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Canon EOS Digital/YC adaptor
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There are adaptors advertised on Ebay which allow Zeiss lenses to be used on certain Canon EOS digital cameras.
I know that much of the automation on the camera will not operate, but the advertising blurb suggests that AV priority will work.
If anyone has tried this adaptor can you please tell me if using Zeiss lenses is a viable option.
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Re: Canon EOS Digital/YC adaptor
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Not sure what your choices mean, but I use an adaptor for C/Y to EOS, and as long as you can cope with manual focus, stop-down metering and only using aperture priority or manual exposure, it works well.
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TimF
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(Senior Member)
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09/02/2006 08:44
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Re: Canon EOS Digital/YC adaptor
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Like Nick said. He actually has the one I'd previously bought from Cameraquest. Very simple to use - just set the aperture reading on your Canon body to its widest (either f/1 or f/0 depending), and don't touch it again while using the C/Y mount lens, ie, the aperture must be set on the lens only, otherwise there will be exposure errors.
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Alex_M
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(member)
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24/05/2006 19:48
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Re: Canon EOS Digital/YC adaptor
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My C/Y-EOS adapter is the one made by Bob Shell. It works very well, and is well-machined. I just set the camera to Av and let it sort out the shutter speed. Focussing tends to be more of a problem than exposure when using manual lens via an adapter.
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Fen
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(BAD WOLF)
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06/06/2006 12:05
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Re: Canon EOS Digital/YC adaptor
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Glad I saw this thread...
A friend of mine just asked if he'd be able to put his Contax lenses on a Canon 1DS MkII?
Posible?
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Re: Canon EOS Digital/YC adaptor
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Absolutely. He just needs an adaptor - there are quite a few about from the cheap Chinese ones through to the Bob Shell one, which is the best engineered, but really requires one adaptor per lens for speed.
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Fen
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(BAD WOLF)
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06/06/2006 12:39
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Re: Canon EOS Digital/YC adaptor
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Does anyone have details of the 'Bob Shell' one I can post onto him?
TIA
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Alex_M
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(member)
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06/06/2006 13:03
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Re: Canon EOS Digital/YC adaptor
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You can find out about Bob's adapter here:
http://www.bobshell.com/adapter.html
I have this adapter. As Nick says (and as Bob himself says), it is more practical to have one adapter per lens, as mounting the adapter is not a fast operation. To fit it, you mount the adapter on the lens, then, using a small supplied allen key, fit a tiny 'set screw' which keeps the adapter firmly fixed on the lens. You then offer up the lens to the EOS mount. With this screw fitted, the lens will not move on the adapter and cannot accidentally come off it. It is supplied with two of these little grub screws, one for spare, plus an A4 sheet with clear instructions. Once you get the hang of fitting it, it's easy, but it's not something you want to do 'in the field'. The adapter is not cheap. I paid $150 (payment is accepted via Paypal), though its in line with other reputable adapters, such as the Cameraquest one, and Bob responds rapidly; mine was in my hands from the US in less than a week. I don't think he has any off the shelf at the moment, as his machinist makes them up in batches when Bob passes on his orders, and I know he is slightly re-designing it (there will be a reddish tint on the finish to distinguish it from the earlier model).
I think there are one or two Zeiss lenses that don't work well, but this is not due to the adapter, but to some measurements in the lens which may cause it to foul against the mirror assembly on some EOS digitals. Once again, Bob will advise.
Contact Bob for details, he is very helpful, and judging from the speed he responded to my queries, never seems to go to bed.
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Re: Canon EOS Digital/YC adaptor
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Bob's certainly almost always online. He had considered trying to get a Russian-made chip added that would actually provide some lens info to the camera, but the price was out of sight. Not sure where he is with manufacture, as I think he was looking for a new contractor a month or two back, but he'll certainly tell you.
I must say I'm perfectly happy with my Cameraquest adaptor, FWIW.
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Alex_M
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(member)
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06/06/2006 13:41
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Re: Canon EOS Digital/YC adaptor
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Interesting to get a view from a Cameraquest adapter user. Does this adapter use the set screw system?
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Re: Canon EOS Digital/YC adaptor
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No, there's a not-high-tech-at-all piece of bent metal that "secures" the adaptor to the lens. But despite that desription, it works and works well. I bought this one (a) partly because it was the one that Tim was selling here, and (b) because at the time, it was for use on film cameras, and I had/have quite a few Zeiss C/Y lenses from 25mm to 180mm. On ny APS-C sensor, though, I only tend to use the 50mm and 85mm f1.4 Planars, so that's less of a reason - until I get a full-frame sensor.
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Fen
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(BAD WOLF)
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06/06/2006 14:05
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Re: Canon EOS Digital/YC adaptor
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Many thanks for your Help.
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Re: Canon EOS Digital/YC adaptor
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I have tried this combo on my 10D, results are hit and miss, one point to make is the viewfinder on canons are smaller and darker next to contax rx for example(viewfinder fantastic!) and when you stop the lens down the viewfinder stops down as well and becomes darker, this makes it difficult to focus in low light.i am a beginner and not that used to manual focusing so somebody more experienced may not find this a problem as i did, when it works it gives good results and in theory zeiss lenses on a digital SLR is a dream combination, if you already own zeiss lenses then try it out as ring adapter will only cost a tenner, but wouldnt buy zeiss lenses just for this purpose, are these zeiss lenses sharper on my 10D than with 17-40L on....??will sit on the fence on this one
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El Sid
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(Going potty)
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19/07/2006 08:46
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Re: Canon EOS Digital/YC adaptor
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Quote:
I have tried this combo on my 10D, results are hit and miss, one point to make is the viewfinder on canons are smaller and darker next to contax rx for example(viewfinder fantastic!) and when you stop the lens down the viewfinder stops down as well and becomes darker, this makes it difficult to focus in low light.i am a beginner and not that used to manual focusing so somebody more experienced may not find this a problem as i did...
The normal procedure with stop down metering is first focus with the lens wide open then stop down to your desired aperture, set the appropriate shutter speed then take the picture (in Av mode of course you can simply stop down and shoot). AF cameras of course lack the split image/microprism aid of a manual camera and as far as I can see the AF doesn't provide any focus assistance (which it does with AF lenses in MF).
HTH
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Re: Canon EOS Digital/YC adaptor
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Quite. Within these limitations, my C/Y lenses are perfectly usable on my 10D - yes, of course they're easier to focus on the RX, but the RX not only has a very bright finder but also has effectively an electronic rangefinder to ensure focus is correct. They're easier to focus on a 1v, too, with the larger, brighter finder, but I have no problem focusing any of my lenses on the 10D. Tracking a moving object with the 85mm f1.4 Planar is a different issue, though!
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Alex_M
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(member)
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23/07/2006 12:25
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Re: Canon EOS Digital/YC adaptor
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When I get one of my Zeiss lenses working on my 10D, the results are very good, but as others' experience here also shows, it is a bit hit-and-miss, and on the 10D at least, down to focussing difficulties in some subject types. Forget sports or rapidly moving children (are there any other kind?), especially with longer focal lengths. I have tried ice hockey, and fencing, and even using a decent monopod, could not get consistently sharp focus. I suppose, really, it should be self-evident that I was using the wrong setup for such subjects. On static subject, however, it's a different story. When you have come from viewfinders like the RX/RTS, the 10D is disconcertingly awkward and tunnel-like, though I suppose too that I'm asking it to do a focussing task it wasn't designed for. As long as you know the logistical limitations, and match the kit to the subject, manual lens adapters are useful bits to have in the bag. But I tend to use mine now for 'special occasion' situations rather than being able to stick a Planar on every day.
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Clevor
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(newbie)
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13/12/2006 22:39
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Re: Canon EOS Digital/YC adaptor
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Anybody know what is the latest status on this??? I am shopping for a DSLR and have a bunch of ole Zeiss Distagons for a Contax RTS. I'm considering the latest Canon cameras like the Rebel XTi and 30D.
I did a google search and there are a lot of discussion with no clear adapter which is superior: the Bob Shell is a hassle to attach; the Cameraquest doesn't lock well and some lenses don't focus to infinity; a guy with a Ph.D. was making adapters of different thicknesses depending on the lens but not much followup on how they work; somebody said the Novoflex worked the best but it is not listed on their site, and one post said too many issues eventually dropped up.
If you check Ebay there are many listings for cheap adapters for $25 but I have heard the ones from China are poor quality and maybe people are ditching the adapters in general since they don't work.
Also, a lot of threads on this subject have died last Dec. or early 2006, so maybe it's a known issue they don't work, particularly with the latest Canon DSLRs. Anything above a 30D is out of my budget.
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Re: Canon EOS Digital/YC adaptor
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Please don't ask the same question more than once!
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Re: Canon EOS Digital/YC adaptor
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I stumbled across this site while searching for something else, but my 2ppenceworth may be of interest. I have a large stable of various C/Y mount lenses and stuck with film while full frame DSLRs were prohibitive (most of my work involves 18mm to 35mm lenses).
I now have an EOS 5D (which handles reasonably well, but is definitely not an RTSIII) as I want my distagons and vario-sonnars to stay as distagons. I have bought adapters from of the cheap chinese type on Ebay, and from Cameraquest and Bob Shell. The cheapies are nasty, the lens will probably not be firm on the body and infinity focus may (will?) be off. The Bob Shell ones are good, but very difficult to swap from lens to lens and as for losing that small screw . . . . .
The Cameraquest ones are very, very well made and very easy to switch from lens to lens and are my preferred way of keeping my Zeiss glass working in the post-Contax digital era. And you can find chips on Ebay that you can add to the adapter to allow the digital cameras focus confirm function to operate, making focussing easier with non-split image viewfinders.
I had a look through a EOS350D viewfinder once, it's miserable if you're used to Contax viewfinders. The 5D isn't bad, but as I said, not an RTSIII.
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Alex_M
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(member)
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17/01/2007 16:21
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Re: Canon EOS Digital/YC adaptor
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The Shell adapter is a good piece, but you do indeed need to keep a wary eye out for that screw (although the adapter comes with a spare). I dropped it once when swapping the adapter to another lens and I couldn't see where on the carpet it had fallen. I went down on hands and knees and did a fingertip search everywhere I thought it could have reached or bounced to, but couldn't. It was about three days before I found it behind my desk. I'm ultra careful now when attaching!
I haven't any other EOS-CY adapters (though I only hear good things about the Cameraquest one), but I did get hold of several EOS-M42 adapters. You really notice the quality difference. Some of them couldn't maintain infinity focus properly, so that the actual distance to object was different from the focus datum mark on the lens, and only one was workable and preserved correct focus register.
Alex
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