# EdMika adapter launch - 0.5mm FD-EOS dual-orientation adapter for super-teles



## ontarian (Jan 9, 2012)

Hi everyone, after much new development we finally have the adapters that give infinity focus to all those white old FD manual focus Canon super-telephoto lenses available for sale replacing the old 0.75mm adapter design.

http://www.ebay.ca/itm/180820985470?ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1555.l2649#ht_2100wt_1156
Edited to update ebay listing since its back up as I have received 45 more chips.
Edited again to update eBay link
cheers-Ed


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## Mt Spokane Photography (Jan 9, 2012)

At that price, I should buy one just in case I find a deal on a FD supertelephoto. I did not understand the bit about bending the aperture lever, but I'd figure it out quickly if I had a lens.I went back and reread the ebay listing, so I now understand the aperture lever.

If I ever am able to find a deal on a old Supertelephoto, I'll buy one of these immediately.


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## wickidwombat (Jan 9, 2012)

Awesome now i just need to find an Fd supertele for sale!


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## Harley (Jan 9, 2012)

Bought my FD 300mm f/2.8 L last week. Bought the adapter tonight. This will be my third Ed Mika lens conversion. Looking forward to it, Ed! +1!
Do you have a link to the video on infinity calibration?


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## wickidwombat (Jan 9, 2012)

Harley said:


> Bought my FD 300mm f/2.8 L last week. Bought the adapter tonight. This will be my third Ed Mika lens conversion. Looking forward to it, Ed! +1!
> Do you have a link to the video on infinity calibration?



where are you finding the Fd lenses for sale?


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## Harley (Jan 9, 2012)

I found mine at a local store, Blue Moon Camera. Just lucky. It was the only FD L telephoto I've seen there. I've seen others online at eBay, henrys.com, B&H used store, and KEH.com. They pop up on Craigslist occasionally, too.


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## wickidwombat (Jan 9, 2012)

does this adapter work with the 600mm f4.5? Fd

also the Fd lenses are all manual focus only right?


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## Flake (Jan 9, 2012)

On the old system the shutter was pressed and a mechanical system operated the aperture lever to close it, now there is mention of bending the level to allow for clearance, how does the aperture stop down when needed?


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## ontarian (Jan 9, 2012)

Flake said:


> On the old system the shutter was pressed and a mechanical system operated the aperture lever to close it, now there is mention of bending the level to allow for clearance, how does the aperture stop down when needed?



The aperture lever is engaged by the adapter in either 0 degree or 90 degree orientations. The lens is stopped down by the aperture control ring on the lens and metering is strictly stop down metering since there is no motor in my adapter to do so that would be triggered by the camera electronic signal.


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## ontarian (Jan 9, 2012)

wickidwombat said:


> does this adapter work with the 600mm f4.5? Fd
> 
> also the Fd lenses are all manual focus only right?



Yes and Yes.


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## wickidwombat (Jan 9, 2012)

Also got to give you credit for making your adaptor a reasonable price


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## Harley (Jan 9, 2012)

wickidwombat said:


> Also got to give you credit for making your adaptor a reasonable price


Agreed. It's the perfect price point. And each is such a well thought out design. You've been very thorough in terms of functionality and making them as undamaging/reversible as possible.


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## dr croubie (Jan 10, 2012)

Anyone know if the adapter will work with one of these? (This)

I've been seeing a few of this lens on ebay, they never copied the design into the EF-range, it'd be a nice big seller if they did (although the 200-400 f/4 1.4x will probably be the eventual replacement for this). The one-handed zoom/focus knob looks like a nice design touch.

I'd need a new tripod though...


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## Mt Spokane Photography (Jan 10, 2012)

I tried to buy a FD 800mm f/5.6 from a Craigsliist seller today, he had it listed for $950, but it sold before I could get it. So, I'll keep looking for some reason to buy that adapter.


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## Harley (Jan 10, 2012)

Mt Spokane Photography said:


> I tried to buy a FD 800mm f/5.6 from a Craigsliist seller today, he had it listed for $950, but it sold before I could get it. So, I'll keep looking for some reason to buy that adapter.



Try it the other way around : buy the adapter to give you a reason to keep looking for FD super-teles!


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## Harley (Jan 10, 2012)

dr croubie said:


> Anyone know if the adapter will work with one of these? (This)



Wow! That thing is crazy! Never came across one before...


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## dr croubie (Jan 10, 2012)

Mt Spokane Photography said:


> ... I'll keep looking for some reason to buy that adapter.



That's as good a reason as any to get a supertele, just to use an adapter. (maybe I should go ahead and buy that PentaconSix to Mamiya 645 adapter, then i'll have an excuse to buy a PhaseMiya IQ180...)

FD 800 f/5.6 for $4500, is only a grand less than B+H has a new 200 f/2.0...


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## ontarian (Jan 10, 2012)

It would work but I'm not sure if infinity focus would be retained under 200mm. Its on my personal want list along with the FD 200mm f/1.8 L.



dr croubie said:


> Anyone know if the adapter will work with one of these? (This)
> 
> I've been seeing a few of this lens on ebay, they never copied the design into the EF-range, it'd be a nice big seller if they did (although the 200-400 f/4 1.4x will probably be the eventual replacement for this). The one-handed zoom/focus knob looks like a nice design touch.
> 
> I'd need a new tripod though...


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## ontarian (Jan 10, 2012)

Harley said:


> Bought my FD 300mm f/2.8 L last week. Bought the adapter tonight. This will be my third Ed Mika lens conversion. Looking forward to it, Ed! +1!
> Do you have a link to the video on infinity calibration?



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ytgt1d1Ts8I

I really need to make a new clearer and more concise video though. Adding it to my crazy long todo list.


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## Harley (Jan 11, 2012)

Ed, that beautiful 0.5mm adapter arrived just a couple minutes ago! Pretty fast delivery!


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## wickidwombat (Jan 11, 2012)

bummer link has ended 
I was all excited because i snapped up a 600f4.5 for $1450

how long till we can get the adaptors again?


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## Harley (Jan 12, 2012)

Congrats on the super tele! Nice find. I'm pretty sure Ed said he'd have dandelion chips for the remaining adapters in the next couple days. Keep an eye out -- it won't be long.


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## ontarian (Jan 12, 2012)

wickidwombat said:


> bummer link has ended
> I was all excited because i snapped up a 600f4.5 for $1450
> 
> how long till we can get the adaptors again?



Tracking says the chips are in Toronto as of last night but they did not arrive to me yet. After this batch of 45 arrive I will have depleted the global supply of them until February apparently. I may start selling my adapters without chips and allow my customers to choose which type they prefer themselves instead.


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## dr croubie (Jan 12, 2012)

Ed, which AF Chips do you use, the Peleng8 ones from ml-gvalt? (if so, maybe you can blame me for depleting the world-wide supply by a few more last week). I can vouch for them working nicely, that's why I keep ordering them (latest ones are going on Takumar 50/1.4 and i'll try one on the Lensbaby for the hell of it).

Also, have you ever experimented with Fisheye and/or Superwide Lenses? Even if you can't get to infinity with an adapter, at really wide focal lengths you should be able to f/5.6 and hyperfocal, i'd reckon, it'd open up a new line of sales (and you probably couldn't use the AF chips with hyperfocalling anyway)


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## wickidwombat (Jan 12, 2012)

ontarian said:


> wickidwombat said:
> 
> 
> > bummer link has ended
> ...


can i preorder one with a chip? i dont mind paying now on ebay and getting delivery when its done


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## wickidwombat (Jan 12, 2012)

dr croubie said:


> Ed, which AF Chips do you use, the Peleng8 ones from ml-gvalt? (if so, maybe you can blame me for depleting the world-wide supply by a few more last week). I can vouch for them working nicely, that's why I keep ordering them (latest ones are going on Takumar 50/1.4 and i'll try one on the Lensbaby for the hell of it).
> 
> Also, have you ever experimented with Fisheye and/or Superwide Lenses? Even if you can't get to infinity with an adapter, at really wide focal lengths you should be able to f/5.6 and hyperfocal, i'd reckon, it'd open up a new line of sales (and you probably couldn't use the AF chips with hyperfocalling anyway)


I'd be interested to hear how you go with the chip on the lensbaby.


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## ontarian (Jan 12, 2012)

dr croubie said:


> Ed, which AF Chips do you use, the Peleng8 ones from ml-gvalt? (if so, maybe you can blame me for depleting the world-wide supply by a few more last week). I can vouch for them working nicely, that's why I keep ordering them (latest ones are going on Takumar 50/1.4 and i'll try one on the Lensbaby for the hell of it).
> 
> Also, have you ever experimented with Fisheye and/or Superwide Lenses? Even if you can't get to infinity with an adapter, at really wide focal lengths you should be able to f/5.6 and hyperfocal, i'd reckon, it'd open up a new line of sales (and you probably couldn't use the AF chips with hyperfocalling anyway)



I originally bought my chips only from ml-gvalt starting from late 2009 but had some delivery issues late 2011 so I switched to tago-tech in Hong Kong with more timely results selling identical but renamed chips under the title EURO. They are both made by Viktor Lushnikov in Russia. I have not yet bought from Viktor directly because he only accepts Western Union rather than paypal but I'm going to have to start. Viktor is out of stock for the next 2 weeks he said and it takes 2 weeks at best for them to arrive by mail to Canada.

As for fisheye, I use the extremely well price EF mount Optix 6.5mm (same as Samyang 8.5mm) for my wide shooting. I don't have the FD 7.5 or 15mm fisheyes yet but the FD 17mm does not focus very far at all with the new 0.5mm adapter. Keep in mind that the lens is still 5mm off of design distance, the 42mm FD flange focal distance is misleading since it measures from the end of the mount part sticking on the FD camera body, not the end of the lens. Really the FD is 39.5mm vs EF 44mm in an apples to apples measurement. This 5mm can be made up in all the white super-telephoto prime lenses but not in any other (apart from the FD 300 f/4L but the mods needed to get it to infinity include a somewhat unorthodox non focusing element repositioning). I can squeeze useful shooting out of the FD 200 2.8 and the 135 2 and kind of ok portraits out the FD 85mm 1.2L with the 0.5mm FD-EOS adapter. For these reasons I do have on the drawing board mount swap kits for many of these shorter prime lenses.


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## ontarian (Jan 12, 2012)

[/quote]
can i preorder one with a chip? i dont mind paying now on ebay and getting delivery when its done
[/quote]

I accepted 13 pre-orders last September when I was waiting on chips (from ml-gavalt) and the delay dragged 3 stressful weeks beyond expected. I'm not too keen to repeat this, I'll only believe I am ready to ship when I really am ready to ship. That said, when cleaning my work area today I found a stray unused chip so I tell you what, its got your name on it. I'm picking up 46 adapters from the shop tomorrow afternoon and I'll be able to mail at least 1 on Friday because of this extra chip. I'm hoping the 45 chips in the mail arrive tomorrow too but again, I'll believe that when I see it. I'll PM you my email tied to paypal and you can send funds before I get the ebay listing up again if you want.


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## wickidwombat (Jan 12, 2012)

sweet  sold


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## ontarian (Jan 13, 2012)

Listing is now up again
http://www.ebay.ca/itm/170764195949?ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1555.l2649#ht_1912wt_1370


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## Jamriman (Jan 13, 2012)

*FD Aspherical lenses for Ed Mika's adapters*

Hello All,
This is my first post on this forum. Having been mostly on the Leica boards I became obsessed with finding a clean A-1. This was my first SLR. I think I was around 15 yrs old at the time. From there I found out about Canons high performing ASPHERICAL lenses. I thought it would be a great idea to mount a 55 1.2 on my Leica M9. From this mission I found out about Ed Mika's adapters and just bought the 55,85 1.2 and a 24 1.4 to use on an 5D whick makes more sense. I know Mr. Mika is making adapters for the 55&85 soon. Is there any info on the 24 1.4 adaptability to ef bodies? Many thanks for looking!
John


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## Jamriman (Jan 14, 2012)

Is there a focus screen which works better with these adapters? Thanks.


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## ontarian (Jan 14, 2012)

Jamriman said:


> Is there a focus screen which works better with these adapters? Thanks.



I have heard good things about katz http://www.canonrumors.com/forum/index.php?topic=2201.0

I used Canon brand focusing screens on my 1D mark4 cameras.


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## ontarian (Jan 14, 2012)

*Re: FD Aspherical lenses for Ed Mika's adapters*



Jamriman said:


> Hello All,
> This is my first post on this forum. Having been mostly on the Leica boards I became obsessed with finding a clean A-1. This was my first SLR. I think I was around 15 yrs old at the time. From there I found out about Canons high performing ASPHERICAL lenses. I thought it would be a great idea to mount a 55 1.2 on my Leica M9. From this mission I found out about Ed Mika's adapters and just bought the 55,85 1.2 and a 24 1.4 to use on an 5D whick makes more sense. I know Mr. Mika is making adapters for the 55&85 soon. Is there any info on the 24 1.4 adaptability to ef bodies? Many thanks for looking!
> John



I intend to have kits for nearly all the nFD mount lenses by the end of 2012. The L lenses present the biggest challenge because I have to actually have my kit hold the rear separate element and even worse I have to find a way around the large 5D mirror interference. My current plan is to make a floating rear element holder that gets pushed into the mirror path only at the last bit of focusing near infinity. That way 5D shooters can shoot normal for most focusing conditions and then use live view for distant target shots.


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## Jamriman (Jan 14, 2012)

Thanks. As I understand FDn lenses are difficult to adapt. The Aspherical lenses have a different mount build. These lenses are OK with the 5d mirror? The 5d doesn't have live view....


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## Harley (Jan 14, 2012)

Ed, I got the FD 300mm f/2.8 modified for infinity focus. Wasn't very hard at all once I managed to get the front element unscrewed. Getting the adapter on was a snap! (no pun)

This is an incredible piece of glass! I'll probably never be able to afford the EF equivalent superteles so thanks for making this possible. 

As a sidenote, I'm still using the FL 55mm f/1.2 and the TS 35mm f/2.8 *all the time*. My autofocus lenses are getting jealous.



Jamriman said:


> Is there a focus screen which works better with these adapters? Thanks.



Jamriman: I put the KatzEye focusing screen (w/ OptiBrite treatment) in my 7D. It's invaluable to me when shooting manual focus. I'm really pleased with it.


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## wickidwombat (Jan 15, 2012)

i dont get it why catzeye wont make screens for the 5dmk2 it takes 1 minute to swap screens and the EG-S is ok but i think the catz eye looks like it might be better


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## Mt Spokane Photography (Jan 15, 2012)

wickidwombat said:


> i dont get it why catzeye wont make screens for the 5dmk2 it takes 1 minute to swap screens and the EG-S is ok but i think the catz eye looks like it might be better



I've always wondered why they don't sell them for 5D models as well.

However, Brightscreen does, and is the original company to make third party focus screens. They have a lot of techniques to help them perform.

http://www.brightscreenstore.com/store/


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## Jamriman (Jan 15, 2012)

Mt Spokane Photography said:


> wickidwombat said:
> 
> 
> > i dont get it why catzeye wont make screens for the 5dmk2 it takes 1 minute to swap screens and the EG-S is ok but i think the catz eye looks like it might be better
> ...



Thanks for the valuable info from all of you! Sounds like this is what Im looking for.


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## wickidwombat (Jan 18, 2012)

Is there any risk of the 5Dmk2 mirror interacting with the adaptor for the 600 f4.5? my lens arrived yesterday and is in mint condition glass is all clear, no paint missing other than a little under the foot. the lens cap is badly perished and needs to be replaced and the case is in good condition, it came with a UV filter, I amssuming that the apperture needs to have the adapter engaged before it will actually operate? becasue without it connected to anything there is no change when turning the aperture ring. also when pointed down the focus moves probably due to the element weight. So overall pretty happy with the condition of it. Now just waiting for the adapter to arrive so i can play with it. I've put the EG-S precision matte focus screen in the 5d2 so will see how it goes


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## ontarian (Jan 18, 2012)

No risk to the mirror whatsoever. What you will need to do is either mount the adapter in the sideways orientation and live with some darkened sides that can be corrected in lightroom/aperture/photoshop or mount the adapter normal but bend the aperture lever towards lens centre until the second notch on the lower lever holder fully cradles it to ensure you don't score your plastic near the electrical contacts. Some people grind the aperture lever down but I do not endorse this approach, everything I promote is vintage gear safe and lever bending is fully reversible, grinding is not.

This darkening issue is only a problem with full frame bodies, the 1D 1.3 crop has no vignetting in the 90 degree adapter orientation and the 1.6 crop bodies have no interference issues.

Your lens will only stop down the aperture if it has the adapter mounted and the lever engaged. Simply flicking the lever without internally rotating the FD mount will not initiate the diaphragm. If you are in a hurry to see it you can use a small screwdriver to trigger the little unlock switches sticking out and rotate the mount. You are in Australia and the registered mail shipping there generally takes 2-3 weeks. I looked into quicker methods for international but the cost was above 70 bucks.

Edited to change New Zealand to Australia (same difference eh. Just kidding, its like saying Canada and the US are the same, would not go over well in either place)



wickidwombat said:


> Is there any risk of the 5Dmk2 mirror interacting with the adaptor for the 600 f4.5? my lens arrived yesterday and is in mint condition glass is all clear, no paint missing other than a little under the foot. the lens cap is badly perished and needs to be replaced and the case is in good condition, it came with a UV filter, I amssuming that the apperture needs to have the adapter engaged before it will actually operate? becasue without it connected to anything there is no change when turning the aperture ring. also when pointed down the focus moves probably due to the element weight. So overall pretty happy with the condition of it. Now just waiting for the adapter to arrive so i can play with it. I've put the EG-S precision matte focus screen in the 5d2 so will see how it goes


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## wickidwombat (Jan 18, 2012)

i sent you a PM


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## ontarian (Jan 18, 2012)

wickidwombat said:


> i sent you a PM



Oops, sent your adapter to a different Island. No, all is well and your address is correct on the shipment.


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## wickidwombat (Jan 18, 2012)

ontarian said:


> wickidwombat said:
> 
> 
> > i sent you a PM
> ...


sweet!

also for anyone looking at these lenses i found this link which has some good info and specs on the 600 and 800
http://www.mir.com.my/rb/photography/companies/canon/fdresources/fdlenses/6800mm.htm


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## wickidwombat (Jan 19, 2012)

also If anyone else gets FD lenses with old perished lens caps I found these guys and ordered one to replace the original for daily use

http://www.lenscoat.com/hoodie-lens-caps-c-5.html

they are reasonably priced the genuine canon lens caps are expensive so i'll see how it is but cant really go wrong with neoprene covers


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## Harley (Jan 20, 2012)

wickidwombat said:


> also If anyone else gets FD lenses with old perished lens caps I found these guys and ordered one to replace the original for daily use
> 
> http://www.lenscoat.com/hoodie-lens-caps-c-5.html
> 
> they are reasonably priced the genuine canon lens caps are expensive so i'll see how it is but cant really go wrong with neoprene covers



Thanks for the Lenscoat info!


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## gmikol (Feb 15, 2012)

Any word on when some new stock is going to be available?


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## 7enderbender (Feb 15, 2012)

Now I'm excited. I just figured out that these will work with my FD 500 f/8 reflex. Will they be available again any time soon? This is great.


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## ontarian (Feb 15, 2012)

Hi 7enderbender and gmikol, The Dandelion chips arrived today and the 0.5mm listing is back up and running http://www.ebay.ca/itm/180820985470?ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1555.l2649

The TS-EOS is also up again http://www.ebay.ca/itm/170784162985?ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1555.l2649

but the FL 55 1.2 listing will not be up until Friday because I forgot the box of FL adapters at the machine shop and I don't have time for the round trip right now.

cheers-Ed


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## gmikol (Feb 17, 2012)

Fantastic!!

Warming up the credit card...


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## ontarian (Feb 17, 2012)

FL kit is back up and running. http://www.ebay.ca/itm/170785828179?ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1555.l2649#ht_1648wt_1413 -Ed


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## dr croubie (Feb 17, 2012)

Hey Ed, was just wondering about that f/1.2 conversion kit, for which lenses does it work?
By the canon camera museum, I count:
FL 55 f/1.2
FL 58 f/1.2
FL 58 f/1.2 II
FD 55 f/1.2
FD 55 f/1.2 AL
FD 55 f/1.2 SSC
FD 55 f/1.2 SSC AL
FD 55 f/1.2 SSC Aspherical
nFD 50 f/1.2
nFD 50 f/1.2L
Is it just the FL55s, or have you just not tried the 50/58mms?

Also:
FD 85 f/1.2 SSC Aspherical
nFD 85 f/1.2L
Are there plans for conversion kits for these?
Or any other upcoming kits?
(ie, which lenses should I troll ebay for to stock up on before the kits comes out and the lens gets more valuable?)


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## dr croubie (Feb 17, 2012)

Ah, beat me to it, you just explain all of that in the ebay listing...
nvm...


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## ontarian (Feb 17, 2012)

It only works on:
FL 55 f/1.2

Both of these next lenses are virtually the same and cannot be converted to EOS without machining the body of the lens down itself so there can be no do-it-at-home kit here.
FL 58 f/1.2
FL 58 f/1.2 II

This next family is our next adapter kit but has to be split up into

FD 55 f/1.2
FD 55 f/1.2 SSC

with the above 2 being a much bigger chunk of brass to machine and also require an internal linkage to be machined by me and screwed in during the conversion.

and

FD 55 f/1.2 AL
FD 55 f/1.2 SSC AL
FD 55 f/1.2 SSC Aspherical

These above 3 are virtually the same and have a floating rear element that I have to find a way to not only hold but make move as the lens focuses close to infinity in order for it to work on a 5D2 mirror. This is actually pretty hard but I have some solid ideas and prototype mockups that show my concept is feasible. http://www.flickr.com/photos/ontarian/6546772915/#

nFD 50 f/1.2

This one above does not have that extra rear element and a conversion kit will come after the above few for the FD 55s, In fact the same exact kit will likely work for most of the non-L sub 200mm nFD prime lenses and a few of the Ls (like the FD24mm 1.4L).

nFD 50 f/1.2L

This one has the same problem as the FD 55 asphericals with the extra rear element to be held and floating. In fact the FD 85mm 1.2 aspherical and L is in the same boat. I will have a kit for all of these but it will take me several months to get the development finished.


-Ed


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## Jamriman (Feb 20, 2012)

Ed,
Will the fd 55/85 1.2 aspherical work with a 5D mirror? Thanks.


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## ontarian (Feb 23, 2012)

Jamriman said:


> Ed,
> Will the fd 55/85 1.2 aspherical work with a 5D mirror? Thanks.



Only to about 25 feet, then the mirror will contact the moving rear element lens holder I am designing and since the 5 D classic has no live view that will be as far as you get. The 5D2 can focus to infinity by going to live view for farther targets. All other full frame, APS-H and C cameras clear the mirror. I wish someone would come out with a 5D classic firmware hack to allow live view. I've considered looking into developing a 3rd party 5D low profile replacement mirror kit for those not comfortable shaving their original ones as another alternative.


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## D.Sim (Feb 25, 2012)

I has a question, am really really interested in the FL 55 1.2 adapter now, but i'm not quite clear on how the autofocus confirmation chip will work - 

Basically, manual focus, when the part I want in focus gets into focus, the AF point will light up? 
Or what am I missing here... 


thanks!


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## dr croubie (Feb 25, 2012)

D.Sim said:


> I has a question, am really really interested in the FL 55 1.2 adapter now, but i'm not quite clear on how the autofocus confirmation chip will work -
> 
> Basically, manual focus, when the part I want in focus gets into focus, the AF point will light up?
> Or what am I missing here...
> thanks!



I can field that, I haven't got my FL55 or adapter yet, but i've glued one of the exact-same chips onto my Samyang 35/1.4.

Basically, the EOS AF system workd as follows:
- Light goes through the lens, hits the mirror, enters the AF-sensor in the camera.
- AF sensor can tell whether the lens is front-, back-, or in-focus.
- Camera tells lens "focus so much distance further or back"
- Lens moves its AF motor until the camera says 'stop'.
- Lens says "ok, i'm stopped"
- Then camera lights up the red box in the viewfinder to tell user that it's in focus.

Now, it's silly, in a way, how this works. If the lens doesn't say "i'm stopped", the camera won't light up the AF box (even though it's the AF-sensor in the camera that decides whether it's in focus or not). So without that AF chip in the lens, the viewfinder won't light up the AF-box, even though it knows perfectly well that it's in focus.
So the AF chip that Ed uses (and lots of others use it too), basically emulate the "OK, I'm stopped" command. Your hand turning the focus ring is the motor. It works basically the same as with a real EF-lens set to Manual Focus, hold down the shutter halfway, turn the focus ring and when it's in focus the red dot in the viewfinder lights up (keep turning and it'll go off because you're out of focus the other way).

The adapter can (and Ed will have to answer what the default is set to), work even better than an EF lens, you can set it to 'Focus Trap' mode. As in, you hold the shutter button down fully and it's won't take a picture if it's out of focus. Keep the button pressed, and either turn the focus ring, move yourself, or move the subject, and when it's in focus it'll fire a shot. I've turned off that mode on the chip on my Samyang because I didn't find it too accurate, if I was turning the focus ring fastish, by the time the camera reacted and fired the shot, the subject was OOF in the other direction.

But the best thing about the AF chip is the EXIF data, you can set the focal length and aperture, say "LensModel: 35-35mm" and "FNumber: 1.4", some programs I use like LuminanceHDR refuse to work (easily) if those two aren't set in the EXIF...


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## Jamriman (Feb 26, 2012)

Wow!! Great answer! Thanks!!!


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## D.Sim (Feb 26, 2012)

dr croubie said:


> D.Sim said:
> 
> 
> > I has a question, am really really interested in the FL 55 1.2 adapter now, but i'm not quite clear on how the autofocus confirmation chip will work -
> ...



+1 to you sir, thank you very much...

So basically, long story short, when the AF point selected is in focus, it'll light up. Or do you need to stop, then it'll light up?

Main reason I ask is I'm really *REALLY* bad at manual focus...


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## dr croubie (Feb 26, 2012)

D.Sim said:


> So basically, long story short, when the AF point selected is in focus, it'll light up. Or do you need to stop, then it'll light up?
> 
> Main reason I ask is I'm really *REALLY* bad at manual focus...



It'll light up when it's in focus, basically. But if you're turning the focus ring too quickly, by the time you react to it being in focus and press the trigger, you might have turned the ring too far the other way already. It will take some getting used to, if in doubt just use live-view, that's what I use most of the time for MF lenses (ability to 5x zoom is invaluable, if your subject isn't moving too fast, that is).

It will always depend on what lens you use, some lenses go from 40cm to infinity in less than half a rotation of the focus ring (like my Samyang, the last 3m to infinity is about 10 degrees), some lenses have a lot more (a Takumar 55 f/2.0 takes nearly 300 degrees from 45cm to infinity), some have a lot less (my EF 100/2.0 goes from 90cm to infinity in 90 degrees, it's really hard to MF with this lens even on live-view).

So no, it's not going to make your life as easy as using an AF lens. And it will take getting used to, you will get a lot better with practise. Also useful are focussing screens, i'm getting a Katz Eye split prism on my 7D as soon as the next paycheque comes in. It's better than using the lens without it though, as long as you're not completely wide open or shooting a fast-moving target.

And one more cool thing about these AF chips, they have in-built AFMA, so you don't have to worry if your body has it or not (although I've got a 7D, so don't need to use it). Programming them is tricky, but you can get there eventually with the instructions in front of you.


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## wickidwombat (Feb 26, 2012)

i got the EG-S screen for my 5D2 which makes a big difference to MF accuracy. however even with this screen pop on the 1D and you can instantly see why the 1D are the king of the heap. the viewfinders are so bright and clear its really quite easy to get very accurate manual focus. with the standard 5D2 screen I was struggeling but the EG-S did help but not as much as the 1D I might consider getting a bright screen since i plan on keeping a 5D2 for use with MF lenses.


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## BrainQueen (Oct 18, 2013)

Hi Ed,

I'm giving some thought to purchasing the FD 600mm, and I have a few questions about mounting this to an EOS 1D or 1Ds body. I've never used the FD lenses before, so these questions might seem a bit trivial, but I'd appreciate serious helpful replies anyway.

(1) How does metering and choice of aperture work? Is it stop-down metering still?

(2) I'm not terribly handy. How difficult or technical is the installation of this adapter on this lens? Is there a pictoral or video guide somewhere showing how to do it? I saw it mentioned that the aperture lever might need to be bent. How do I go about doing that? Is the metal fairly pliable? Do I need any special equipment to do this?

(3) Does the adapter also work with a teleconverter? If so, does it need to be an FD teleconverter or an EOS one?

Thank you in advance!


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## ontarian (Oct 18, 2013)

Good questions. 

1. Metering works in Av mode (but all can be used but of course the camera cannot control aperture so if in Tv mode all the camera can do is adjust ISO). Metering is stop down so the camera will always think the f stop is set at 4.5 or whatever you program the chip to say but whatever light gets through is the light the meter reads.

2. Its almost as easy as mounting an FD camera body to an FD lens. With a 1D body you will either have to mount the lens sideways (since I designed the adapter to be dual orientation) or bend the lever inwards a bit so it doesn't scratch some plastic inside the body near the electrical contacts. Thats the tradeoff for having such a low profile adapter trying to put the lens as close to original position as possible.

3. It will work with an Fd 1.4x extender best, meaning based on my pretty extensive testing it will actually resolve more detail rather than just making the image larger, dimmer and more distorted. The EF 1.4x is a wash and forget the 2x types from either FD or EF series. You also cannot use the EF version anyway since the plastic face inside is even shallower than the camera body so the aperture lever will scratch heavily. You first would mount the FD 1.4x-a (b is for sub-300mm focal lengths) on the lens, then mount the 0.5mm adapter.

cheers-Ed




BrainQueen said:


> Hi Ed,
> 
> I'm giving some thought to purchasing the FD 600mm, and I have a few questions about mounting this to an EOS 1D or 1Ds body. I've never used the FD lenses before, so these questions might seem a bit trivial, but I'd appreciate serious helpful replies anyway.
> 
> ...


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## Lloyd (Oct 18, 2013)

I am using one of Ed's earlier adapters on an 800mm FD Canon lens and have been very satisfied with his adapter. You just have to really work on your long lens technique as you have no image stabilization and no autofocus. I was fortunate to buy my lens and adapter early on before Ed's adapter increased the demand for these old lenses.

On the 800mm, I remember performing two procedures initially. The first was to remove the infinity stop in the compartment of the lens where the focus wheel attaches. This was a simple procedure that took a couple of minutes. The second procedure was to get the aperature control arm from the 800mm lens out of the way so it did not scratch the camera. I filed mine down a bit, but apparently one can bend it slightly and acheive the same result. Ed can give you a better description of solving this issue.

The bottom line is that it was easy to get the lens working great on my 5DIII and on my 60D. The following is a heavily cropped photo I took with the 800mm on my 5DIII using Ed's adapter:


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## BrainQueen (Oct 19, 2013)

Thank you so much for the quick reply!

Do you happen to have any samples with the FD 600 on a full frame sensor on hand to show? 

To bend the lever inward, can I do this with just a pair of needlenose plyers?

This has been extremely helpful!




ontarian said:


> Good questions.
> 
> 1. Metering works in Av mode (but all can be used but of course the camera cannot control aperture so if in Tv mode all the camera can do is adjust ISO). Metering is stop down so the camera will always think the f stop is set at 4.5 or whatever you program the chip to say but whatever light gets through is the light the meter reads.
> 
> ...


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## BrainQueen (Oct 19, 2013)

Lloyd,

Your sample image is really helpful as well as your comments. Thank you for taking a moment to reply. 

E.



Lloyd said:


> I am using one of Ed's earlier adapters on an 800mm FD Canon lens and have been very satisfied with his adapter. You just have to really work on your long lens technique as you have no image stabilization and no autofocus. I was fortunate to buy my lens and adapter early on before Ed's adapter increased the demand for these old lenses.
> 
> On the 800mm, I remember performing two procedures initially. The first was to remove the infinity stop in the compartment of the lens where the focus wheel attaches. This was a simple procedure that took a couple of minutes. The second procedure was to get the aperature control arm from the 800mm lens out of the way so it did not scratch the camera. I filed mine down a bit, but apparently one can bend it slightly and acheive the same result. Ed can give you a better description of solving this issue.
> 
> ...


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## ontarian (Oct 19, 2013)

I don't have much to show myself, I came to terms with being much more a gear head than an artist long ago. I took some snaps in this set here http://www.flickr.com/photos/ontarian/sets/72157623884845990/ a few years ago when I developed the kit. Weirdly enough I'm sitting at my CNC machine (beer in hand) developing another as I write this.


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## BrainQueen (Oct 30, 2013)

ontarian said:


> I don't have much to show myself, I came to terms with being much more a gear head than an artist long ago. I took some snaps in this set here http://www.flickr.com/photos/ontarian/sets/72157623884845990/ a few years ago when I developed the kit. Weirdly enough I'm sitting at my CNC machine (beer in hand) developing another as I write this.



Sorry for the long delay in replying. Thanks for sending me these samples. Looks like the FD 600 and FD 800 are both great!

Thank you again for all your help!


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