Shhhh. Here’s a secret we don’t want everyone to know.
You can use inexpensive older lenses with new cameras. Maybe even lenses and cameras from different manufacturers.
Yep. Just get an adapter.
Here’s a video with someone adapting a beautiful old Minolta Rokkor 50mm 1.4 lens to a Canon EOS 5D. There’s no sound. But there doesn’t really need to be.
You can also find adapters that will allow you to use old screw mount lenses with most cameras. How beautiful is that? Got a beautiful old Super Takumar SMC that you want to use on an old school Minolta XD-11 or the upcoming Canon EOS 7D or a Nikon D700? Get an adapter.
Here’s one of a Jupiter M42 screw mount lens being used with a Pentax K Mount camera.
Since new digital camera bodies may be bank busters for you, and you might have thought you couldn’t afford a camera system, now you can get some good old glass or use the camera lenses you already have with your new body.
Caveats, well, yeah, of course. So some adapters might not allow focus to infinity. You might need 42mm for Pentax and 39mm for Leica, but that’s not that hard to figure out. Some lenses might run too deep and hit your mirror. That would be a no-no. Oh and worst yet for the modern picture taker, your auto everything mode probably won’t work so you might have to use that thinking thing that’s on top of your neck and use it in manual mode. Oh the horrors.
In any case, there are some wonderful old lenses in most people’s houses that aren’t being used. Just don’t tell everyone our secret. I like buying old lenses cheap. Then again, I’ll probably use the film camera that goes with it.
Here are some searches that will get you started.
