On 12 May 2003 12:13:53 -0700, migou1@yahoo.com (mig.) wrote:

>i'm looking to capture high presision video of very small prints.

>i don't have problem of focus at near distances ( i use a sony trv-740

>camcorder with lens thread of 37mm)

>but i would like to magnify 2X or 4X optically to have my subject full

>screen ( resolution).

>

>The dimention of what i want to capture is about 7mm X 7mm

>

>Anyone knows what kind of lens i need and also, will i have corner

>distortions ?

>

>if yes, is there a solution to not have any distortion and still

>magnify?

You can use an "achromat" (a two-element close-up lens).

These give excellent sharpness (though there may be some

fairly small amount of linear distortion, hard to avoid).

Nikon, Canon, Minolta, Leitz, and others have these. The

Nikon 4T 52mm is about $40 from B&H, and needs a 37->52mm

step-up ring to use it. You will need to experiment with

zoom setting (probably near longest tele position) and

distance from subject to get both focus and size right...