graybeard

I have several old M42 lenses (Pentax, Mamiya, Pentacon) that I want to use on my Canon T3. I bought some chipped adapters from Hong Kong and they work up to a point. Meaning they facilitate the physical mounting of lens to camera, allow AF Confirmation (whatever that is) and let you take pictures using the Manual mode. Now what I want is to turn this camera back to the stone age I come from, pre-digital and pre-automatic. Focusing manual, adjusting shutter speed and ISO are all easy. The problem lies with the aperture. What I would like to do, if possible, is to have the equivalent of a light meter, that is an indicator telling me I need to adjust the aperture ring up or down for the proper exposure. Ideally, I would also like it to show what F stop I am on as well as ISO and shutter speed. I can get the light meter when I have my lens turned on to M rather than A, but it shows a fixed 1.4 even if the lens is not an 1.4, and it never changes even if I move the aperture ring. I hope I am making sense. I do not have the EMF type chip, would that make any difference? So all you guys out there who think in digital, help me out !!!

blackest Loc: Ireland

Shoot in Aperture priority mode, i think you can dial an exposure so the number is right and the body should pick a shutter speed. If not set 1.4 and adjust the aperture the camera should set the shutter speed correctly it will just think its got a little darker than usual. It might be possible to dial in some exposure compensation some eos adapters are programmable I mostly shoot pentax in aperture priority and the camera meters the available light. no f-stop values thou.

Peterff Loc: O'er The Hills and Far Away, in Themyscira.

With chipped adapters you can program the chip to show the max aperture and focal length of a lens, but it is a tedious process and only worth doing if you dedicate an adapter to a specific lens. That info will show in the EXIF data.

To meter you generally need to use 'stopped down' metering, since there is no mechanism for the lens to communicate the actual aperture value to the camera automatically or when you move the aperture ring.

The focus confirmation (AF) is useful since it will show a red light in the view finder, maybe a beep when focus is detected, but only for apertures of f/5.6 or greater.

Hope that helps.

JPL

You can do nothing about this. There is no communication from the lens to the adapter so what ever aperture you set the lens to, the adapter will not know it and there fore the adapter can never tell the camera about it either. If it is important for you to know what aperture you are using you have to write it down. The same goes for the lens you are using, you will not be able to see the focal length or manufacturer, you will also have to write that down. Putting old manual lens on modern high tech dslr does not make the lens high tech but the lens is still as good as before. You just have to record the data you want in the same way as when you were using your manual lens on your film camera in the old days. That is all.

Regarding the light meter thing. That would be best solved by using your old glass on mirrorless camera. There you can see the histogram in the viewfinder. That works even faster and better than a light meter. But you could also use old lightmeter with your Canon or get a light meter app for your smartphone if you have such a thing. Mirrorless cameras have the possibility that you can set them to work in stone age mode if you choose to, but that is hardly possible with dslr cameras, they will be more like pre stone age when you try to use them in manual everyting mode and have to use the live view or tethering to take the shot.

CMan1

I just started shooting with my Canon D70 using manual mode. With the vintage lenses I use the meter on D70 to focus. Turning the aperture I can see the meter move. Two lenses I have tried so far. I just ordered four different adapters for other lenses. I feel best to tether with a tripod. In post software different versions of lenses not shown.
Getting ready to buy more cameras at flea this morning.
Just new senior guy learning to shoot.
CMan1

graybeard

I do not have a mirrorless camera or a smartphone, and have no plans to get one. I still haven't totally figured out my digital camera after 3 years, so I will not further tax my brain with a smartphone! You confirm the impression I had about the display of the F stop not changing in the viewfinder. I can see why. I can NOT dial in an aperture on my camera if I have a manual lens mounted, only when I have one of the automatic lenses will that work. Maybe the EMF chipped adapters will let me? I am wondering what the practical differences between EMF and non-emf might be. Thanks for your help.

graybeard

Sounds like you have had experience with EMF chips. How does the camera know focus has been achieved? Since I have intentionally taken out of focus pix to test that idea, I know it doesn't have the ability in the same way it would with auto-focus. BTW, when you program EMF, they ask for your Focus Micro Adjustment. How do you determine what that is? Thanks for your help.

CMan1

I also have no smartphone flip only hardly use it. I also would like to know about the EMF adapters. I'm learning my DSLR 2nd week rgh. Flea this morning a container of heavy old lenses and camera items for $15. Last week I had to get my wife to help me carry out the vintage cameras and lenses. I looked through the bags and passed at first. The vendor said do you want it all for $10
I gave him $10. I said it will be fun looking at the junk. He laughed and I'm a happy picker.
Like the old saying is another man's junk is another mans treasure.
Have A Great Day,
CMan1

blackest Loc: Ireland

It's the body which does the focusing the chip on the lens is just pretending to respond, otherwise the body thinks it has a faulty lens.

http://www.the-digital-picture.com/Photography-Tips/canon-eos-dslr-autofocus-explained.aspx

The lens doesn't have that much to do with focus at least deciding if the image is in focus the body is telling the lens which way to adjust the focus but really it's you operating the focus ring. So you just need to adjust till the body says you have focus.

Peterff Loc: O'er The Hills and Far Away, in Themyscira.

Blackest has already responded, but essentially the chip allows a manual focus lens to obtain focus confirmation in the same way that an autofocus lens in manual mode does. I'm using a T3i, so not too far removed from your T3. I have modified old Canon lenses - FL 55mm f/1.2 and FDn 135mm f/2.0 for example, use adapters with Russian Helios 44 58mm f/1.2 - a micro Nikkor 55mm f/2.8 and others with glass less adapters. I do use dedicated adapters for each lens, so can program the chip to show focal length and max aperture, although it is a bit of a pain. I have not yet met the need to try the fine tuning for focus of the EMF chips. With wide lenses the issue is less the focus than the narrow DOF.

You may wish to explore Magic Lantern: http://www.magiclantern.fm/ I use it on two cameras and find it very useful and stable.

speters Loc: Grangeville/Idaho

Your old M42 lenses most likely feature an aperture ring! You use that to set it, that's all there's to it. Whatever aperture you set on that lens, that's exactly how much light the lens will allow to reach the sensor!

graybeard

It is absolutely unacceptable for me to use my old lenses on a mirrorless camera (which I don't have). I am using them on my DSLR and have learned a few things. There are basically 3 types of M42-EOS adapters. One is the unchipped one, which facilitates nothing more than the physical mounting of lens to camera. I have none and see no purpose to getting any. The second variety is the chipped (but non-programmable) one, usually billed as "AF confirm" or something of the sort. They are set at F1.4 and 50mm, which is what one of my lenses is. So with that lens, I set camera to M, lens aperture ring (remember those!) to 1.4, ISO to 100, and I then half press the shutter, get a light meter in my viewer, and adjust shutter speed up/down until meter is centered. Or I can set to AV and it will also show me the meter. BTW on any of these, if shutter speed is too low to be freeze, I increase the ISO. It works fine. The third kind of adapter is the programmable type. Thru a tedious and pedantic routine you can match the ring to the lens, and dedicate that ring to that lens. I have done that with my F1.8 50mm. This allows you do either use the approach I have outlined above, or, you can vary the F stop setting on the camera as well, giving you a little more variety. Cost of them is negligable, 8 to 12 bucks with free shipping from China, guaranteed to get on the next slow boat and to be in your hands by this, or at latest, next Christmas. Anyway, I am happy with it, it lets you use old lenses and save bucks. Of course to some, who want everything to be automatic, this is way too arcane and primitive. Besides my 2 fast lenses I have 2 others using the adapters, the telephoto Samyang 100-500 and the Hanimex 750. The Samyang has a Olympic mount and thus OLY-EOS adapter, but works the same.