Share your photos with legacy lenses

[Jonathan-Mac]

I have long enjoyed using old, manual film-era lenses on digital cameras and one of the main reasons for changing to FF mirrorless was to be able to use my collection of old lenses with their originally-intended field of view and focus them easily. I know there must be many like-minded people out there shooting manual on their L-mount cameras.

Let's define "legacy lenses" as those developed for film and which are manual focus only. I know there's an adapter thread but it seems to be for those using adapters which allow full functionality of automatic lenses (such as EF) on their L-mount cameras.

I'll start things off with a few favourites shot on my S5.

Pentax SMC 28mm f/2


Boxhead by Jonathan MacDonald, on Flickr


Stopped at the fence by Jonathan MacDonald, on Flickr

Pentax SMC M 50mm f/1.4


Market bar by Jonathan MacDonald, on Flickr


Urban wheat by Jonathan MacDonald, on Flickr

Pentax Takumar 105mm f/2.8


Green by Jonathan MacDonald, on Flickr

Pentax SMC 135mm f/2.5


Angel by Jonathan MacDonald, on Flickr

Vivitar (Tokina) 17mm f/3.5


Smoke in the crystal palace by Jonathan MacDonald, on Flickr

Tamron Adaptall-2 01B 24mm f/2.5


Boatman by Jonathan MacDonald, on Flickr

 

[Pete_W]

I have long enjoyed using old, manual film-era lenses on digital cameras and one of the main reasons for changing to FF mirrorless was to be able to use my collection of old lenses with their originally-intended field of view and focus them easily. I know there must be many like-minded people out there shooting manual on their L-mount cameras.

Let's define "legacy lenses" as those developed for film and which are manual focus only. I know there's an adapter thread but it seems to be for those using adapters which allow full functionality of automatic lenses (such as EF) on their L-mount cameras.

Hi Jonathan.

I really like your images, thanks for posting. As someone who only uses native Lumix lenses, can you explain how these MF lenses are mounted? Do you need a different type of adapter for each brand? And when they are on the camera, do you have to manually set anything in the menus or do you just click away?

 

[Jonathan-Mac]

Hi Peter. Each type of lens requires a specific adaptor, with the mount of the lens at one end (Pentax K, Nikon F etc) to attach the lens and an L-mount at the other, to attach to the camera. K&F Conecpt is my preferred brand - they're good quality and reasonably priced. The adpaters are essentially empty tubes to fill up the space that, on their native mounts, would have been occupied by the mirror box of an SLR, to get the lens the right distance from the sensor.

Once mounted, when you switch on the camera (at least on the S5) it will request you input the focal length, which is to allow the shake reduction to work properly. Unfortunately the focal length isn't recorded in the EXIF of the photos to help you identify the lens that was used.

To shoot, set the aperture on the lens and use the EVF/screen to focus. You will benefit from setting up the manual focus tools in the camera (focus peaking and magnification for example) to help in precise focus, that will depend on the camera. The easiest way to shoot is to use Av mode, with the camera setting the shutter speed and ISO based on the aperture you've set and the available light. You could shoot fully manual exposure if you too, of course. The only limitation is that the camera cannot set the aperture because there's no mechanical connection to do that.

I can currently adapt Pentax K, M42, Nikon F, Minolta SR and Konica AR mount lenses to my S5.

 

[Pete_W]

Hi Peter. Each type of lens requires a specific adaptor, with the mount of the lens at one end (Pentax K, Nikon F etc) to attach the lens and an L-mount at the other, to attach to the camera. K&F Conecpt is my preferred brand - they're good quality and reasonably priced. The adpaters are essentially empty tubes to fill up the space that, on their native mounts, would have been occupied by the mirror box of an SLR, to get the lens the right distance from the sensor.

Once mounted, when you switch on the camera (at least on the S5) it will request you input the focal length, which is to allow the shake reduction to work properly. Unfortunately the focal length isn't recorded in the EXIF of the photos to help you identify the lens that was used.

To shoot, set the aperture on the lens and use the EVF/screen to focus. You will benefit from setting up the manual focus tools in the camera (focus peaking and magnification for example) to help in precise focus, that will depend on the camera. The easiest way to shoot is to use Av mode, with the camera setting the shutter speed and ISO based on the aperture you've set and the available light. You could shoot fully manual exposure if you too, of course. The only limitation is that the camera cannot set the aperture because there's no mechanical connection to do that.

I can currently adapt Pentax K, M42, Nikon F, Minolta SR and Konica AR mount lenses to my S5.

Thanks Jonathan! That's helpful to know. And are these manual lenses difficult to find these days, and expensive?

 

[Lsake]

I have Minolta XG-M and SRT101 film cameras. I got a fotasy SR to L mount adapter so I could test the old film SLR lenses were working before spending money on film and development. Below are some test shots with the Minolta MD W.Rokkor 28mm f3.5, I edited the files to try an give them an old film look.

• Panasonic - DC-S5
• 1/800 sec
• Pattern
• Manual exposure
• ISO 200

• Panasonic - DC-S5
• 1/1600 sec
• Pattern
• Manual exposure
• ISO 200

• Panasonic - DC-S5
• 1/640 sec
• Pattern
• Manual exposure
• ISO 200

 

[Jonathan-Mac]

Thanks Jonathan! That's helpful to know. And are these manual lenses difficult to find these days, and expensive?

Manual lenses are certainly not difficult to find, after all, they were the only lenses around for decades. As for price, that can vary wildly as a function of rarity more than anything else. The humble Pentax M 50mm f/1.7 is a superb lens and yet can be easily found for €40 in very good condition. Other lenses may cost ten or twenty times that despite their age, simply because they're rare. It is quite a rabbit-hole though and I have accumulated dozens of such lenses but I enjoy using them and seeing where they differ.

 

[huwm]

• LEICA CAMERA AG - LEICA SL2-S
• Tele-Elmar 1:4/135
• 135.0 mm
• ƒ/5.6
• 1/250 sec
• Pattern
• ISO 100

a fibreglass madonna who has moved house with us twice hiding behind bushes at the back of the garden
lens is a 135mm tele elmar using a 'knock off' m to l adaptor

 

[huwm]

• LEICA CAMERA AG - LEICA SL2-S
• Summicron-M 1:2/35
• 35.0 mm
• ƒ/16
• 1/250 sec
• Pattern
• ISO 100

a green hellebore
a problem with old lenses is inability to focus relatively closely
40mm summicron from CL using a 'close up' m to l adaptor from 7 artisans

 

[jomppak]

Once mounted, when you switch on the camera (at least on the S5) it will request you input the focal length, which is to allow the shake reduction to work properly. Unfortunately the focal length isn't recorded in the EXIF of the photos to help you identify the lens that was used.

I think this has been changed in S5II. You can store several lenses with their name and focal length. When switching on, you can choose the used lens from the stored ones and the model (name) of the lens among its focal length is stored in the EXIF data when you shoot. So all the data except the used aperture value is available.

 

[pdk42]

Tokina 70-210 SD f4-f5.6 OM mount. Shot at 210mm and f8.


Late Afternoon over Warwickshire by Paul Kaye, on Flickr

 

[Jonathan-Mac]

Yesterday I took a recently acquired Pentax Takumar 200mm f/4 lens to the zoo on my S5


Giraffe by Jonathan MacDonald, on Flickr


Giraffes by Jonathan MacDonald, on Flickr


Flamingoes by Jonathan MacDonald, on Flickr


Brown bears by Jonathan MacDonald, on Flickr


Hiding koala by Jonathan MacDonald, on Flickr

 

[robin0112358]

Pentax FA 43mm Limited on Lumix DC-S5

fixer upper



Abbey River

 

[robin0112358]

First time using my "Vivitar 135mm f/2.8 Auto Telephoto Close Focusing" on the S5. Quite an incredible lens made by Komine. Good for distances, but then extends a great deal to become a 1:2 macro. My lens is K-mount but also available in M42. Dates approximately from 1975 to 1981.

First two are SOOC with only usual developing... no filters.

treetops 1



treetops 2


grain

 

[Jonathan-Mac]

Some more recent work, all on the S5. Can you tell I like 50mm lenses?

Pentax SMC M 50mm f/1.7


Sundown in the long grass by Jonathan MacDonald, on Flickr

Pentax SMC Takumar 50mm f/1.4


Shrooms by Jonathan MacDonald, on Flickr

Nikon Ai 50mm f/1.4


Lilac by Jonathan MacDonald, on Flickr


ABOY1C by Jonathan MacDonald, on Flickr

 

[xaviergut]

Nikon 35mm f/2 AI with the Lumix S5 (if you look closely you can see my reflection in the puppy's eye):

• Panasonic - DC-S5
• 1/125 sec
• Pattern
• Auto exposure
• ISO 320

 

[Travis Butler]

A few I like adapted...

Lumix S5, Tamron 80-200 (03A):

• NO-LENS
• 1/125 sec
• Pattern
• ISO 1250

Sigma fp, Olympus OM Zuiko 24/2.8:

• Zuiko 24/2.8
• 24.0 mm
• 1/60 sec
• Pattern
• ISO 2000

Sigma fp, OM Zuiko 50/2 Macro:

• Zuiko 50/2 Macro
• 50.0 mm
• 1/60 sec
• Pattern
• ISO 500

Sigma fp, OM Zuiko 24/2.8:

• SIGMA - SIGMA fp
• Zuiko 24/2.8
• 24.0 mm
• 1/400 sec
• Pattern
• ISO 100

Lumix S5, Minolta MD 24-50:

• Panasonic - DC-S5
• MD 24-50/4
• 1/400 sec
• Pattern
• ISO 100

Lumix S5, Kiron 75-150/4:

• Panasonic - DC-S5
• NO-LENS
• 1/200 sec
• Pattern
• ISO 100

Sigma fp, Vivitar (Kiron) 28/2.5:

• SIGMA - SIGMA fp
• 1/60 sec
• Pattern
• ISO 1250

 

[meuffel]

S5 with my Mamiya Sekor C 150 mm 1:3,5, shot at f11. Nice lens on the S5, but it has to get stopped down a bit. Vignette added in post.

Btw, the only adaptor I could find is a Kipon, which is beautifully built - but costs new almost as much as the used lens in a decent condition ...

 

[robin0112358]

I updated an old article on Aperture Control and Vintage Lenses that goes through the four types of lenses you are likely to find, and how to use them on a current camera.

(Apologies for any cross-posting.)

 

[Jonathan-Mac]

A couple of shots taken in a restaurant in Venice with the Pentax M 50mm f/1.7


Wine bottles by Jonathan MacDonald, on Flickr


Wine bottles II by Jonathan MacDonald, on Flickr

 

[Jonathan-Mac]

Two shots with the Pentax SMC M 35mm f/2


TED by Jonathan MacDonald, on Flickr


Yellow amongst green by Jonathan MacDonald, on Flickr

And one with the Pentax SMC M 85mm f/2


Sundown by Jonathan MacDonald, on Flickr