Best adapted lenses for the GFX system?

[rdeloe]

I did post this image in the Fun-tread taken with the Nikkor PC 35/3.5 lens on the GFX50r. F at 16.

Ray

I tried the 28mm version of this lens on my GFX 50R. At first I was quite enthusiastic because it offered an inexpensive 28mm option that still allowed for a bit of shift and some tilt on my setup. However, after using it more in real-world shooting I eventually gave up on it. It was decent (remarkably so considering what it is) unshifted. However, as soon as I tilted and shifted I started to notice image quality issues towards the edges of the frame that bothered me enough to not use it. As a result, I never tried the 35mm -- so I'm delighted to hear that it's working for you.

 

[Grayhand]

I tried the 28mm version of this lens on my GFX 50R. At first I was quite enthusiastic because it offered an inexpensive 28mm option that still allowed for a bit of shift and some tilt on my setup. However, after using it more in real-world shooting I eventually gave up on it. It was decent (remarkably so considering what it is) unshifted. However, as soon as I tilted and shifted I started to notice image quality issues towards the edges of the frame that bothered me enough to not use it. As a result, I never tried the 35mm -- so I'm delighted to hear that it's working for you.

I must correct my self. I am writing about the Nikkor PC 28/3.5 and nothing else.

But I thing you had a different lens, My lens only offers shift and no tilt.
There are many lenses out there

Ray

 

[rdeloe]

I must correct my self. I am writing about the Nikkor PC 28/3.5 and nothing else.

But I thing you had a different lens, My lens only offers shift and no tilt.
There are many lenses out there

Ray

Hi Ray. I looked at the picture you posted again and see now that it is the 28/3.5. They did make a 35mm version too.

I had the exact same lens. On my outfit, every lens is a tilt lens because I don't obey the design intentions of the lens makers!

Here it is mounted to the lens board I used while I was evaluating it:

I don't have a picture of that lens on my camera, but this is the setup. Any lens I can mount, focus, and control aperture becomes a tilt-shift lens on this rig:

I wrote a lengthy "review" of the lens on DPReview: https://www.dpreview.com/forums/thread/4482425 As you can see from that post, I was quite enthusiastic about it when I first used it. The issues that bothered me enough to eventually sell it only manifested later as I used it more frequently.

Don't let me spoil your enjoyment of the lens. It's quite possible I had a weak copy and you have an excellent copy. Or it may be that the way we used the lens is different enough that you don't encounter the issues I had. In that spirit, here's a picture I made with this lens that I was happy with:

 

[chrismuc]

The Schneider 28f2.8 PC covers the 44x33mm image circle and - at least w/o shift - shall give excellent results on a GFX or 1XD. Presumingly better corner sharpness than Nikon, Pentax, Olympus 28mm shift lenses.
I used the Schneider PC with 5.2 um (80 MP) 54x40mm sensor and found it very good (within the maybe 61mm image circle).

 

[chrismuc]

Does anyone know: can a Hasselblad FE 50/2.8 lens be mounted on a V-mount, and therefore via the Fotodiox V-adapter be mounted on the GFX?
Best Thorkil

Yes can

 

[rdeloe]

The Schneider 28f2.8 PC covers the 44x33mm image circle and - at least w/o shift - shall give excellent results on a GFX or 1XD. Presumingly better corner sharpness than Nikon, Pentax, Olympus 28mm shift lenses.
I used the Schneider PC with 5.2 um (80 MP) 54x40mm sensor and found it very good (within the maybe 61mm image circle).

Olympus made a 24mm and 35mm shift lens (no 28mm). Did you mean better than 24mm or 35mm? I tried two copies of the 35mm on smaller sensors and was very underwhelmed. I've never tried the Pentax 28mm.

I've heard mixed feedback on the Leica/Schneider 28mm PC. You are on the more enthusiastic side of the spectrum! The RAW samples I saw posted in another thread were not great.

 

[Alan]

Several years ago I compared 3 copies of the Nikon 28/3.5 PC to a Leica/Schneider 28 on a D3X. One Nikon was slightly better than the Leica, the other two were noticeably worse. Field curvature & distortion were also different between the Leica & Nikons. (Nikon w/ simpler distortion.)

I guess the point is, with these old lenses there can be a lot of variation. Whether from manufacturing or “life”, who knows?

 

[rdeloe]

Several years ago I compared 3 copies of the Nikon 28/3.5 PC to a Leica/Schneider 28 on a D3X. One Nikon was slightly better than the Leica, the other two were noticeably worse. Field curvature & distortion were also different between the Leica & Nikons. (Nikon w/ simpler distortion.)

I guess the point is, with these old lenses there can be a lot of variation. Whether from manufacturing or “life”, who knows?

Absolutely right. So many things can happen to a lens that has seen a lot of use over decades. And then there's peoples' expectations for what they want to see from a lens. I've been pleasantly surprised over the years by taking a chance and trying lenses that conventional wisdom says won't or can't be good. At the same time, I've tried some that other people have said were stellar, and have been disappointed. One just has to try (and try multiple copies if you're really obsessive about it!)

 

[chrismuc]

Olympus made a 24mm and 35mm shift lens (no 28mm). Did you mean better than 24mm or 35mm? I tried two copies of the 35mm on smaller sensors and was very underwhelmed. I've never tried the Pentax 28mm.

I've heard mixed feedback on the Leica/Schneider 28mm PC. You are on the more enthusiastic side of the spectrum! The RAW samples I saw posted in another thread were not great.

Correct, my bad.
1.
I tested the Oly 24 PC long ago, I guess using a 5D (Mark 1). It was worse than the Canon 24 PC Mark 1, which of course was surpassed by a large margin by the Mark 2.
2.
The Oly 35 PC was ‘ok’ but not as good as the Contax CY 35 PC - which I also would consider to be very useful on a GFX (with non or little shift), the Contax 645 35 provides a bit less CA than the CY version and a larger image circle allowing more shift.
3.
Reg. the Schneider 28 PC, I would say it is definitely very good around f8 within the required 55 mm image circle of the GFX, a bit less contrast than modern lenses. I will look for a sample image on my computer later, now I’m on my iPhone.

 

[P. Chong]

Found this late. Great overview, especially using the HC adapter. Any idea if Fuji has added the automatic stop down functionality?

3) One aggravation using the HC adapter: one has to focus wide open and at relatively high ISO (indoors) to see focus accurately and then stop down (and lower the ISO) to take the shot. There's no automatic "focus wide open but shoot stopped down" mechanism, making the lens cumbersome and slow to shoot indoors. My awesome dealer investigated this and spoke to Fuji directly, who confirmed the lack of automatic stop down shooting, but said that the firmware was finished just prior to shipping and that he expects there to be a number of (unspecified) functional upgrades to the adapter with subsequent firmware revisions from Fuji--so we can, at least, hope.d

4) With the Hassy adapter and any other manual lens adapter, one has to turn off both the preview WB/exposure and the companion preview picture settings. The GFX EVF will gain up (indoors it can become very, very grainy) and this helps focusing to some extent. You'll need to read EV values to understand your true exposure and adjust aperture/ISO/SS accordingly. In many cases, even turning off both picture preview settings isn't enough--I find turning up ISO, focusing and then turning down ISO, while cumbersome, works fairly well and my hit rate is quite good. As I already noted, there is no "focus wide open," "shoot stopped down" function yet for the Hassy adapter. Using flash indoors requires exactly the same discipline. So far, when lowering ISO after obtaining focus, both the Fuji 500 and the Nissan 60A flashes have worked flawlessly to correct the exposure. And both work quite well up to 1/800 with the Hassy adapter.