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Canon RF Lens on Leica M9

Giacomo.B

By Giacomo.B
in Customer Forum

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giordano

giordano

Posted
Posted
the Canon screw mount rangefinder spacing / coupling is different. it can possibly be adjusted by competent service folks.

 

This is the first time I've seen this suggestion. I've never had a problem using a Canon lens on a Leica body or (screw mount) Leica lens on a Canon body, and nor have many other people here. (Note however that the very earliest Canon cameras and lenses seem to have had a slightly different screw thread.

 

Nikon screw mount RF lenses are built for Leica.
I thought they were originally built for Canon's "Leica copies" in the 1930s.
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giordano

giordano

Posted
Posted
Hello, my uncle has a 50 f1,8 & 85 f2 Canon rf Lens, I could use them with satisfaction on my M9?? (with adaptor of course...)

What do you think of these lenses??

 

They're definitely not as good as modern Leica lenses with similar specifications, but if in good condition they're capable of making very satisfactory images. In your place I would try them on the M9 to find out whether I liked the results.

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Magnum Image

Magnum Image

Posted
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I've had major issues with a Canon 50 1.2 on my Leica. The problem suggests the lens needs to be closer to the focal plane which is not good since there are no shims to remove.

 

So yeah the first person to answer may be correct although it doesn't seem to be universal as many people use them with satisfaction.

 

Since it seems like you do not have to buy them to try them out there is no harm in slapping one on and find out for yourself.

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luigi bertolotti

luigi bertolotti

Posted
Posted

In the forum, you can find many shots taken with M9/M8 and Canon lenses... many people do appreciate them, and (expecially in USA) they are rather easy to find: if you search, I think is probable you can find some pic taken with the 50 1,8. Btw, I think that when Nikkor made some of its RF lenses with 39x1 mount, they intended to target also the then big market of Leica users.

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doubice

doubice

Posted
Posted

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Hello, my uncle has a 50 f1,8 & 85 f2 Canon rf Lens, I could use them with satisfaction on my M9?? (with adaptor of course...)

What do you think of these lenses??

 

ciao

 

Giacomo

 

Giacomo,

 

The 50mm f:1.8 lens came in many variations and was available from early 1950' till the end of Canon's rangefinder era - early 1970's. It is an excellent lens, particularly its latest black/satin chrome version. Image quality wise, it surpasses its contemporary Summitar 50mm f:2 but late Summicron would be a winner.

 

The 85mm f:2 lens is a Sonnar derivative and is not bad - the only lens that Leitz had to compete with it was a much bigger and heavier Summicron 90mm f:2. The Summicron of the same vinatge was a better lens (sharpness, contrast etc.) The Canon 85mm f:2 was replaced by a more compact and lighter 85mm f:1.8 lens - this is a superb optic, comparable to the best Leica had. Unfortuntely, difficult to find, just like an equally excellent Canon 100mm f:2.

 

the Canon screw mount rangefinder spacing / coupling is different. it can possibly be adjusted by competent service folks.

 

I am afraid this is completely incorrect. Canon rangefinder and Leica rangefinder thread lenses are fully compatible and their lens mounting flange to film plane distance is identical. I have used many Canon RF lenses on M film bodies, as well as on the M8 so - with all due respect, I am speaking from hands-on experience. The only time adjustment is necessary, is when the lens is out of adjustment, just as a Leica lens that is out of adjustment....

 

Nikon screw mount RF lenses are built for Leica.

 

... H

 

Again incorect - Nikon lenses in Leica Thread Mount were compatible with both - Canon and Leica rangefinder bodies. Maybe your confusion comes from the Nikon RF and Contax RF mounts - though physically compatible, their rangefinder and camera cam geometry were different. Nikon used to make lenses specifically for Contax and marked them with a 'C'.

 

Best,

 

Jan (who actually used all these oldies)

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Aviator

Aviator

Posted
Posted

MyCanon 50 1,2 works perfect with my M8,

sorry i don´t own a M9.

 

Problems with the focal plane often are problems with imperfect Leica M <-> M39 adaptors.

 

 

By the way, there is one Canon rangefinder lens which does not work on Leica M (with M39 adaptor):

it is the 50mm 0,95 lens. This lens has a special flange for mounting on the canon 7 body.

 

 

Canon 50 1,2 @ f 1,4

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doubice

doubice

Posted
Posted
MyCanon 50 1,2 works perfect with my M8,

sorry i don´t own a M9.

 

1) Problems with the focal plane often are problems with imperfect Leica M <-> M39 adaptors.

 

2) By the way, there is one Canon rangefinder lens which does not work on Leica M (with M39 adaptor): it is the 50mm 0,95 lens. This lens has a special flange for mounting on the canon 7 body.

 

1) That is why I only use original Leica adapters when adapting thread lenses to M bodies. It simply eliminates one possible variable from the set-up.

 

2) The Canon 50mm f:0.95 lens unless modified, will fit no other camera except Canon 7 and 7S - both have a matching external bayonet mount.

 

Great shot BTW....

 

Cheers,

 

Jan

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haroldp

haroldp

Posted
Posted
This is the first time I've seen this suggestion. I've never had a problem using a Canon lens on a Leica body or (screw mount) Leica lens on a Canon body, and nor have many other people here. (Note however that the very earliest Canon cameras and lenses seem to have had a slightly different screw thread.

 

I thought they were originally built for Canon's "Leica copies" in the 1930s.

 

I can only speak to the samples I have and use.

 

My canon lenses (85 / 1.8, 135/3.5 are slightly off in focus, they do mount properly with 'M' adapter.

 

My Nikon lenses (85 / 2, 50 /1.4, 35 /2.5 ) mount and focus perfectly.

 

I used these ( mostly Nikon ) extensively on M2 and M6. The 35 /2.5 is one of my sharpest lenses, but it lacks modern coatings and contrast can suffer. The 85 / 2 is very good, the 50 / 1.4 was good for it's day but is not even close to modern lux's and cron's at wide apertures, or even the Nikon 50 / 1.4 D.

 

My Canon's for leica are not in the same league as any of these, but others may have better samples.

 

My best info (which could be wrong) is that this series of nikon screw mount lenses were made for leica's which were being damaged wholesale in Korean War news coverage. Nikon never had a screw mount camera.

 

Regards ... H

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Ecar

Ecar

Posted
Posted
Maybe your confusion comes from the Nikon RF and Contax RF mounts - though physically compatible, their rangefinder and camera cam geometry were different. Nikon used to make lenses specifically for Contax and marked them with a 'C'.

And even these Nikon RF mount lenses can be used on any M camera with the proper adapter.

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haroldp

haroldp

Posted
Posted
If there was a difference between the Leica and Canon mounts, your Canon lenses would focus perfectly on a Canon body, while the Nikkor ones would not.

 

I never had any Canon RF bodies, only Leica's, with Canon and Nikon Lenses.

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sdk

sdk

Posted
Posted

I have used my early Canon 50mm/1.8 LTM lens on my Leica M9P and it seems to work very well. It has no focus issues, though it doesn’t focus as close as some 50mm M mount lenses (1 meter is the Canon’s closest focus). It’s a very nice 50mm, though I’m not a big fan of the focal length.

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iphoenix

iphoenix

Posted
Posted

The early Canon screw mount cameras had a slightly different mount to that of Leica. The Nikkors made for those cameras, whilst they may attach with difficulty to a Leica, are not compatible. With the Canon S-II (around 1947) the mount changed to LTM and there were a very limited number (meaning extremely rare) of Nikkor 3.5/50 lenses produced for that model. After that Canon went to its' own brands. In Leica thread mount, there were some other camera brands and models that used Nikkor lenses in compatible mounts, eg: Tower 3 and Nicca, in various models. Any Nikkor LTM compatible lenses are likely to have come from production for these cameras and be fully usable with a Barnack or a genuine "M" adaptor.

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