interested in buying XE - 1 to shoot with contax G lenses

[panos]

Dear All,

i am a rangefinder lover as we all are and a previous owner of the leica M8 which i loved .

Unfortunately financial difficulties forced me to sold it some years ago for a Canon 5D Mark II ( easier for the majority of my professional work )

I couldn't live without a rangefinder and i went and bought the contax G1 with the 28 and the 45 mm lenses and i am still using it but film is a slower process and i am really looking forward to get a digital as well.

I am flirting with the XE-1 with the 18mm lens and i ve read that i can use my contax G lenses with metabones adaptors .

So here comes the question:

Is anyone using this combo and how does it work with the EVF and in terms of IQ will i get the same results (in terms of sharpness, as the ones i get with film , given that i will be using the same lenses )?

Your thoughts will be really appreciated ....

Thanks you so much for your time and sorry for the big intro.

X
p🙂

 

[sjgslack]

Hi There,

I use Contax G lenses on a NEX-6..... You may find that using something with focus peaking would be easier. Also the refresh rate on the EVF of the XE-1 is slower...

As far as adapters go, here is some info I wish I had known before: You will find that the focusing feels very 'crunchy' and not very smooth at all. My 90 was almost unusable... I assumed this was the adapter, but it would seem that they are all like that... after a few months of use the focusing does become smooth. Not perfect, but much better.

Now my lenses have all improved... it just takes quite a lot of time and effort to loosen them up. Don't be tempted to buy a different adapter to improve things - it's the lenses!

My recommendation would be that you need focus peaking though. The XE-1 may be the best looking camera for the job, but I don't think it's the most practical.

Silas

 

[sjgslack]

Is anyone using this combo and how does it work with the EVF and in terms of IQ will i get the same results (in terms of sharpness, as the ones i get with film , given that i will be using the same lenses )?

Oh, and yes - the IQ is still fantastic 🙂
This is taken with the 28mm f2.8 Biogon:

 

[panos]

Thanks sjgslack...

it looks super sharp ( the branches ) nice one

thanks again

 

[porktaco]

i love the g lenses on an xe-1.

couple things.

one, which i'm sure you already know, is that they turn the wrong way, and their use with an adapter might be counter-intuitive. second, the metabones adapter, which i use and like, is heavy. it has build quality but it also has the weight of a lot of metal. third, i had, briefly, an nex-7 and for a number of reasons returned it. i didn't like the focus peaking, and i much prefer the thumbwheel-press-to-zoom in the xe-1. ymmv.

i like the fuji lenses a lot too. i am an intentional manual focus snob, but the camera is built for AF. focus errors suck.

 

[serrada36]

I have been experimenting with G lenses on my xp1 and to be honest, I'm not that happy with the setup. Maybe it's because I'm using a cheap adapter. I have had great results with Leica glass (R and M) though. OTOH, I am very happy with G lenses on my NEX7. I am really looking forward to the MX Camera adapter for G glass and the NEX that allows auto focus.

 

[rhl-oregon]

If you appreciate well-machined smoothness and don't mind the extra grams of weight, I very much like the Metabones/XE1 combo, which gives me a 135 2.8 Sonnar, a 75 2.0 Planar, and a 42 2.8 Biogon.

I do rely on the Fujinon 35 1.4, but it's easy to pack while mounting one or the other of these for some very intentional long-tele manual shooting. If I'm shooting the Biogon as a 42, I'd pack the Fujinon 18 2.0 instead.

 

[fer_fdi]

So, are you happy with the 28 Biogon performance on the Fuji?
Does it retain all of it's snap and magic?

Anyone using the 35/2 on the Fujis? Happy?

Anyone using a G adapter other than the Metabones? The Metabones is 140 grams, almost as heavy as the G lenses...

If you appreciate well-machined smoothness and don't mind the extra grams of weight, I very much like the Metabones/XE1 combo, which gives me a 135 2.8 Sonnar, a 75 2.0 Planar, and a 42 2.8 Biogon.

I do rely on the Fujinon 35 1.4, but it's easy to pack while mounting one or the other of these for some very intentional long-tele manual shooting. If I'm shooting the Biogon as a 42, I'd pack the Fujinon 18 2.0 instead.

 

[rbelyell]

oher can answer your question better than i as i dont have an xe1. but, i have shot extensively with adapted G lenses on my gxr. ultimately, while IQ was excellent, i sold them because i missed the DOF scale on the lenses, and i did not like the very very short focus throw. just a couple things to add to the equation.

 

[fer_fdi]

good info, thanks