure: i did NOT examine ‘edge sharpness.’ My products were set in the middle of high-key white seamless. I also did not look for chromatic aberration or anything of the kind. I bought a filter to magnify the subject matter/allow for closer focusing distances, and that’s what i got. Happy.I’m so happy with the product that i will always keep it in my bag, and i hope to use it with film (EOS 3) when i do travel portraiture. I’ll also keep it to use with a Nikon F100 when i get their upcoming 50/1.8G, for the same purpose.So, five stars. Not because it’s better than a dedicated lens, but because it does what IT is supposed to do, and does it flawlessly.
