The genuine Canon adapters are rare and expensive. The 3rd party ones have abysmal optics.
It is really only worth it if you already own some of the expensive FD telephotos and you want to spring for the genuine Canon FD-EF adapter. One other option is to buy a crap adapter and bust the glass out of it. You'll lose infinity, but macro is possible, of course and close portrait (maybe).
With the ability to mount just about every other type of lens on a Canon EF mount, FD just makes so very little sense.
* The original Canon one. It is supposed to be used on the long telephoto lenses and acts like a 1.26x teleconverter (if I remember correctly). Also, it is said to be optically very good. The downside is that it is very rare, and expensive.
* Cheap adapters with glass. Optically, they are said to be horrible, and I doubt that anyone here will recommend to use one of these.
* Cheap adapters without glass. Sometimes, this is the same adapter as above, just with the lens removed. Optically, you now have the bare FD lens, so it's as good as that lens. But the adapter acts as an extension tube, and you lose infinity focus.
Another option would be to get the mount converted from FD to EOS. This is not exactly cheap either, and is only worth it for a few very good FD lenses.
I use some old FD glass on my 30D (Sigma 18-200mm & Sigma 28-70mm F2.8):
Canon 20mm F2.8
Soligor 28mm F2.8
Canon 50mm F1.4
Canon 85mm F 1.2 L
Canon 100mm F 2.8
Canon 135mm F2
Canon 200mm F4
with three adaptor:
- semiautomatic, aid to focus (with glass)
- Hama with glass
- adaptor without glass.
P.S. Also I use this FD glass with Sony Z1E & 35mm adaptor.
One way or another, I regret not buying the genuine Canon FD-EOS adapter when I had a chance a couple of years ago.
Since then I have seen some excellent results obtained with it on a couple of FD supertelephotos and EOS cameras.
PetKal wrote:
One way or another, I regret not buying the genuine Canon FD-EOS adapter when I had a chance a couple of years ago.
Since then I have seen some excellent results obtained with it on a couple of FD supertelephotos and EOS cameras.
There are some very nice FD supertelephotos out there, especially given the low prices. For example, the 500 f/4.5L (optically identical to the EF version) and the 800 f/5.6L sell for about $ 1300 each at KEH. The other lens that gets converted quite often is the 35mm Tilt-Shift.
A mount conversion would still be an option for you, though. And I think that you can get two mount conversions for the price of one genuine Canon adapter these days.
Rainer wrote:
A mount conversion would still be an option for you, though. And I think that you can get two mount conversions for the price of one genuine Canon adapter these days.
True. I believe S.K.Grimes from RI USA is one company that could do that sorta conversion.
PetKal wrote:
True. I believe S.K.Grimes from RI USA is one company that could do that sorta conversion.
Yes, they seem to have quite a bit of experience with mount conversions. I talked to them last year when I was thinking about getting a 35 T/S converted, but then I ended up getting a very sharp copy of the TS-E 24L instead.
Hi everyone.
A adapter, not yet mentioned, is the Canon made, FD/EOS macro-photo coupler. I sold mine about two years ago. It had no glass elements, just a outer roating ring to have manual or auto control over the lens iris. I had a FD 600 MM lens, that i converted myself, to use auto focus, on my Contax AX body. I removed the glass from the cheapo FD/OOS converter, then mated that with part of a Y/C T-mount. That gave me an auto-focusing FD 600, for use on my AX film body. It worked swell, however i lost inf. focus. When i showed the pictures of the camera/lens package, and photos taken with it to Contax, at a local trade show-they would no longer talk to me! , wonder why ?
Cheers
Harry
thanks for mentioning this! When I first read your post I thought ... how the heck does he manage to make that lens autofocus? He must be a genius! Then I read up on the Contax AX and how it focuses by moving the film plane. Now, you still might be a genius, but that made it a lot easier.
I've been drooling about a Contax AX-D ever since I read about the AX. How cool would it be to have a native C/Y mount camera with the wonderful Contax build and viewfinder and then a 5D (or better) sensor with "film-plane focusing" ?
The original Canon FD-EOS adapter works quite well. I still have one, though I've sold the lenses I used it for (the 800 f/5.6L and 300 f/2.8L FD lenses).
These converters turn up on eBay every so often and usually go for between $800 and $1000. If you don't mind manual focus, you can get some extremely good images for far less than you would pay for equivalent EF lenses. e.g., 800 f/5.6 Sigma, 300 f/2.8L non-IS would cost about $7000 (~$5000 + ~$2000) between them while the FD equivalents and the converter would run about $3000 (~1400 + ~800 + ~800).
The converter adds 2/3 of a stop and magnifies focal length by 1.26x. There is no detectable loss of contrast or sharpness with this converter.
ChillAloha wrote:
There is no detectable loss of contrast or sharpness with this converter.
Recently I saw several images made using the FD 200mm f/1.8L on the 5D via the Canon adapter. They were just perfect, as if shot with a good copy of the EF 200 f/1.8.
However, that is perhaps not the best example for the "economy" of the FD lenses because the FD 200 f/1.8 is very rare and probably very expensive.
I think I just realized that the FD-to-EOS adapter (with optics) is not compatible on AT LEAST the FD 15mm F/2.8 and an EOS 5D.
Apparently the mirror on the 5D is built differently (aside from simply being full-frame), and I'm assuming it 'catches' on the glass protruding into the body.
Too bad. I love that lens on my AE-1, was hoping I could save the $xxx I'd have to spend on the EF 15mm F/2.8. Oh well. :-(
As you can see the genuine canon adapter has a longish "Snout" on it when you attach the Lens so only the longer TELE 'L' lenses will tend to work with it.
It's really GOOD (I us a 300 and 400 FD 2.8 'L' with this adapter on a 1DII works brilliantly.
If you do source one of these -- GENUINE articles they are very rare and usually cost well over 500 USD. Beware of cheap imitations (no optics or very poorly performing optics.
Note you lose 2/3 a stop and there is a factor 1.26 X so slight "Extender" effect.
degradation in quality almost non existent - especially with an 'L' lens.
Note "Stop down metering" works (you can use Aperture priority) but you'll have to focus manually.
i own a genuine FD-EOS adaptor with a focus confirmation chip installed it cost me $1063.00 usd shipped from Hong Kong in the original packaging. works like a champ with no IQ degradation. i shoot the FD 800mm l, 600mm l, 300mm f2.8l, 300mm f4l, total cost lens = $3200.00 + $1063.00 = $4210.00 usd. equivalent ef glass cost would be $25,000.00+ usd. manual focus doesn't bother me that's how i learned back in the day there was no autofucus. besides i think the majority of todays photographers rely on autofocus technology to much. i like the nostalgia and the challenge of manual focus. just my 2 cents.
Just like R.H. Johnson mentioned, I too own the FD-EOS adapter w/ focus confirmation chip installed (albeit a knock-off model from eBay, cost me about $45, if I remember correctly). This is what I was using to attempt to mount the 15mm 2.8 FD Fisheye to my Canon 5D (mk 1). It wouldn't work, as mentioned, as it seemed the mirror was slapping against the glass of the adapter...
WELL... I remembered having previously purchased the same adapter MINUS the focus confirmation chip, and after a few hours of digging through piles of camera junk/personal belongings, I found it.
And. it. works.
I can use my genuine Canon 15mm 2.8 Fisheye on my 5D, and it works outstandingly! Here's a shot I used it to take just last night:
OK, so not the best shot, being at night + flash (off-camera), but it does get the job done - I was lying on the ground, shooting up at the subject and his wheel, from about 2 feet away. Using the manual focus, and a few shots later, boom! Perfect focus and color reproduction. I personally don't notice any f-stop-lossage, but if there is, it's minute - maybe 2/3 of a stop, which during the day or at night w/ flash, you won't notice. I even took a ton of shots in my workplace, with available fluorescent lighting, and it worked fine.
