[gsrokmix]

Hi,

I do a lot of product shots and want to see how a tilt / shift lens may help my work. I have done quite a bit of research but it seems that there are not many Pentax folks doing a lot of T/S maybe because of the lack of good affordable lenses. I have decided to go the way of using medium format lenses and maybe the Mirex adapter, which I have read great things about.

My question is which "system" of MF lenses would be the best for my purposes? I am looking for a decent range of focal lengths available, but my number one criteria is sharpness. I currently am using the Tamron 90mm & Sigma 180mm macros & they are both incredibly sharp. I have been looking at the 645 "A" lenses and the range of focal lengths seems to fit my needs, and there are a fair number of these available at reasonable prices. Having no experience with any MF systems do you think these lenses are sharp with good IQ? Would I be better served looking at either the Mamiya 645 or maybe the Pentax 67 lenses? I know there at least a couple of people that are having great results with the Zeiss 35mm or 50mm lenses as well.

Since I obviously can't "try before I buy" and the Mirex adapter is expensive and comes from across the ocean, I was hoping to get some advice based on the experiences of others before I made my decision of which lens system to go with.

Any thoughts or advice would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks!

George

[yurko_yr]

Hi George,
Samyang will introduce Pentax K-mound 24/3.5 TS lens. It was announced at Photokina and sales will start in December-January. This might be one of the options for you. However might be a bit too short for your needs.
Yuriy

[gsrokmix]

Yuriy,

Thanks for the reply. I was looking at the Samyang & yes it may be a little short for my needs, and it would only be one FL. I like the idea of using the adapter w/ multiple lenses for more options.

Thanks,

George

[lytrytyr]

What is your budget?
Schneider-Kreuznach have T-S lenses at 50mm and 90mm in T-mount,
so adaptable to K-mount, but the price range is $3K.

[Adam]

Schneider-Kreuznach have T-S lenses at 50mm and 90mm in T-mount,

They also have dedicated K-mount versions of those lenses, because no changes are necessary to the optics. If you're going to be buying a couple of 3K lenses, though, I would go with a full-frame like the D800 to get the best resolution...

Here are the lenses:
Schneider-Kreuznach Lenses for Pentax: Prime Lenses - Pentax Lens Review Database

[panoguy]

Thanks for the reply. I was looking at the Samyang & yes it may be a little short for my needs, and it would only be one FL. I like the idea of using the adapter w/ multiple lenses for more options.

George, you can look at what we've been doing over here in this thread. Most of it is homebrew, but I know at least myself and a few others have used tilt adapters for MedFormat lenses.

That said, I went the cheapest way with Pentacon-six mount adapters and lenses, and found that among the various "wider" lenses I tried (mostly Russian), only the Zeiss 50mm/4 was sharp enough to justify the size and weight. The Sonnar 180mm might be a good candidate for product shots, but I haven't tried it.

The Pentax 645 line is pretty impressive, but they aren't going for the fire-sale prices anymore, like Mamiyas, mainly due to the 645D. Further, I'd think the Pentax 6x7 lens image circle would be overkill unless the adapter manages extreme tilt and/or shift.

[gsrokmix]

lytrytyr & Adam,

Yeah those 3K lenses are outside of my budget. I was hoping to stay under $800 or so for the first setup.

panoguy,

I know that there seem to be a lot more choices of lenses going the Pentacon-six route as opposed to either Pentax or Mamiya. Do you have any feeling as to the sharpness of the Zeiss lenses compared to the Pentax 645's? I can get into a 645 A 75 2.8 and an adapter for about $500. I think there is a 150mm Pentax 645 that I've read good things about as well.

Thanks again,

George

[panoguy]

I know that there seem to be a lot more choices of lenses going the Pentacon-six route as opposed to either Pentax or Mamiya. Do you have any feeling as to the sharpness of the Zeiss lenses compared to the Pentax 645's?

None at all. I haven't used or even touched a 645 lens, however the ratings around here can be a guide, since some are used on digital bodies.

Practical comparisons are another thing, since I found many of the Russian and East German normal and wide lenses (45mm, 80mm, 110mm) to be soft on digital, whether tilted or not (naturally tilt means you're using the edges of the image circle, and wider lenses tend to do worse at the edges), so it completely depends on the lens.

I think the 645 75mm and adapter sounds like a good deal, since a P6 setup wouldn't cost you much less, and in the long run you can find more Pentax lenses via KEH and other reputable sellers, even here! (Pentacon-six gear tends to be sold via eBay from Ukraine, with little to no indication of the condition or quality of the lens.)

[lytrytyr]

They also have dedicated K-mount versions of those lenses.

The pictures of these lenses show a black body and a chrome mount section.
On the B&H website, the 28mm (shift only) is listed as requiring an extra T-mount adapter,
while the 50mm and 90mm T-S are sold with the K-mount.
Is it a solid mount, or is it just a T-mount adapter bundled with the lens?

Here are the lenses:
Schneider-Kreuznach Lenses for Pentax: Prime Lenses - Pentax Lens Review Database

That list includes the badge-engineered FA 35/2 and D FA 100/2.8, but no reviews.
On the other hand, the FA 35/2 review pages include a Samsung/Sch.-Kr. review (5/23/2010),
and the D FA 100/2.8 pages include a couple (1/27/2010, 2/25/2009).

[lytrytyr]

I was hoping to stay under $800 or so for the first setup.

Have you looked at Bronica lenses?
They're really cheap on KEH,
like $99 for an EX 50/2.8 or 105/3.5,
or $62 for an EX 75/2.8.

[gsrokmix]

No I haven't looked at the Bronica lenses. I will give those a look. Do you know anything about their sharpness or their IQ? I was mainly looking at Pentax 645 & 67, Mamiya 645, and Pentacon-six. Mirex makes tilt & shift adapters for these formats to either M42 or K mount on the body end. I think the Mirex is the only adapter I've seen to both tilt & shift. I know at least one member on the forum here uses a tilt adapter in front of a shift adapter and says that it works fine.

Thanks,

George

[lytrytyr]

No I haven't looked at the Bronica lenses. I will give those a look. Do you know anything about their sharpness or their IQ?

"The lenses are lovely, certainly." -- quote from Ratmagiclady in:

https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/non-pentax-cameras-canon-nikon-etc/85253-...tml#post865424

I don't have personal experience with them,
since I did my MF film work on an eminently portable Super-Ikonta.

BTW, that would be another really cheap option,
get an old folder and MacGyver it onto your DSLR.

[hoanpham]

Hi George,

The cheapest Tilt and Shift option on crop sensor may be a sony nex with a tilt adapter:

Sony Nex5: 200usd
Tilt adapter in K mount or nikon F mount or zuiko OM mount or C/Y mount, approx 100 usd each.
Shift lenses: Pentax K 28/3.5, nikkor PC 28/3.5, zuiko 24 or 35, PC distagon 35/2.8.
Tilt is very useful in every focal length, while shift is useful for wide focals.
Bellow/macro: Use minolta shift/tilt bellows on nex, or regular bellow with 1 or 2 tilt adapters.

I have several set up and most of shift lenses.
Pentacon Six option is good if you need FF on Canon bodies.
Otherwise, the image quality of the Nex is good.
The set up with nex is very light weight and I can use all my lenses as tilt lenses.
Also the focus peak function on nex makes it easy to find in focus areas.

I have use tilt on sony/pentax 20mm, 28mm, 35mm, 50mm (also f1.2), 85mm, 100mm, 135mm and 150mm with great results.

Best regards

[lytrytyr]

The cheapest Tilt and Shift option on crop sensor may be a sony nex with a tilt adapter:

Sony Nex5: 200usd
Tilt adapter in K mount or nikon F mount or zuiko OM mount or C/Y mount, approx 100 usd each.
Shift lenses: Pentax K 28/3.5, nikkor PC 28/3.5, zuiko 24 or 35, PC distagon 35/2.8.

That option looks cheap for tilt, but not for shift.

[hoanpham]

That option looks cheap for tilt, but not for shift.

True. Shift lenses are not cheap.

As OP's need, tilt is good for product shots and may not need shift lenses.

Kipon also has a shift adapter for nikkor that can use FF lenses with crop sensor.
Or Chinese made: Nex tilt & shift