Whateverist
Well-known
I know that LTM lenses can be mounted on M bodies with an adapter. Is the same possible in the other direction? What about lenses for other mirrorless systems? Are there x-to-ltm adapters, and are they worth the bother?
Lens adapters: what's possible?
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JHutchins
Well-known
The answer to your question is no.
The other answer is "the register". The register is the distance between the outside face of the mounting flange and the sensor or pressure plate. It is how far the lens has to be from the film or sensor to work (and by "work" I mean "focus to infinity"). Different cameras have different registers. If one camera has a smaller register than another then an adaptor can be made to a thickness that is the difference between the registers and you can adapt the lenses from the large registered camera to the small registered one. But you can't really go backward because by definition the smaller registered camera has a smaller register. The lens would have to sit inside the body of the camera.
There are exceptions to that. Sometimes you can have the lens sit inside the body of the camera. For example, C mount movie cameras have quite small registers but the lenses are also quite small and will often fit inside the mount of another camera so you can have a sort of negative adapter to fit C mount lenses onto full frame or even 1.5 crop cameras. You also can mount a lens from a small register camera on a larger register camera if you're willing to accept that you may not be able to focus to infinity.
The other answer is "the register". The register is the distance between the outside face of the mounting flange and the sensor or pressure plate. It is how far the lens has to be from the film or sensor to work (and by "work" I mean "focus to infinity"). Different cameras have different registers. If one camera has a smaller register than another then an adaptor can be made to a thickness that is the difference between the registers and you can adapt the lenses from the large registered camera to the small registered one. But you can't really go backward because by definition the smaller registered camera has a smaller register. The lens would have to sit inside the body of the camera.
There are exceptions to that. Sometimes you can have the lens sit inside the body of the camera. For example, C mount movie cameras have quite small registers but the lenses are also quite small and will often fit inside the mount of another camera so you can have a sort of negative adapter to fit C mount lenses onto full frame or even 1.5 crop cameras. You also can mount a lens from a small register camera on a larger register camera if you're willing to accept that you may not be able to focus to infinity.
Whateverist
Well-known
Thanks, I guess that settles that question 🙂
Rob-F
Likes Leicas
Leica deliberately made the M cameras one millimeter thinner than the LTMs, so that a 1mm thick adapter would put the LTM lenses in proper register on an M body. Unfortunately, you can't put an M lens on an LTM body, for the reason JHutchins pointed out.
The good news is that you can use Leica R glass on Nikon SLR bodies, at least in some cases. I use several Leica R lenses on my D700. I had to remove the bayonet rings and replace them with ones made for the Leica-to-Nikon conversion. You lose auto diaphragm action this way. My 90mm Elmarit, 135mm Elmarit, and 180mm APO-Telyt are all in Nikon mount. My 35mm Summicron-R would not focus to infinity with the bayonet conversion, so I had to sell it. And there is even a Hasselblad lens to Nikon F adapter! No auto-diaphragm action there either.
The good news is that you can use Leica R glass on Nikon SLR bodies, at least in some cases. I use several Leica R lenses on my D700. I had to remove the bayonet rings and replace them with ones made for the Leica-to-Nikon conversion. You lose auto diaphragm action this way. My 90mm Elmarit, 135mm Elmarit, and 180mm APO-Telyt are all in Nikon mount. My 35mm Summicron-R would not focus to infinity with the bayonet conversion, so I had to sell it. And there is even a Hasselblad lens to Nikon F adapter! No auto-diaphragm action there either.
KyleCharles
Vagabond
Nikon rangefinder and Contax rangefinder lenses can also be used on LTM and M mount cameras with the appropriate adapters from Amedeo. He is an RFF sponsor and does good work.
http://www.amedeo.muscelli.net/
http://www.amedeo.muscelli.net/
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