Backscatter M52 Wide Lens

Jim Decker · Issue 104, Sep/Oct 2018 · pp. 48–50

Products mentioned: Backscatter M52 Wide Lens, Olympus TG-5, Sea & Sea YS-D2s

The new Backscatter M52 Wide Lens was developed specifically with the TG-5 in mind. It has a max angle of coverage of 120 degrees with sharp corners and no vignetting when the zoom on the camera is at full wide. The camera can be partially zoomed to get a tighter shot without having to remove the lens. As with any thread- on wide-angle lens, the dome shade needs to be lined up after installation. The dome shade has the perfect balance of tension to prevent it from rotating after installation. I shot a variety of shots with this new lens. I was able to get closer to wide-angle scenes to get more light from my strobes and increase contrast in wide angle video shots by being closer to my subjects. Since water filters out light, getting closer to your subject will increase the clarity and contrast of the image. The size of the lens tends to be a bit smaller than some of the other wide-angle …