Olympus MCON-P02 Macro Converter - Initial impression

Macro photography is something I've only ever dabbled in briefly. This is despite owning more than a few macro lenses in my time. But macro lenses also tend to be viewed as quite 'specialist' optics, and therefore not a lens that you look to get early on when putting a kit together - unless, of course, you happen to be a dedicated macro specialist. Which I am not. I do, however, like to dabble...

Olympus MCON-P02

Olympus make two dedicated macro lenses for their micro four thirds cameras - a 30mm f3.5 and a 60mm f2.8. I 'may' end up getting one of them one day (the 60mm is especially tempting), but in the meantime, I need to consider other options.

Enter the Olympus MCON-P02 - a screw-on converter that increases the image magnification of certain M.Zuiko lenses. Most are primes (like the 45mm f1.8 or the 25mm f1.8 which are both lenses I may look at in the future), but it also works with one zoom lens - the 14-42mm f3.5/5.6 kit lens that came with my Pen E-P3.

I saw an MCON-P02 for sale recently on Trademe, and the seller had lowered the price for a quick sale. Good enough for me, I thought, and I snapped it up - mint, in box. It arrived a few days later, as advertised, although the box was a little worse for wear.

Olympus suggest that the MCON-P02 be used at the telephoto (42mm) end of the zoom range, giving you a close focusing distance of 22cm from the subject to the sensor - and a 0.38x magnification factor. They're all just numbers to me. What does that actually look like in practice?

Dandelion head. Olympus Pen E-P3 with 14-42mm f3.5/5.6 at 42mm. 1/800th @f8, ISO 400

The above image of a dandelion head is as close as I could get with using just the normal 42mm end of the zoom range. Olympus claim the closest focusing distance of the lens is 25cm, and although I didn't get out the ruler and measure it, this seems about right.

Dandelion Head Macro. Olympus EP-3 with M.Zuiko 14-42mm f3.5/5.6 with MCON-P02 Converter. 

The above shot is taken with the MCON-P02 attached. This time, minimum focusing distance has increased to 22cm. And although 3cm doesn't sound like a lot, in macro photography it can make quite a big difference. Both the images above are uncropped - as shot - straight out of camera. You are definitely receiving a magnification boost by adding the macro converter, although as previously stated, it's nowhere near dedicated macro lens 1:1 magnification.

Dandelion Head Macro 2. Olympus Pen E-P3 with 14-42mm f3.5/5.6 lens with MCON-P02 Converter.

At around NZ$145.00 new (as of March 2019), there are probably cheaper ways to increase the magnification of your lenses. Close-up filters for example. But since I didn't pay anywhere near $145.00 for my copy, I've probably come out on top. Would I buy one for full retail - no, I wouldn't. Will I use it a lot - no, I probably won't. But it's still a fraction of the cost of a dedicated macro lens. And it's probably worth every cent I paid for it in terms of the fun/experimentation factor it will bring to my photography. I'm already visualizing the fungi shots I'm going to try out with this combination in the next few months.

As I mentioned earlier, with macro photography every centimeter - heck, every millimeter - counts when you are shooting up close and personal. If the MCON-P02 can get me a few shots that I wouldn't otherwise have been able to get, then it's worth every measly penny I paid for it.