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Using M Lenses on Fujifilm X Cameras

Braeside

New member
Thanks for that, I agree I was also disappointed with the corners with the Zeiss 25/2.8 on the Fuji. It actually performs much better on the Ricoh GXR M mount. I gave up using third party lenses on the Fuji and kept the Ricoh GXR for my M lenses, and use only native Fuji lenses on the X-Pro 1 and the X-T1 now.
 

Double Negative

Not Available
You're welcome!

35mm and longer seem to work great. I have to test the 21mm f/1.8 Ultron some more, as I fear the corners now. I'm determined to use M lenses as much as possible as I don't want to invest in more lenses... But I'm starting to like the X-T1 to the point where it seems inevitable. :p
 

Steve P.

New member
Excellent work, thanks very much.
Will you be adding any real world sample images of the ZM 25, apart from the grass shots illustrating corner performance?
 

Double Negative

Not Available
Excellent work, thanks very much.
Will you be adding any real world sample images of the ZM 25, apart from the grass shots illustrating corner performance?
Thanks, Steve! :)

Yes, I plan to add a lot more "real world" lens testing/shots (sample photos) of many lenses. As well as shots illustrating the close-focusing.

I love the 2,8/25 and I'm determined to see how it REALLY works.
 

MCTuomey

New member
Thanks for that, I agree I was also disappointed with the corners with the Zeiss 25/2.8 on the Fuji. It actually performs much better on the Ricoh GXR M mount. I gave up using third party lenses on the Fuji and kept the Ricoh GXR for my M lenses, and use only native Fuji lenses on the X-Pro 1 and the X-T1 now.
Yes, thanks for the review.

re 3rd party lenses, i'm going native too. i like the 18-55's convenience. the fuji primes i've tried have been great - light weight, not too big, fine IQ. the AF is nice to have for certain kinds of shooting i do.

my M-glass stays with my M-bodies where i think they work best.
 

Double Negative

Not Available
Yes, thanks for the review.

re 3rd party lenses, i'm going native too. i like the 18-55's convenience. the fuji primes i've tried have been great - light weight, not too big, fine IQ. the AF is nice to have for certain kinds of shooting i do.

my M-glass stays with my M-bodies where i think they work best.
You're welcome! :)

The 18-55 is a peach. I'm eager to upgrade to the 16-55 later this year. I'll probably splash out for the 10-24 as well (it's the best solution for wides on the Fuji and a no-brainer, IMO). Zooms are what the Fuji offers me that the Ms don't. Primes? Meh. They're excellent, no doubt. But I'm trying to keep things to a minimum... (he says now)
 

ReeRay

Member
I love my 18-55 but, as a back alley/low light shooter, I never leave home without my Nokton 35mm f1.4 MC. Sits perfectly on my X-E1 and one of the main reasons I purchased the camera. My second most used lens is the Zeiss 25mm f2.8.
 

Double Negative

Not Available
I love my 18-55 but, as a back alley/low light shooter, I never leave home without my Nokton 35mm f1.4 MC. Sits perfectly on my X-E1 and one of the main reasons I purchased the camera. My second most used lens is the Zeiss 25mm f2.8.
I was the same way, but for the 35mm f/1.2 Nokton. Couldn't be happier with this combo; went so far as to buy a Kipon adapter (with close focus) just to use it. I haven't checked the corners... And I'm not sure I care. But for the sake of curiosity I'll be testing it and the 21mm f/1.8 Nokton.

I think the corner smearing issue is a bit overrated. Sure, it's not a "perfect" image but like most things, in most situations - it doesn't matter. If you're shooting wide open, the corners won't generally be sharp anyway - and if you stop down, the corners clean up.
 

D&A

Well-known member
Michael, I haven't yet had time to read your reports regarding use of M lenses on the X-T1 (looking forward to doing so), but if performance in corners with M lenses wider than 35mm in general is subpar, this would be disappointing. I would have thought unlike the full frame Sony A7 and A7s which also have issues with M mount lenses wider than 35mm, I was hoping the APS sensor size of the X-T1 would have for the most part circumvented this.

I also realize the Ricoh GRX uses micro lenses on the their M module sensor (correct me if I'm wrong), but with a less than full frame sensor size, I would have hoped the X-T1 would have done better than it appears to be.. I too wanted it to be primarily a M mount system for my use.

Dave (D&A)
 

Double Negative

Not Available
Dave, yes... Whereas the Sony cameras have whack colorization issues (since the micro lenses aren't angled like Leicas), the Fuji seems to have some corner smearing. However, I haven't tested for this extensively! In fact, only the 2,8/25 ZM got "real" testing for this. In normal picture taking, I haven't noticed this on the 4/18 ZM or 21mm f/1.8 Ultron. Like I said, in "real world" (I hate that term) pictures, you probably wouldn't notice. But I'll be looking into this more in-depth just for my own edification if nothing else - I'll update the article with results. The 21mm especially as that makes a nice "32mm" prime.

I'm tempted to say it's only certain lenses - those with really oblique light rays. The 2,8/25 causes colorization effects without proper coding on Ms also, so it makes sense. Here's a shot from the 21mm wide open that seems to look okay to me...

 

jsf

Active member
I bought a full set of Fuji lenses with my XT1, but I also bought the Novoflex adapter for my Nikon gear. So far I have tried my 28mm f/3.5 which isn't bad but no cigar on the Fuji, it performs best on the d800e oddly. I haven't tried the 55 micro but I did try an ancient 50mm f/1.4 from the '60's and was pleasently surprised. Wide open it has beautiful bokeh and has halation around every highlight, much like a Petzval formula would do. The 200mm and the 105mm were good, the bokeh I would have thought would be better than the Fuji lenses, but I have to say that the 55-200mm Fuji lens is really nice. I shot a friends wedding last weekend and in candle light the camera focuses like a champ. The camera is still new to me and quite awkward, I keep reaching for the thingy that is the Nikon set-up. The camera is a bit small for my hands, but saying all of that, I like it. The test will be a week in NY and then we will see how 16x20's look from my adventure. The Fuji color rendition is different but overall the noise at 6400 is fully processable so all in all I think Fuji designed a nice camera, especially with an all up weight of 3 lbs, for the body and 3 lenses.
 

Double Negative

Not Available
I bought a full set of Fuji lenses with my XT1, but I also bought the Novoflex adapter for my Nikon gear. So far I have tried my 28mm f/3.5 which isn't bad but no cigar on the Fuji, it performs best on the d800e oddly. I haven't tried the 55 micro but I did try an ancient 50mm f/1.4 from the '60's and was pleasently surprised. Wide open it has beautiful bokeh and has halation around every highlight, much like a Petzval formula would do. The 200mm and the 105mm were good, the bokeh I would have thought would be better than the Fuji lenses, but I have to say that the 55-200mm Fuji lens is really nice. I shot a friends wedding last weekend and in candle light the camera focuses like a champ. The camera is still new to me and quite awkward, I keep reaching for the thingy that is the Nikon set-up. The camera is a bit small for my hands, but saying all of that, I like it. The test will be a week in NY and then we will see how 16x20's look from my adventure. The Fuji color rendition is different but overall the noise at 6400 is fully processable so all in all I think Fuji designed a nice camera, especially with an all up weight of 3 lbs, for the body and 3 lenses.
Nice report, and I agree on all points. It's a lovely camera all around. My hands are small, so it's a great fit for me (though I added the Vertical Battery Grip). Incredibly light; it still freaks me out, LOL. ISO 6,400 is very nice - I was pleasantly surprised.

One thing that's disappointing is that the button layout differs between the back of the camera and the grip. I'm always missing the Focus Assist button. I truly hope that Fuji gives us the option to assign this to other function buttons (e.g. the front button).

The Fuji lenses are really something. They're more or less stellar from wide open across the range. A couple are a touch soft, but who cares. AF works amazingly well. If you don't care about M (or other) lens compatibility, going with all XF lenses is the way to go, no doubt. I'm sure I'll end up there, with three zooms.
 

Double Negative

Not Available
So I did some thorough testing of the Noctilux-M 50mm f/0.95 ASPH on the X-T1 using the Kipon heli adapter. It works pretty well... But I fear the performance is... Lackluster. Nowhere near the level of the Summilux-M 50mm f/1.4 ASPH, which appears to be top-notch.

I suspect that the throat diameter and depth of the adapter is interfering with the size of the rear element, and although any vignetting may be cropped by the sensor, etc. there's something just not quite right. Even at f/8, a typical landscape shot was really not that sharp. Purple fringing is also rather high wide open, though this isn't unexpected from the Noct.

I'll have to do a similar test with the Fuji M Mount Adapter - but I fear the results will likely be worse as the throat is even smaller.

I've updated the thread posted originally with a lot more samples... More to come. :)
 
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