Other High Quality Wide Angle Converter Lenses

In addition to Nikon's WC-E80, there are three more high quality wide angle converter lenses: Olympus WCON-08B (0.8X), Olympus WCON-07 (0.7X), and Minolta ACW-100 (0.8X). To use any one of these three converter lenses, the Coolfix 5700 Adapter or similar adapter tubes and possibly step rings are required because Nikon's UR-E8 is not compatible with these lenses. The left image below shows the above mentioned wide angle lenses and the Nikon WC-E80. They are Olympus WCON-08B (top left), Nikon WC-E80 (top right), Olympus WCON-07 (bottom left) and Minolta ACW-100 (bottom right). As you can see, the Minolta ACW-100 is the smallest, while the WC-E80 is really big. The right image below shows the front view of all four lenses. In terms of lens diameter, WCON-08B is the largest; but, the front glass element is just about the same size as the WC-E80. It is also clear from these two images that the Nikon WC-E80 has a concave front glass while all others have convex ones.

Of these four wide angle converters, only the Olympus WCON-08B and Nikon WC-E80 can use the Nextphoto Coolfix 5700 adapter without vignetting. To use the Olympus WCON-07 and Minolta ACW-100 without vignetting, one may need Nextphoto's new 55mm adapter for the 5700. Click here for more details. The following image shows, from left to right, the new Nextphoto 55mm adapter, the Coolfix 5700 adapter, and Nikon's UR-E8. The tube length of the new Nextphoto 55mm adapter is slightly shorter than that of the Coolpix 5700 (and hence the UR-E8), and, as a result, vignetting is avoided by moving the wide angle lens closer to the on-camera lens. If you are looking for a wider wide angle lens (e.g., WCON-07) or a smaller 0.8X (e.g., Minolta ACW-100), you might want to consider this new adapter tube.

The New Nextphoto 55mm Adapter

The following shows a Nextphoto new 55mm adapter. This adapter is specially designed for the Olympus WCON-07 0.7X wide angle lens. It has a 55mm thread size that fits the WCON-07 converter.

This 55mm adapter has a fixed length that barely covers the 5700 lens at the widest focal length (below left). When the on-camera lens is zoomed in, it will move out of the adapter tube (below right). Consequently, this new 55mm adapter is only good for using wide angle converter lenses rather than for telephoto converter lenses. Otherwise, the on-camera lens will hit the rear glass element of the mounted telephoto converter lens, causing the Lens Err message.

Olympus WCON-08B

The Olympus WCON-08B is a large and heavy wide angle converter lens with a magnification ratio of 0.8X, which brings the 5700 minimum focal length down to 28mm = 35×0.8. Thus, the resulting focal length is identical to that of the Nikon WC-E80. The WCON-08B has a rear thread size of 62mm and a front thread size of 105mm. Therefore, it can be mounted on to the Nextphoto Coolfix 5700 adapter tube directly. See the 5700 Adapter Tubes page for more details. The left image below shows the lens and the right one has a WCON-08B mounted on a 5700 with the help of the Coolfix 5700 adapter. As you can see from the right image below, the WCON-08B is a massive piece of glass.

Olympus WCON-07

The Olympus WCON-07 is a light 0.7X wide angle converter lens with a plastic barrel. It widens 5700's focal length to 24.5mm = 0.7×35, which is wider than the Nikon WC-E80. The WCON-07 has a 55mm rear thread and has no front thread. Therefore, you will need the new Nextphoto 55mm adapter to mount the WCON-07 on to the Coolfix 5700 without vignetting. (Yes, vignetting will occur if you use the Coolfix 5700 adapter and a 62-55mm step-down ring.) The left image below shows the lens and the right one has a WCON-07 on a 5700 with the help of the Nextphoto 55mm adapter. Note that, with the new Nextphoto 55mm adapter, the on-camera lens can be zoomed in a little to 16.8mm, which is 46.3mm = 16.8×3.933×0.7 in 35mm equivalent. Passing this focal length, the on-camera lens will hit the rear lens glass of the WCON-07 and a Lens Err message will be shown. As a result, there is no focal length gap between 24.5mm and 35mm.

Minolta ACW-100 0.8X

This Minolta ACW-100 is a 0.8X wide angle converter lens and is the smallest of the three discussed on this page. It widens 5700's minimum focal length to 28mm. This lens has a 49mm rear thread and a 86mm front thread. You will need a 55-49mm step-down ring to mount it on to the new Nextphoto 55mm adapter. Slight vignetting at four corners will occur is you choose to use the Coolfix 5700 adapter and a 62-49mm step-down ring. The left image below shows the lens, and the right one has this lens mounted on a 5700 with the help of the new 55mm adapter and a 55-49mm step-down ring. Because of the use of a 55-49mm step-down ring that pushes the converter a little away from the on-camera lens, the last focal length without causing the Lens Err message is about 29.5mm, which is equal to 92.8mm = 29.5×3.933×0.8 in 35mm equivalent. Thus, with the Minolta ACW-100 mounted on a 5700, the available focal length range is between 28mm and 93mm. This is not as wide as that of the Nikon WC-E80; however, this Minolta is smaller (89mm×36mm vs. 94.5mm×50mm) and lighter (250g vs. 500g).

Technical Data

The following technical information are taken from Olympus and Minolta user manuals. This information is for the 5700 only, and should be different for other cameras.