topic Re: 5DMk3 With vintage Pentax Lenses in EOS DSLR & Mirrorless Cameras

5DMk3 With vintage Pentax Lenses

ZakCreative — Tue, 05 Mar 2013 15:15:17 GMT

Hey Everybody! I'm new to the forums and to DSLR Photography and Videography in general, though I do have a background in film making. I acquired a 5D Mark 3 last year and am really happy with it so far.

Here's my question: Are there any tips or tricks to getting old manual lenses to work on the Mark 3? I bought a cheap PK-EF adapter on Ebay to get my Dad's old ME Super lenses to fit and they do, but anytime I take a picture, the camera will give me an error message, and it gives me the same error message anytime I try to switch to video. I did have some success I guess, as I was able to get partial images, as if the top half of the sensor was exposed. Any suggestions?

Re: 5DMk3 With vintage Pentax Lenses

Peter — Tue, 05 Mar 2013 23:36:19 GMT

You will need an adapter that "talks back" to the camera. I am using a M42 and Helios 58/2 to my 5D. Beware that you in some cases can hit the mirror.

Re: 5DMk3 With vintage Pentax Lenses

David — Wed, 06 Mar 2013 13:11:34 GMT

What lenses are you trying to use and what error message are you receiving? Also does the adaptor have any electrical contacts on it?

Could you post a photo that shows the "partial images" you got? It sounds like the mirror could be hitting the lens and somehow you got the camera to take the shot.

Re: 5DMk3 With vintage Pentax Lenses

ScottyP — Thu, 07 Mar 2013 00:56:40 GMT

I would not expect to get very good image quality from vintage lenses.

Re: 5DMk3 With vintage Pentax Lenses

ebiggs1 — Thu, 07 Mar 2013 15:38:16 GMT

"I would not expect to get very good image quality from vintage lenses."

This is true. I have older FD "L" lens' and have tried to get them to work with EOS but the results is not worthy.

You might as well use a cell phone.

Re: 5DMk3 With vintage Pentax Lenses

Peter — Thu, 07 Mar 2013 23:38:24 GMT

Almost every picture in here is taken with the 58/2 Helios, made in USSR, and a 5D.

Re: 5DMk3 With vintage Pentax Lenses

David — Fri, 08 Mar 2013 23:30:00 GMT

Nice Photos!

Re: 5DMk3 With vintage Pentax Lenses

Peter — Fri, 08 Mar 2013 23:45:06 GMT

Thanks. Love the 58/2.

Re: 5DMk3 With vintage Pentax Lenses

ZakCreative — Sat, 09 Mar 2013 18:12:00 GMT

So here are some photos of the adapter, lens, and a "partial" image that I shot with it (it is a stack of books, and you can just see the top of the stack). The adapter does not have contacts on it, and looking at a few of the others on eBay, that is something that might be a problem. Also the tab on the inside of the lens could be restricting something. Could this be removed?

Error message on the screen is "Shooting is not possible due to an error. Please turn the camera off and re-install the battery"

Which I did and took another photo just fine with my regular lens. Awesome cosplay photos too!

Re: 5DMk3 With vintage Pentax Lenses

Peter — Sat, 09 Mar 2013 23:24:24 GMT

Seems like the thingy may has hit the mirror, but I think you would hear that. My 58/2 hits the mirror when I focus at infinity. I also think that´s why my 5D doesn´t goes so well with my 50/1,4 anymore.

Re: 5DMk3 With vintage Pentax Lenses

David — Sat, 09 Mar 2013 23:50:06 GMT

Going by your image, it appears that the mirror is hitting the back of the lens (probably the aperture lever) and you photographed the backside of the mirror as it was moving up. Although most older manual focus Pentax lenses (along with other manufactures) can be used with Canon crop bodies without issues, the full frame bodies, with their larger mirrors, can present a problem with some lenses.

Here is a lens compatibility chart for the older 5D, but it is probable the same or close with the mark III also.

http://www.panoramaplanet.de/comp/

If you really want to use this lens on your body, the aperture lever could be cut or ground down so that it clears clear the 5D mirror, or you could shave your camera's mirror.

Re: 5DMk3 With vintage Pentax Lenses

ebiggs1 — Mon, 11 Mar 2013 14:36:28 GMT

Although the photos are nice, they are not anything a new EF lens can't do, so am I to assume the reasoning is simply cost?

I know it is/was for me as I have a pretty big collectiion of FD lens'. I would love to use but all efforts have failed to exceed what new EF lens' can do.

Re: 5DMk3 With vintage Pentax Lenses

Peter — Mon, 11 Mar 2013 15:09:17 GMT

Bokeh? That´s why I use my lens. If you are a film maker, I suppose changing the aperture is easier and smoother.

Re: 5DMk3 With vintage Pentax Lenses

ZakCreative — Mon, 11 Mar 2013 15:39:52 GMT

Cool, thanks for all the suggestions guys. I think I'm going to try removing that tab, since I think you're right that the camera would take photos just fine except for the mirror getting hit. The reason for wanting to use these lenses (the pictured one is a 50mm and I also have a 150mmZoom and a 28mm and a 2X teleconverter) is really to experiment and see what I can get out of them. Seeing that I have them I'd like to use them rather than going to something new.

Re: 5DMk3 With vintage Pentax Lenses

ZakCreative — Sat, 16 Mar 2013 05:48:29 GMT

Well, everything seems to be working fine, nothing a hack saw and a file won't fix. Here are a few test images from some co-operative co-workers. Manual focus takes a little getting used to. Each of these shots are uncorrected, straight out of the camera.

Re: 5DMk3 With vintage Pentax Lenses

ebiggs1 — Sat, 16 Mar 2013 13:46:45 GMT

As something to play with and test,I am all in with you but as a practical use, you've lost me.

Re: 5DMk3 With vintage Pentax Lenses

HDCamTeam — Sun, 17 Mar 2013 02:16:00 GMT

Using very old lenses with adapters can be not only funny, but also artistically very useful for stills and video (and cheap too)

My biggest concern is the potential damage to the mirror if it's hitting the lens' lever. I wouldn't test it on a 5D Mark 3 unless completely sure there's no problem at all. Too expensive camera to test with!

The lens chart posted before is a great guide, but make sure your lens doesn't make any damaga anyway.

Just our 2 cents.

Cheers

Re: 5DMk3 With vintage Pentax Lenses

David — Sun, 17 Mar 2013 19:26:13 GMT

While it is certainly best to never let it happen, the mirror is a lot tougher than people think. The mirror on my 5DII has hit numerous times on multiple lenses without any ill-effects.

Question for ebiggs1. Did the adapter that you used for the FD mount lenses have corrective glass (for achieving infinity focus)? That would explain why the quality was so bad.

Re: 5DMk3 With vintage Pentax Lenses

ebiggs1 — Mon, 18 Mar 2013 14:45:56 GMT

Yes the two I have, have a corrector lens and 'yes' they are quite horrible.

The Jakub Mika adapter is interesting and I am considering buying one. I have one FD lens in particular that I would love to use. It is a 600mm f4.5. It was/is a fantastic lens, in the day anyway.

I am a little hesitant to remove the aperture lever but really why not? I will never use it again on my F1n?

I have tried to use the F1n and scan the negatives or slide into CS6. I have had mixed results. Concerns are the extra work involved and the extra expense of a quality scanner. Not to mention film and processing.

After a print is made or viewed on a monitor, however, this process makes it pretty difficult to tell which is which. See for yourselves.

One photo is taken with a F1n and a FD lens. The other is a new Canon DSLR with an "L" lens.

Re: 5DMk3 With vintage Pentax Lenses

ebiggs1 — Tue, 19 Mar 2013 14:26:35 GMT

Hard isn't it?

I am not telling which is which so you must decide for your selves. I have shown this comparison to many people and around half to a little more get it correct. Maybe they are guessing?