First Impressions: Kenko TelePlus MC7 AF 2.0X DGX Teleconverter

AF-S Zoom-NIKKOR 70-300mm f/4.5-5.6G IF-ED + Kenko TelePlus MC7
900mm; 1/5 s @ f/11.0, ISO 800

This year, a Kenko Teleplus MC7 teleconverter found its way under my tree.

Same image, no teleconverter.
AF-S Zoom-NIKKOR 70-300mm f/4.5-5.6G IF-ED 450mm; 1/25 s @ f/5.6, ISO 800

My first ever teleconverter was a used Canon Extender FD 2x-B, a solid, all-metal affair that promised to double the focal length of my FD 70-210mm f/4 zoom lens. Which it did quite well, or at least as well as it could working with an aperture of f/4. Back in those days, whether or not autofocus would work simply wasn’t an option.

Fast forward to the present, and the laws of physics are still the same. A 2x teleconverter still adds two stops of exposure and amplifies every tiny movement of the camera, making handheld shooting a challenge. Only now we have autofocus and image stabilization, and the Kenko TelePlus MC7 supports them both.

The TelePlus MC7 is an enormous value. It has quality optics (the MC7 stands for multicoated, 7-elements), and works exactly as you’d expect, supporting both autofocus, and more importantly, image stabilization. It even reports the correct exposure and focal length in the EXIF data. It’s well-made, although like most lenses these days, the body is plastic.

Any teleconverter works best with a fast lens. Slower lenses don’t disable autofocus, but they make it work harder to the extent that it’s easier just  to switch to manual focus. And, with the amount of accuracy required by the narrow depth of field, it’s debatable whether it can do a better job of focusing anyway.

But image stabilization really helps out here, even more than the autofocus. In fact, it actually assists the process; pressing and holding the shutter button halfway while focusing stabilizes the image and makes the process much easier.

One of the great advantages of the Kenko over the Nikon, besides the price, is the fact that it will work with any lens. And when I say any, I even mean DX lenses. Not only does my AF-S NIKKOR 50mm f/1.4G become a pretty nifty 150mm f/2.8, but my AF-S DX NIKKOR 35mm f/1.8G now becomes a 105mm f/3.5 and works perfectly (no vignetting) on a full-frame camera as a 70mm f/3.5!

What was truly amazing was how well the Samyang 500mm f/8.0 Mirror Lens responded. The contrast was slightly lower, but the image remained amazingly sharp.

Phoenix/Samyang 500mm f/8.0 Mirror Lens + Kenko TelePlus MC7 AF 2.0X DGX Teleconverter
1500mm; 0.5 s @ f/16, ISO 800

The versatility of the Kenko TelePlus will enable it to work under a variety of conditions, both ideal and adverse. So, for me, the challenge is, as always, to put it through its paces and see what it can really do.