The INON UCL-67 Underwater Close-up Lens
Last month during Red Sea Photo Camp 2022 I got to try out INON’s top of the range macro wet lens and the results really impressed me.
The UCL-67 is available in M67 threaded, INON LD mount and the new INON XD bayonet mount system versions.
According to INON the UCL-67 equates to a +15 Diopter making it one of the more powerful macro wet lenses on the market. The 67 designation comes from its actual focal length, this is used for all the INON macro lenses with the least powerful being the UCL-330.
A tiny goby on a hard coral at Marsa Shagra Village in the Red Sea. The close focusing distance that the UCL-67 gives means that depth of field even at small aperture settings is very shallow.
This lens can be used with cameras from full frame sensor DSLR’s right down to small sensor compacts. INON recommend it’s use with 60mm to 100mm focal length macro lenses on full frame cameras, 40mm to 60mm macro lenses for APSC and 45mm to 60mm macro lenses for Micro Four Thirds. But it can also be used with zoom lenses on Micro Four Thirds cameras and up to 5X magnification zoom lenses on compacts if you keep the lens set between 60mm and 100mm full frame equivalent.
Leather coral polyps. I found the UCL-67 produced sharp results with no noticeable chromatic aberration when used with my Olympus OM-D EM10 MkII fitted with the Panasonic-Leica 45mm macro lens.
The UCL-67 weighs 340g and at 37mm in length is quite compact compared to some of the similar power lenses from other manufacturers. The M67 and LD mount versions are quite pricey £487.99 but the new XD mount version is a more reasonable £442. The XD bayonet system is also substantially cheaper than some of the other options on the market when it comes to port mounts and lens holders.
This slightly odd shot of an ornate ghost pipefish’s snout was taken using an Olympus 75mm f1.8 lens and the UCL-67. The 75mm isn’t a lens normally used for underwater photography and it’s focal length is outside the range that Inon recommends for use with the UCL-67. But as can be seen the results can still be sharp.
The lens does have an M67 threaded ‘lens adapter ring’ which allows you to stack an additional lens to it and increase your power even further.
If this little blog has got you thinking about buying an Inon UCL-67, we are a UK dealer for INON as well as many other underwater photography brands. Drop us an email at info@alphamarinephoto.com to get more information and to order yours.
I’d like to thank Lisa Collins and Steve Warren from our supplier INON UK for lending us the UCL-67 to try out.
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