Nice roundup, Brian. I’ve used inexpensive adapters for my M and LTM lenses and FD lenses on my NEX-6 – and found no significant issues till I obtained a mint FD 100-300 f5.6 zoom where the lens’ aperture control arm was closer to the centerline of that lens than other FD lenses – and so, the “open-lock” adjustment didn’t work.

Looking forward to trying my old lenses on an A7. Somehow I believe my 1982 f2 Summicron will be at least competitive with the better modern lenses of that focal length.

Hi, Love your reviews on lens adapters and the Sony A7. Like a lot of folks, we have a lot (A LOT) of manual lens primes we want to use. Does one usually keep the adapter on the body and remove the lens? Or remove adapter/lens combo, undo the adapter, add new lens, pop back into camera?

Thanks Brian for the prompt response and confirmation – the zeiss contax lens I have is actually 1.2 and awesome so I will give the russian adaptor a go the reviews from those that have bought the adapter are quite good and it specially states for Contax II a zeiss and jupiter lenses. They are about $AUD 180 but seem solid quality items. I will let you know how it goes. I also have a Rollei SL35 circa 1975 that has the Ziess 50mm 1.8 lens do you know if the Rollei 35 to Sony nex is the right adaptor for that? Cheers Christina

What do you think the best Leica R lens is for portraiture? The 90mm?

Hello Brian,

As an enthusiast, rather than a pro, I’ve been considering upgrading from my older Rebel to a 70D, but then caught wind of the Sony a7. In my film days I had relied on my Contax RTS II (along with a 139 body) and a reasonable (if modest) selection of Contax glass, plus a 3rd party 500 f8 CY mount catadioptric. I also still have my (even older) FD lenses from my A1 days, and even some nice (and older still) Pentax screw-mount lenses like my tack-sharp super Takumar 135 f3.5.

So now that I know I can use at least some (all?) of this glass on an a7, what would be your opinion – upgrade to the full-frame a7, or stick to Canon with the 70D APS-C?

So Brian, considering that Sony now has obvious plans to some pretty serious cameras with access to Zeiss lenses, and considering also that they produce Nikon’s sensors, do you suppose we could be seeing the demise of Nikon? After all, why would Sony continue to assist Nikon once they are on a competing level?

Any information on a DKL adapter?
I have a set of lenses for my “kodak retina reflex iii” that I am hoping to adapt. There are a few cheap DKL to E-mount adapters out there, but nothing with revews or comments on FE compatibility. Any information is appreciated.

Thank you!

Sorry Brian I should have forwarded you this question this way rather than direct.
Have purchased the Sony A7r with CZ 55 and 35 mm lens- inclued in the purchase (no cost) was the metabones 3 adaptor.I opted for the Canon EOS mount.I would like to purchase an 85 mm lens and have been looking at several options (1) purchase the low cost Canon F1.8 85 mm lens – however I suspect this lens would not do the sensor justice but the Canon 1.2 85 mm lens is very expensive.(2) Sigma make an excellent F1.4 85 mm lens with Canon mount but would this work with the Metabone Adaptor ? (3) purchase an older FD type Canon 85 mm lens (manual focus only) such as the Canon FD F1.2 lens which has superb optics,
Any advice or suggestions would be appreciated .As I got the Metabones 3 Adaptor and Vertical Grip included with the A7r (Sony Australia was very generous) I don’t have to stay with the Metabones Adaptor .

Hello, You recommend the Novoflex adapter for Canon FD lenses. Do you know if using that adapter allows full frame coverage? or will it be crop?

Brian,

Did you happen to note which types of adapters maintain the proper flange focal distance? Inexpensive adapters are almost all just a bit too short, shifting the focus scale and letting you focus beyond infinity. It’s not a big deal for primes, but on zoom lenses this makes them not parfocal anymore. Do Metabones or Novoflex get it right? Thanks.

Brian, there is another option for using autofocus with Contax G lenses on the A7/A7R. They are made in China, branded “Yeenon”, and go for about $330 on eBay. The autofocus speed is not as good as on the Contax body, but it’s not bad. I’m quite happy with mine.

MEN!!!!!!
WHAT AN AWESOME GUIDE!!!!!
THANKS FOR REAL!!!!! ^^

i have in my hands a Sony Alpha 7 and i was looking to learn more about its lenses and how to develop a full potential with this camera ^^

The conundrum with 4/3’s adapters is to not have full frame corrected for except with a booster adapter which introduces another set of lens elements altering the “purity” of the original lens, in this case, Leica R’s. In the case of the adapted for the R to a7. I believe, you answered earlier but I am asking again to confirm that even with the adapter rings you suggest the lenses will take a full frame picture at the same focal length? In other words, a 90mm remains at 90mm even with the adapter or does the length increase proportionally like they do in the 4/3’s adaptation? As if that question us at all understandable! This could mean a renaissance for Leica R lenses to the digital generation. if only Leica had not dropped the SLR in deference to the Japanese mass manufacture of SLR bodies then they could have quite easily shifted to digital format with sensors replacing film in the R bodies. that is one example where the Germans got behind in technological development. The M3, etc as film based viewfinders are still consequential in a remedial kind of way but the lenses and glass used by Leitz Wetzlar are so unique as to be unsurpassable in look and feel of result thus the need for film to continue as a viable medium albeit thoroughly anachronistic.

Hi Brian!

I just wondered if you’d noticed any autofocus improvement with the LA-EA4 on the a7II with firmware 2.0?

It seems to me as though it’s MUCH more accurate now and I no longer need to use micro-adjust on ANY of my lenses (in fact, I’ve switched micro-adjust off altogether).

Regards.

Thanks Brian … so would you agree then that using very wide-angle legacy lenses is potentially problematic (as they would be most likely to use a retrofocus design)? It’s just that there are some very good legacy lenses being sold these days at bargain prices, so it’s tempting to pick one up.

Do you know if the A7RII sensor (back-lit) is better or worse than a normal CMOS sensor for legacy lenses?

Brian,

I’m wondering if you know of any m39-NEX adapters that will allow infinity focus with the Jupiter 8 and Industar 55mm lenses (in conjunction with a Sony A7ii). So far I’ve tried two adapters: A Fotga M39-NEX and a no-name L39-NEX. Both adapters are not allowing me to focus to infinity. These adapters are both too thick, and I’ve not the means to shave them down.

I don’t know whether it’s just me or if everybody
else encountering issues with your blog. It seems like some of
the text in your posts are running off the screen. Can somebody
else please provide feedback and let me know if this is happening to them as well?
This may be a problem with my web browser because I’ve
had this happen previously. Many thanks

Thank you for the information you’ve provided. I’ve taken advantage of a few of your suggestions. One of the lenses I most want to use is my Canon 50 f/0.95 and I thought the 39mm screw mount would work, as it has with my other Canon RF manual lenses. However, the 0.95 doesn’t have a screw mount, only a bayonet mount which works perfectly on my old Canon 7s but I’m at a loss for how to attach it to the Sony 7II. Does such an adapter exist and, if so, can you recommend one? Sorry if you’ve covered this before but I went through your site a few times and didn’t see any reference to it.
Thanks, Lorne

Great list, Brian, and much appreciated and oft-visited. Just a wee comment that might help for those folks adapting vintage lenses to their Sony A7iii. Minolta MD adaptor works perfectly, giving me endless fun with their Rokkor MD and MC lenses. My prized vintage is a 1959 Canon 50mm 1.4 L39 mount. And that’s the most troublesome as far as a adaptor goes. My first – Fotasy – wouldn’t tighten the screwed-in lens, giving the (erroneous) impression it had stripped the threads. The second, a Fotodiox Pro, screws tight and works well, AND it tiny, but it’s worth noting that the lens doesn’t screw flush with the adaptor. No light leaks, so all good. But it also is off alignment by around 22 degrees down to the right. Again, not causing any issues other than being a little annoying, but I am beginning to think I’ve been missing a trick somewhere. Love the lens, I should say.