The Canon PowerShot G11 allows you to attach filters and lenses using a special method which involves an adapter. I’ve already discussed this adapter in a previous article (Canon G11 58mm Aluminum Adapter Tube Review).
There are two problems with that two-parts adapter:
1. Blocked Zoom – using only one part of the adapter you can get perfect pictures but you cannot use the zoom feature as the camera’s lens gets stuck in the filter or extra lens, thus making the camera to shut down.
2. Vignetted Images – using both parts of the adapter you can use the zoom, but when the zoom is not used, the camera gets vignetted images. That means you see a black circle over the edges of the photographs.
There’s not much to do about the blocked zoom. It is caused because the zoom can reach longer than the space the first part of the adapter allows. To allow you use the full zoom you need to put the filter further away from the camera. Then comes the other problem of vignetting. This phenomenon occurs because some of the light that comes to the camera’s lens is blocked, resulting with a black circle over the edges.
Solving the vignetting problem, involves using a wider adapter part. That can be achieved with the expensive lensmate that has small problems of its own, or use a technique I first read about a forum (if I find the link I’ll add it in the future).
All you need to get is a step-up rings set 58mm to 77mm from eBay. This is actually a set of aluminum rings that can screw to each other to form a cone. This shape allows you to use the zoom without any vignetting. The cone allows more light get to the camera’s lens, thus eliminating vignetting.
The set I’ve bough costs about $12. It includes seven step-up rings. Three of which I do not use at all:
49-52mm, 52-55mm, 55-58mm, 58-62mm, 62-67mm, 67-72mm, 72-77mm.
You also have to buy an aluminum adapter tube 58mm ($6 – $12). Make sure you get the one that has two detachable parts. You will only use the bottom part.
Instructions
1. Remove the protective ring (click the button) from the camera.
2. Attach the bottom part of the aluminum adapter tube. That should give you a 58mm adapter.
3. Attach step-up rings by screwing them one by one into the adapter and over each other. You need 58-62mm, 62-67mm, 67-72mm, 72-77mm.
Finally you get a 77mm adapter to which you can attach any 77mm filter! That’s a cheap and convenient solution that costs less than $20 if you can find the good deals in eBay.
When you use this setup, your camera will have a slight angle when put on a desk (4mm on the side closer to the adapter). This shouldn’t interfere with photography at all.
Compared to Lensmate
The other alternative is the more expensive one, but not only is more expensive, but rumors say there is a little vignetting when the zoom not used with certain filters. That is caused due to their usage of a 72mm instead of a 77mm one (I didn’t test this!).
The lensmate website specifies there is no vignetting using their “A” + “B” adapter (72mm), but later on that page it is also specified that it might occur under some circumstances.
“3. Why not make a 77mm lens adapter?
When the potential for small amounts of vignetting was weighed against making a larger diameter part, we decided that 72mm was the sweet spot for several reasons. First, to make a larger part would require a costly custom aluminum extrusion with a large minimum order requirement. Extra cost to the consumer. Because of maximum size limitations of the CNC equipment being used.”
Part “A” (which is the basic adapter tube) costs $24.95
Part “B” (which is similar to the step-up rings set) costs $22.95
Those two costs together about $48 + shipping.
Conclusion
Using this solution vs the Lensmate solution has other ramifications. On the first you use 77mm filters which are bigger, sometimes more expensive. The second one uses 72mm filters. You may make your decision based on filters you already have from other cameras, or DSLR cameras you are going to purchase in the future. Don’t forget you can always use a step-up ring on the Lensmate or remove one ring from the step-up rings set. These actions might affect vignetting a little, but it is possible.
With this adapter ring set to 77mm, can one zoom to the full telephoto length without toughing the filter?
I tried it with two filters. Works just fine. It also depends on the length of the tube. I bought this one on eBay, so there’s no guarantee that another tube from eBay will have the exact length. However, it’s not so expensive to begin with, it’s your decision.
thanks for this solution – works great on mine! i got a set of rings off ebay, and it works with two types of filters i’ve tried. it’s a very close call: you could just about fit a sheet of paper between the end of the camera lens and the filter. but it works: the full zoom length can be used, no camera shutdown, and I can’t detect any vignetting at maximum wide either. brilliant.