At first I wasn't interested in adapted lenses.. But I've been doing lots of research and evaluating my shooting style, and I've decided that I would like to at least explore the world of adapted lenses. I've been fascinated by the 50mm noktor, the 25mm Voigtlander and the upcoming 75mm Olympus portrait lens... But I cant afford any of them right now... I want to get that crazy bokeh, and I'd like to be able to have more control over the DOF... Low light capabilities are a plus. any tried and true adapted lenses that I should be looking at? I don't want to spend a lot of money, because I am saving up for native lenses that I want for more versatile daily applications. But if I could come up with something fun to play around with while walking around parks and chilling that would be cool. It would be nice to develop some manual focus skills, And I really want to solidify my understanding of the relationship between ISO, aperture, and shutter speed. I like things that are well built and solid.. I know that may seem strange to mention, but I can truly appreciate well built and mechanically sound things. I like the feel of smooth focusing all metal manual lenses. I remember playing with my dads old Minolta SLR, and I have a beloved Ricoh rangefinder that my great grandfather gave me that just feels solid, the focus is smooth, and aperture ring has a solid yet smooth clicking action. I'm new to photography, but I'm already falling in love with lenses... It's rather nerdy. ::shoots self:: This GAS stuff you guys mention is no joke.
You can try a number of 45-55mm manual lenses via adaptor. If you do a search in the forum you can find a lot of photos taken with such lenses and a variety of :43: bodies. Just to get you started (it's what I would look at first, so not an objective list): OM Zuiko 50mm f/1.4 Contax G 45mm f/2.0 Minolta MD 50mm f/1.4 Helios 44 55mm f/2.0 (the cheapest but very capable)
This may be a dumb question, but is the focal length equivalent affected when using an adapted lens? I mean, the 25mm Panasonic is though of as a 50mm equivalent in terms of 4/3 lenses... would an adapted 50mm lens effectively become a 100mm equivalent?
The adapted 50mm-ish f/1.4 lenses (your classic nifty fifty) make great portrait lenses on :43:. Which brand you choose (Canon, Nikon, Konica, Olympus, Pentax, etc.) is almost irrelevant, because they're all pretty good. The quality of the output is going to have more to do with the condition of the particular example than the brand. I have a [thread=3092]Konica 57mm[/thread] that performs quite well. Others swear by the old [thread=1516]Takumar 50mm[/thread] (caution: radioactive), the [thread=1520]Olympus 50mm[/thread] or the [thread=3576]Minolta MD 50mm[/thread]. The [thread=3297]Canon 50mm[/thread] is a good performer as well and may be the easiest to find and among the least expensive. In short, it's tough to go wrong with any of these f/1.4s, or even with the less expensive and lighter f/1.7s, f/1.8s or even f/2.0s. However, be warned that once you pick up your first adapted lens you may find yourself spending way too much time prowling thrift stores, pawn shops and eBay looking for your next one.
Yes the FOV equivalent of a 50mm lens will be 100mm. If you appreciate build quality and aren't troubled too much by weight, I would recommend an Asahi Pentax Super-Multicoated-Takumar 50mm f1.4 in M42 mount. They are extremely well built, have a buttery smooth focus ring, and are quite sharp. You should be able to get one for less than $100. Of all my lenses (Canon, OM Zuiko, etc.), the Tak is head and shoulders above the rest in terms of tactile feel and build quality. It has been reported that Pentax was actually selling them at a loss when they made them back in the 70s Here is a photo of mine mounted to my E-PL1: <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ericarthur/5420344390/" title="New Addition by ericarthur, on Flickr"> {} "640" height="427" alt="New Addition"></a>
Yes. I really enjoy using my Minoltas for portraits, but I have a feeling I would get similar results with any other brand. Just pick one and go have fun. Fair Warning: once you get one you will be scouring ebay everyday for the next! Minolta MD 50mm f1.4 <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/vftsai/6894505389/" title="JennaLeigh by Vincent-F-Tsai (Spatulaboy), on Flickr"> {} "640" height="478" alt="JennaLeigh"></a> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/vftsai/6887477728/" title="Vintage Laura by Vincent-F-Tsai (Spatulaboy), on Flickr"> {} "600" height="800" alt="Vintage Laura"></a> Minolta MD Rokkor 45mm f2 <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/vftsai/7062879765/" title="Jason by Vincent-F-Tsai (Spatulaboy), on Flickr"> {} "600" height="800" alt="Jason"></a> Minolta MC Rokkor 58mm f1.4 <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/vftsai/7043803101/" title="All the cool kids are doing it. by Vincent-F-Tsai (Spatulaboy), on Flickr"> {} "800" height="600" alt="All the cool kids are doing it."></a>
Personally my favourite lens would be the 45mm Rokkor because it's just that little bit shorter (90mm instead of 100mm) And another plus it that it snaps to focus easily compared to some others which take some turning to get it right. <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/50527022@N02/6902107249/" title="P1160634-2 by iconindustries, on Flickr"> View attachment 215054 "1024" height="684" alt="P1160634-2"></a>
Yeah, some old lenses including the Takuamar 50/1.4 contained Thorium, which is a radioactive element. There is much debate as to the potential risk in using these lenses, though I tend to come down on the side that thinks the risk is minimal. You may notice that the radiation can cause of yellowing of the lens over time, which can be remedied by exposing the lens to UV light (e.g. sunlight). You can find more discussion about this lens and the radioactivity in [thread=21140]this thread[/thread].
I'm gonna crawl into the eBay cave now, thanks guys. A quick search for OM-D E-M5 takumar brings up this: http://m.flickr.com/#/photos/anthonyleungkc/6916868364/in/photostream/ I bet this guys probably a forum member!! 120mm lens? sounds stealthy. I can shoot from a distance! I'll check back for more suggestions.
There a nice Takumar on ebay, ending in 22 hours, only up to $54 right now. May be a bargain. LINK was that wrong of me? that's my lens....
Here are some other threads that might be of interest: [thread=23123]Nifty Fiftys do battle with m4/3 native lenses[/thread] [thread=25347]What's your favorite 50 something.[/thread] [thread=27473]32 Normal Lenses Test - 1977[/thread] [thread=26126]Which lens have better optics, Canon FD, Minolta MD, Olympus OM?[/thread]
That's pretty intensely long for a portrait lens mate. You might have to be too far away from your subject that you wont have eye contact with them. If you don't really know the person you are shooting, eye contact is very crucial imho.
You really can't go wrong with any of the major brand nifty fifties, but if you appreciate build quality in addition to the lens IQ, the Super-Multi-Coated Takumar is a thing of beauty. It has got a solidness to it that balances fairly well on the PEN bodies, should be great on the OM-D.
