The GetDPI Photography Forum

Great to see you here. Join our insightful photographic forum today and start tapping into a huge wealth of photographic knowledge. Completing our simple registration process will allow you to gain access to exclusive content, add your own topics and posts, share your work and connect with other members through your own private inbox! And don’t forget to say hi!

Super cool new M to NEX adapter

monza

Active member
That's nice, and Hawk is good to deal with. Hmmm....this could be very cool, getting rid of the one thing I don't like about adapted M lenses...
 

douglasf13

New member
I just got this Hawks adapter in the mail a few minutes ago, and, I must say, I am THRILLED so far. The fit and finish is very good, and the Helicoid is pretty smooth, although not as smooth as my M lenses. The adapter seems pretty lightweight, so I don't know what combo of lightweight metals and/or plastic is used in this thing, but it feels sturdy, and I don't mind the lighter weight.

In my initial test with a ZM C-Biogon 35/2.8, this adapter seems to nail infinity, and the mfd has been decreased from .7m to an incredible .27m (about .2m working distance.) :clap: If you are being driven nuts by the long mfd's of M lenses, and you don't mind spending the money, I think this thing is a no brainer. I've owned generic brand, Metabones, and Voigtlander M adapters, and I have a feeling they'll all be for sale, soon. Brilliant! :thumbs:

ZM C-Biogon 35/2.8 test shot at its new mfd:

 

douglasf13

New member
Sweet! When you have it set to close focus, what is the furthest out it will focus?
Just about 4 or 5 inches (I'm eyeballing it.) The good thing is, since the adapter has an actual helicoid, you can adjust the amount of close focus, so you can easily transition from .7m to .27m smoothly without any gaps.

I had come up with a concept for this kind of thing a number of months back, but my idea was an on-or-off kinda deal. This helicoid makes all of the difference, because it feels natural and doesn't have any gaps where focus is lost. Just twist the lens focus ring until you get to mfd, and then twist the adapter focus ring to go farther. Super awesome! :thumbs:
 
Last edited:

ZoranC

New member
Did anybody measure thickness of this adapter and compared it to "normal" adapters? For some reason this one seems thicker to me.
 

douglasf13

New member
Hi, Zoran. The Hawks adapter looks to be about the same thickness as my other adapters when retracted, and then it extends out a few millimeters or so when turning the helicoid. It could be ever so slightly thicker than the Voigtalnder, but I don't have measuring tools capable of detecting the small difference. I think it just looks thicker, because the Voigtlander has more cut outs in the design, whereas the Hawks is more of a solid tube.

I've only played around with my C-Biogon, so far, but, with that particular lens, this adapter nails infinity when retracted.

I'm starting to feel a little stupid for buying 2 Voigtlander adapters for $180 each, considering how much more useful this Hawks adapter is. The only negative to the design is that there is a gap in the helicoid when extended that could let dust into the helicoid over time, but I'm not worried about it. I've seen some complain about a little bit of play in the lens, but mine is so minute that I didn't really even notice it. Maybe I got lucky with my copy?

p.s. I just threw on my Nokton 35/1.4, and it does well with infinity, too. It still may be slightly past infinity, but it is very close, and I'd have to test more thoroughly.
 

ZoranC

New member
Douglas, thank you for your helpful reply :) It seems I will have to add this adapter to my list of things to check out because closer focusing distances with my M-mount glass are thing I keep iwshing for.
 

Jonathon Delacour

Subscriber Member
I just got this Hawks adapter in the mail a few minutes ago, and, I must say, I am THRILLED so far. The fit and finish is very good, and the Helicoid is pretty smooth, although not as smooth as my M lenses. The adapter seems pretty lightweight, so I don't know what combo of lightweight metals and/or plastic is used in this thing, but it feels sturdy, and I don't mind the lighter weight.
Douglas, thank you for the heads up. I was on the brink of selling my M-Rokkor 40/2 because the minimum focusing distance drove me crazy. When I tried to buy the Hawk's adapter ten days ago they were sold out but I sent Hawk a message asking when new stock would be available and he emailed me yesterday to say that the adapters were listed on eBay again. I bought one (the eBay item number is 320735472335) and when I just checked there were 7 available. I suspect they'll sell pretty quickly.
 

Jonas

Active member
The concept is brilliant, I agree. The only thing I wish for is a locking pin keeping the adapter safely in normal position.
Now I have to check that several times a day. It doesn't matter a lot but sometimes I get surprised by the focusing ring position and the amount of adjustment I have to do. I'm also still not sure about not having a lens with floating elements at the wrong register distance.

/Jonas
 

douglasf13

New member
The lack of a locking pin doesn't bother me, and I'm used to always returning my lens to infinity after shooting, so doing that with two rings seems natural enough to me.

I agree that floating element lenses may have issues, but I guess being able to focus up close with a few IQ issues is better than not being able to focus up close at all, no? I don't own any floating element lenses, so I'm not sure.
 

Jonas

Active member
The lack of a locking pin doesn't bother me, and I'm used to always returning my lens to infinity after shooting, so doing that with two rings seems natural enough to me.
So do I. My problem is that the adapter ring every so often seem to have moved. That's probably due to my clumsy fingers.

I agree that floating element lenses may have issues, but I guess being able to focus up close with a few IQ issues is better than not being able to focus up close at all, no? I don't own any floating element lenses, so I'm not sure.
Oh yes. My concern is about situations when I miss that the adapter ring has been turned somewhat and I'm not taking close-ups. As I said, Hawk's helicoid adapters are brilliant but I have started to think I would manage better with an ordinary adapter.

The above is what I think when it comes to my 50Lux. As it goes down to 0.7 meter normally it really doesn't need shorter MFD. I'll see how the helicoid adapter feels when using the CV 35/1.2 (when the MkII version gets available).

regards,

/Jonas
 

douglasf13

New member
Ah, I gotcha now. That makes sense. I don't have any issues if the adapter turns slightly, since I don't have any fle lenses.
 
Top