M Lens to Nikon Z mount adapter

[Basiltahan]

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For those interested in Samples from the WATE on the Z7, the first nine photos on my Flickr gallery are from today.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/57454195@N08/

 

[rob_w]

On 12/4/2018 at 12:58 AM, Basiltahan said:

My Travel Kit is now: Z7, with two or three of the following: WATE, 35 1.4 ZM, Apo 50 Summicron, 85 f4 ZM, 135,f4 Tele-Elmar

Is this because the equivalent Z lenses are not of sufficient quality?  I understand the 24-70 kit zoom is well regarded although I have not tried it myself.

More generally, why would you choose to mount M lenses in focal lengths already offered for the Z (viz. the standard zoom, 35 1.8 and 50 1.8)?  All of them are pretty light and compact.  Perhaps I missed something earlier in the conversation.

 

Edited January 8, 2019 by rob_w

[Photon42]

13 hours ago, rob_w said:

Is this because the equivalent Z lenses are not of sufficient quality?  I understand the 24-70 kit zoom is well regarded although I have not tried it myself.

More generally, why would you choose to mount M lenses in focal lengths already offered for the Z (viz. the standard zoom, 35 1.8 and 50 1.8)?  All of them are pretty light and compact.  Perhaps I missed something earlier in the conversation.

 

The Z-Lenses are fine - I used the 24-70 and the 35. No complains. I do specifically like the 35, and the Z but also the compactness of the 24-70 is great - squarely of the same size as my Olympus EM1.1 with respective 12-40 f2.8 Zoom.

The ability to mount M lenses just gives me more options, including taking the Z along with a film rangefinder and share some lenses. The Z is more like a 🇨🇭Swiss Army Knife, the M more like a specialist tool. It is maybe similar to using M lenses on an SL (haven't done that). Also - don't forget the M lenses are usually small - albeit heavyish compared to their size. And they do have their own look. An M 35 versus a Z 35 size wise is quite a difference.

 

[rob_w]

Got it, thanks.  I wasn't sure if you did use Z lenses as well or if your choice of M lenses was for better image quality.  Sounds like other factors -- which I can relate to -- but I wouldn't want to consider the Z system if the new lenses were not as good as reported elsewhere.  I tend to trust M shooters for their feedback on lens quality, rather than the usual reviewers, because they have more critical expectations of their lenses.

Edited January 9, 2019 by rob_w

[Photon42]

1 hour ago, rob_w said:

Got it, thanks.  I wasn't sure if you did use Z lenses as well or if your choice of M lenses was for better image quality.  Sounds like other factors -- which I can relate to -- but I wouldn't want to consider the Z system if the new lenses were not as good as reported elsewhere.  I tend to trust M shooters for their feedback on lens quality, rather than the usual reviewers, because they have more critical expectations of their lenses.

Shouldn't become a Z only thread, but this may also interest you:

f4/14-30

Z Firmware update

[Basiltahan]

On 1/9/2019 at 1:03 AM, rob_w said:

Is this because the equivalent Z lenses are not of sufficient quality?  I understand the 24-70 kit zoom is well regarded although I have not tried it myself.

More generally, why would you choose to mount M lenses in focal lengths already offered for the Z (viz. the standard zoom, 35 1.8 and 50 1.8)?  All of them are pretty light and compact.  Perhaps I missed something earlier in the conversation.

 

All three of the Z lenses produce excellent results on the Z7. But they are far from the quality of Leica lenses. 

WATE, Zeiss 35 1.4 and 50 Apo Cron are world class, will work well 50 years from now and don’t drop much in value (bought mint secondhand). They are also much smaller though not much lighter.

The 24-70S f4 has loads of distortion but is corrected in camera even baked in to RAW files.

Lens profiles in Lightroom are magic for correcting the small amounts of distortion and vignetting of the M lenses on the Z7. There are even individual profiles for the each of focal lengths of the WATE! 

 

Edited January 27, 2019 by Basiltahan

[Photon42]

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15 minutes ago, Basiltahan said:

... and don’t drop much in value (bought mint secondhand).

Well. I recently saw an example of a cron 50 AA sold here in CH locally, where for the value drop alone you could have purchased all there Z lenses. I guess "not much" is relative. I am not planning to use the Z as primary platform for Leica lenses, but it can be very useful at times. Did I hear flash ...?

[willeica]

Z7 + 75mm Summarit at about f 2.8 with Novoflex adapter and focus on the reptile's eye.

Welcome, dear visitor! As registered member you'd see an image here…

Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members!

William

 

[mmradman]

1 hour ago, willeica said:

Z7 + 75mm Summarit at about f 2.8 with Novoflex adapter and focus on the reptile's eye.

Welcome, dear visitor! As registered member you'd see an image here…

Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members!

William

 

That lizard is alive on my screen.

As discussed in the past in relation to resolution excellent lens combined with excellent sensor produces excellent picture.

[mmradman]

2 hours ago, Basiltahan said:

All three of the Z lenses produce excellent results on the Z7. But they are far from the quality of Leica lenses. 

WATE, Zeiss 35 1.4 and 50 Apo Cron are world class, will work well 50 years from now and don’t drop much in value (bought mint secondhand). They are also much smaller though not much lighter.

The 24-70S f4 has loads of distortion but is corrected in camera even baked in to RAW files.

Lens profiles in Lightroom are magic for correcting the small amounts of distortion and vignetting of the M lenses on the Z7. There are even individual profiles for the each of focal lengths of the WATE! 

 

You are right M lenses made by Leica and also Zeiss are all world class, real bonus if some work well on Nikon Z Cameras.  Nikon optics is not much behind at far more affordable prices, some third party optics like Zeiss ZF/Milvus is also excellent. 

With respect to baked correction profile probably similar thing is happening with Leica SL, no one is going to use these lenses on some third party camera.

We tend to forget amount of cash gets sunk in premium optics.  Only thing hat keeps me on the fence with respect to Nikon is introduction of XQD memory cards for which i would have to upgrade computer as i run out of ports to plug in either camera or card reader 😉 

• Leica Summilux 35mm FLE - round £4000
• Leica WATE - round £4800
• APO Summicron 50mm - over £6000
• Zeiss M 35mm f1.4 - round £1550
• Nikon Z 35mm f1.8 - round £850
• Nikon Z 50mm f1.8 - round 600
• Nikon Z 24-70mm f4 - round £1000

 

[willeica]

1 hour ago, mmradman said:

That lizard is alive on my screen.

As discussed in the past in relation to resolution excellent lens combined with excellent sensor produces excellent picture.

Thanks. You forgot to add in the photographer! The technique is to set one of the function buttons to magnify rather than to rely on focus peaking which can be hit or miss - with all camera makes, including Leica, I might add. I got the Z7 to replace a much larger D800e (which I rarely use) as I have a lot of excellent older Nikkor D lenses such as the 85mm f1.4, 105 f2 DC and the 60mm f2.8 Micro Nikkor which can be used with manual focus on the FZ adapter. These are better lenses than the kit zoom that came with the Z7, but the Leica M lenses are on a higher level again compared to any of the Nikkor lenses. The Novoflex 'dumb' adapter is beautifully made and works well with all M lenses that I have used with it so far, including the WATE. One can only wish that Leica would produce a camera with similar specs and size to the Z7, but that seems to be unlikely at this stage. The Z7 generally gives the same quality as my M10, but you can maintain the quality more when cropping with the larger sized images from the Z7. On the other hand, the larger sized images slow things up when processing in Lightroom. You can't have everything, I suppose.

William

[mmradman]

1 hour ago, willeica said:

Thanks. You forgot to add in the photographer! The technique is to set one of the function buttons to magnify rather than to rely on focus peaking which can be hit or miss - with all camera makes, including Leica, I might add. I got the Z7 to replace a much larger D800e (which I rarely use) as I have a lot of excellent older Nikkor D lenses such as the 85mm f1.4, 105 f2 DC and the 60mm f2.8 Micro Nikkor which can be used with manual focus on the FZ adapter. These are better lenses than the kit zoom that came with the Z7, but the Leica M lenses are on a higher level again compared to any of the Nikkor lenses. The Novoflex 'dumb' adapter is beautifully made and works well with all M lenses that I have used with it so far, including the WATE. One can only wish that Leica would produce a camera with similar specs and size to the Z7, but that seems to be unlikely at this stage. The Z7 generally gives the same quality as my M10, but you can maintain the quality more when cropping with the larger sized images from the Z7. On the other hand, the larger sized images slow things up when processing in Lightroom. You can't have everything, I suppose.

William

Photographer goes without saying, no camera & lens of any brand work on their own.

i use couple of Zeiss ZF plus some old Nikkor AiS lenses on SL together with  M and R, sold Nikkor AF zooms and primes long time ago. Looking at cutting edge spec and compact size especially some recent long Fresnel lenses Nikon is intriguing me lately.

[jaeger]

On 1/27/2019 at 9:54 AM, willeica said:

Thanks. You forgot to add in the photographer! The technique is to set one of the function buttons to magnify rather than to rely on focus peaking which can be hit or miss - with all camera makes, including Leica, I might add. I got the Z7 to replace a much larger D800e (which I rarely use) as I have a lot of excellent older Nikkor D lenses such as the 85mm f1.4, 105 f2 DC and the 60mm f2.8 Micro Nikkor which can be used with manual focus on the FZ adapter. These are better lenses than the kit zoom that came with the Z7, but the Leica M lenses are on a higher level again compared to any of the Nikkor lenses. The Novoflex 'dumb' adapter is beautifully made and works well with all M lenses that I have used with it so far, including the WATE. One can only wish that Leica would produce a camera with similar specs and size to the Z7, but that seems to be unlikely at this stage. The Z7 generally gives the same quality as my M10, but you can maintain the quality more when cropping with the larger sized images from the Z7. On the other hand, the larger sized images slow things up when processing in Lightroom. You can't have everything, I suppose.

William

how easy/difficult chasing a moving kid or animal using manual focus on Z?  I guess using peaking instead of magnifying in this situation... 

[willeica]

7 hours ago, jaeger said:

how easy/difficult chasing a moving kid or animal using manual focus on Z?  I guess using peaking instead of magnifying in this situation... 

The lizard shown above is, of course, not moving. For moving animals and birds I would use autofocus, mainly with older Nikon F G AFS lenses at this stage as the Z range is currently limited. My two daughters and, indeed, my only grandchild are all grown up, so I have not taken any photos of moving children. Focus with the Leica lenses using magnification is fine for static subjects. For more fast moving subjects I would use stop down and focus peaking (which is still a work in progress in my view), but my M10 would give faster and more accurate focussing in such circumstances with Leica M lenses. I can, of course use Nikon Z and F lenses (G AFS) with autofocus. Older Nikon D AF (no S) lenses will only give manual focus. 

In summary, it is a case of choosing the right tools for the job. Although I have used M lenses successfully with the Z7 I would not have bought the camera just to use it with Leica M lenses. I hope that makes sense. I like using small and light cameras and in my circumstances , with a range of Nikon lenses available to me, the Nikon Z7 is infinitely preferable and a more logical choice than either the Leica SL or the new Lumix S cameras.

William

[Photon42]

7 hours ago, willeica said:

. 

In summary, it is a case of choosing the right tools for the job. Although I have used M lenses successfully with the Z7 I would not have bought the camera just to use it with Leica M lenses. I hope that makes sense. I like using small and light cameras and in my circumstances , with a range of Nikon lenses available to me, the Nikon Z7 is infinitely preferable and a more logical choice than either the Leica SL or the new Lumix S cameras.

William

Same here, William. Did not buy the Z7 for M use mainly. Actually, when I ordered it, there was no information available whether it would work decently enough. It is just the Swiss Army Knife for my setup and made more sense than going down the L-Mount route for me.

[jaeger]

On 2/2/2019 at 1:30 AM, willeica said:

I would not have bought the camera just to use it with Leica M lenses.

William

Me neither but M system is very incapable.  I think it is good for retirement folks but for professional use, It has tons quality, customer service, techical & technician issues, I need to move away but currently stuck with few M glasses.   

[Photon42]

Mr Hunter 😉

how did you like the 24 Summilux on the Z? And - do you use or did you use the M professionally?

Ivo

[jaeger]

7 hours ago, Photon42 said:

Mr Hunter 😉

how did you like the 24 Summilux on the Z? And - do you use or did you use the M professionally?

Ivo

Mr. Photon42

I am using the M for model shoot and in the process of buying a Z 

There are articles on the internet about using UW M lenses on Z with good results.  By far the best mirrorless camera pairing with largest selection of M lenses too.

[Photon42]

You will like the Z with M lenses. And if it is for its flash capabilities and EVF only.

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Hallo,

Look here: Leica M

[jaeger]

13 hours ago, Photon42 said:

it is for its flash capabilities and EVF only.

you've hit the right spot - correct.  + better ISO performance in the dark.

Edited February 6, 2019 by jaeger