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Leica M to NEX Adapter

ptomsu

Workshop Member
Got my new NEX5 kit yesterday and really like this cam!

What adapters from Leica M to the NEX cameras are available and what experience do you have? And where to order?

Thanks

Peter
 

douglasf13

New member
I have the Metabones adapter. It is nicely built, but it does focus a little past infinity, so you need to make sure and focus all shots. The thing that I don't like about the adapter is the size of the lens release tab. It takes up too much space where your fingers reside near the camera grip, but YMMV. I actually removed the tab, and just leave the adapter mounted to my CV 35 Nokton. If I get another M lens or two, I'll probably get Voigtlander adapter, simply because the lens release tab is more flush.
 

jonoslack

Active member
I have the Kipon adaptor - I have nothing to compare it with, but it seems to be fine.
. . . .and it's very nicely made

But, truth to tell, I'd rather stick the M lenses on an M camera . . .and the sony lenses on the NEX (or better still on the A900)
 

roweraay

New member
Just got a note that Cameraquest.com now have the Voigtlander M-to-NEX adapters in stock ($179 + $8 shipping). Far better than that $300 eBay rip-off.
 
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Vivek

Guest
Just got a note that Cameraquest.com now have the Voigtlander M-to-NEX adapters in stock ($179 + $8 shipping). Far better than that $300 eBay rip-off.
NEX-5 plus a lens $599.

An adapter for $180 to $300?!

Sony should abandon making cameras and just make the adapters instead.:ROTFL:

(I picked up one on eBay for $29 shipped. Waiting for it to arrive.)
 

roweraay

New member
An adapter for $180 to $300?!
There are various manufacturers making NEX-to-M adapters, ranging all the way from $25 Aluminum ones to the $179 Voigtlander one. One will realize the quality/precision difference, the minute one mounts the lens via the adapter, onto the body.

Even though I bought my Metabones adapter for a little over $80, I would have gladly paid the extra $100 for the Voigtlander adapter, if it was available when I was buying it. $300 is certainly a rip-off (since the Voigtlander adapter was in short supply then and the seller was making hay while the sun was still shining) and I would have had a hard time forking that out.
 
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Vivek

Guest
There are various manufacturers making NEX-to-M adapters, ranging all the way from $25 Aluminum ones to the $179 Voigtlander one. One will realize the quality/precision difference, the minute one mounts the lens via the adapter, onto the body.

Even though I bought my Metabones adapter for a little over $80, I would have gladly paid the extra $100 for the Voigtlander adapter, if it was available when I was buying it. $300 is certainly a rip-off (since the Voigtlander adapter was in short supply then and the seller was making hay while the sun was still shining) and I would have had a hard time forking that out.
Different strokes for different folks.:)

I hope you have suitable Leica M mount lenses to use your adapter.
 

roweraay

New member
I hope you have suitable Leica M mount lenses to use your adapter.
Used to (Pre-Asph 35/2). Not any longer (Sold !). ;)

I am still interested in the 21/2.8 ZM but have not heard about its suitability on the NEX from anyone, yet.
 
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Vivek

Guest
For the lenses I have and would use within the NEX' limitations, the $29 adapter is a just cause.

FWIW, the aluminum part is on the cheaper NEX side. :D
 

roweraay

New member
FWIW, the aluminum part is on the cheaper NEX side. :D
"Aluminum" is a generic term used to describe a wide swath of metal products.

These are all Aluminum alloys, with the properties of the product being dictated by the composition of the alloy. The cheaper adapters are of course not too concerned about the metallurgical composition or longevity of what they sell, as long as they can make a quick buck before the demand runs out and thus the "aluminum" they use is a cheap "quick buck" version. Of course for experimentation, it probably might get the job done.
 
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Vivek

Guest
I have very little idea about metals/metallurgy/materials and even less about adapters.:D

All I do know is that the adapter I am buying is not for shooting brick walls.:angel:

BTW, my RJ c-mount adapter (aluminum) is holding up very well and the epoxy modification I did to make it usable as an Olympus pen F mount has made it even stronger. I have no doubt that this adapter will outlive the NEX-5.
 

sebboh

New member
"Aluminum" is a generic term used to describe a wide swath of metal products.

These are all Aluminum alloys, with the properties of the product being dictated by the composition of the alloy. The cheaper adapters are of course not too concerned about the metallurgical composition or longevity of what they sell, as long as they can make a quick buck before the demand runs out and thus the "aluminum" they use is a cheap "quick buck" version. Of course for experimentation, it probably might get the job done.
to be fair aluminum is actually an element (Al). for most machining purposes pure aluminum is not preferible. there are many different aluminum alloys each designed to have specific properties (resistance to corrosion, ease of machinability, rigidity, etc). the same is true of steel and brass except they don't share a name with their base elements. most of the cheap adapters i've bought are actually made of chromed brass, sometimes with the connection to the camera being made of aluminum. none of them has made me worry that it was not sturdy enough (though some have needed their screws tightened). note: i have actually taken a few of them apart and machined them further in order to make new mounts for lens mount conversions. in any event i would not worry about the durability of cheap mounts, i would worry about the machining precision. many of the cheap ones will not get the infinity stop correct and many will not have the dof scale exactly at 12:00. this won't effect image quality though. as long as all the screws are tight the lens is alignment to sensor should be perfect, which is whats really important. you have to really screw up on a lathe to have a lens come up misaligned.
 

barjohn

New member
I shot the same scene today with the Leica/Minolta 40/2 and with the 18-55 kit set to 40mm. The difference is very visible. In the first two shots are from an outdoor scene with trees and leaves that really test a lens.





The next shot was indoors of a door knob. Again the difference is noticeable. I used AF with the kit lens and MF with the 40/2.



The difference in sharpness is very noticeable; however, without the comparison it might not be quite as visible and at smaller sizes is less visible. To my eyes, the two kit lenses just seem to form a slight haze over the image like they were shot through a fine gauze. I left the LR 3 setting for sharpening and NR as standard. I tweaked exposure to match but did not play with WB. The lenses paint colors differently as can be seen (more of an effect on WB as setting WB the same makes them much closer).
 
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BackToSlr

New member
John,

It almost looks like motion blur. I don't get anywhere near that amount of blur/distortion on the kit lens. Perhaps your optical stabilization is ON, and you are taking pictures on a tripod. I would recommend you to switch of the stabilization for the kit lens and take some samples.

N
 

barjohn

New member
That was the best of multiple frames. Look at the shutter speed. I tired different exposure settings and shooting burst of frames. All were shot handheld including the Leica lens shots. Image stabilization was on though at this shutter speed it shouldn't have mattered. Also, when you look at a smaller version it isn't as noticeable. Here is an image at about 30%.
 

sebboh

New member
looks to me like misfocus with the kit lens. i would use mf for both to be sure. i don't have the kit lens though, so maybe it's just the lens performance on the edges.
 

barjohn

New member
First, we are looking at the center in the crops, not the edges. Second, I shot about 12 shots so AF would have to be really bad for all of them to be that far off. I will try a MF to be sure.
 

barjohn

New member
Here it is with MF only anti shake off and the best of multiple shots. Lighting is a little different due to time of day but the lack of sharpness is still there.
 
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