Sony RX100 M1 and M4: Comparison of Close-Up Photos Taken with Lenses

Introduction | Comparison Photos | References

This page presents further sample photos that compare the close-up facilities of the Sony RX100 M1 and the Sony RX100 M4 when using close-up lenses while the lens is set to the longest optical focal length. These sample photos were taken either hand-held or using a MagFilter/Lensmate filter/lens adapter.

Introduction

When I measured the minimum object width for different zoom lengths of my wife's RX100 M1 and my RX100 M4, I found out that only two zoom lengths are interesting for close-up shots, namely the shortest (28/24 mm equiv.) and the longest ones (100/70 mm equiv.). The latter provides a larger minimum object width (about 20/16 cm), but also a large object distance of 55/30 cm. A focal length of 28/24 mm (equiv.) might also be usable and is the only option available without close-up lenses, but it requires you to get very close to the subject, particularly for the RX100 M4.

Matters are complicated by the fact that the Sony RX100 models do not have a filter thread. For the RX100 M1/2, Sony offers an adapter solution, whereas other companies also offer solutions that fit all the RX100 models. For my RX100 M4, I bought a Lensmate filter adapter (glue only, plastic), for my wife's RX100 M1 a MagFilter adapter (glue and magnetic, metal). See the respective pages for more information (Close-Up Experiences - Lensmate Adapter Unboxing and Installation, Close-Up Experiences - MagFilter Adapter Installation).

Furthermore, I did various tests with different close-up lenses or combinations thereof, either by holding the close-up lens by hand or by using the above-mentioned filter adapters (for more stable results...). In summary, I got the following results:

Sony RX100 M1				Sony RX100 M4
Focal Length	Close-up Lenses Setup						Focal Length
Focal Length	None	+5	+10	None	+5	+10	Focal Length
28	80 mm	67 mm	55 mm	100 mm	n.a.	n.a.	24
100	200-205 mm	60-62 mm	36-37 mm	161-162 mm	68-71 mm	45-47 mm	70

All in all, except for the tele end without a close-up lens, the RX100 M1 always magnifies a little more than the M4.

Comparison Photos

The following examples were taken with close-up lenses using a MagFilter/Lensmate filter/lens adapter and with the lens set to the longest optical focal length (100/70 mm equiv.). These photos were made to compare the close-up capabilities of the Sony RX100 M1 and M4 with such a setting. For comparison purposes, I present also photos that were taken without close-up lenses and at the shortest distance for the wide (24/28 mm equiv.) and tele (100/70 mm equiv.) ends of the camera lenses.

The photos confirm my findings that all in all, except for the tele end without a close-up lens, the RX100 M1 always magnifies a little more than the M4. However, with real life photos one has to be very careful to focus on the same spot as otherwise the results may be unreliable (I had to exchange some photos for this reason...).

RX100 M1		RX100 M4

No close-up-lens (100 mm equiv.) - about 20 cm wide		No close-up-lens (70 mm equiv.) - about 16 cm wide

No close-up-lens (28 mm equiv.) - about 8 cm wide		No close-up-lens (24 mm equiv.) - about 10 cm wide

Marumi +5 achromat - about 6 cm wide		One Marumi +5 achromat - about 7 cm wide

siocore +10 achromat - nearly 4 cm wide		siocore +10 achromat - about 4.5 cm wide