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Contax lenses to Canon EF + Speed Booster
  • spencerbspencerb

    I have a Panasonic GH3 and am investing in some old Zeiss Contax Yashica glass. I intend to use the Metabones Speed Booster with them but also want to keep my options open in the future.

    • Safe Option 1: Buy Metabones Speed Booster in Contax/Yashica -> Micro Four Thirds mount. Connect C/Y Zeiss glass. Profit.

    • Theoretical Option 2: Buy Metabones Speed Booster in Canon EF -> Micro Four Thirds Mount. Adapt Zeiss C/Y glass to Canon EF mount. This allows me to share lenses with Canon bodies if necessary and also mount standard Canon EF glass to the Speed Booster as well. With the limited range of wide angle Zeiss C/Y glass available this also could make things easier. It saves me buying multiple $400 Speed Boosters.

    Question is: Is there any reason NOT to do option 2? I know it will allow a greater chance of error in the adaptors, but will the C/Y -> Canon EF even mount to a Canon EF -> MFT Speed Booster? Is this entire idea completely stupid or have I stumbled on accidental brilliance?

    THANKS!

  • 4 Replies sorted by
  • bleach551bleach551

    IMHO,

    The Canon EF to MFT mount would be a better investment. I owned a canon 7D(EF Mount), and with adapters, I could use Canon, Nikon, Olympus(FF manual lenses), M42, and Zeiss Contax/Yashica lenses with the EF mount.

  • RRRRRRRR

    Don't count on a product that does not exist (imho). There are no guarantees there will be a m43 - EF speedbooster. Another option is to go the Nikon route (which is a product that exists right now). That said, it's unclear wether you will get flange distance issues with two adapters.. Though, the speedboosters are adjustable so that should be possible to correct.

    The main reason NOT to adapt twice IMO is that you will get more movement / play in-between camera and lens. Regardless of how good the adapters are.

    For me, it has been rare that c/y glass is not enough in the wide end and the widest I've got is a 28mm f2. Though, to add an 18mm f4 lens, which is not stellar by any means would set me back as much as a nikon speedbooster and that would make the great 18-35 sigma available, which is not too different to the zeiss glass anyway.

    Buy for your current and not potential use, is my advice. You will have equipment that fits your current needs more perfectly and less surplus gear in the closet. If a wide angle is a must, consider the additional expense of a nikon speedbooster. At roughly 1200 for both speedbooster and sigma wide angle zoom, you will cover both the wide end and the mild wide angles. Combined, the 18, 21, fast 28 and fast 35 c/y glass would set you back about 4000 usd. In that light, the 400 extra for the nikon speedbooster is not much.

  • spencerbspencerb

    Ahh, I didn't even think to check if a Canon EF to MFT Speed Booster existed yet. I saw so many other options that I somehow figured there HAD to be one.

    Bleach551: Your sentiment is exactly what I was hoping to hear, but compatibility with the glass element in the Speed Booster worries me.

    RRRR: You're right about the total cost. When you're buying things in stages it's often hard to put individual costs in perspective.

    As for wide angle, I already have the Panasonic 12-35 2.8, which covers many of those needs, and could easily find some Voigtlander options in MFT mount to cover the gaps and have some faster alternatives.

  • bleach551bleach551

    @spencerb,

    I apologize, a Canon EF to MFT doesn't exist yet that I know of. I think all they offer now is the Canon FD to MFT speedbooster.

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