[2351HD]

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Hi,

I am looking for a backup body to my 645D.

Does anybody know if the 645 lenses work well on a Canon or Sony FF body with adapter. If so, what adapters have people been using.

I know that Pentax make an adapter for K mount, but there would be too much crop.

Also, will a 35mm A lens be 35mm FOV on a FF SLR? or something else.

From what I understand a 645 35mm lens has the image circle and view of a 21mm lens on full 645 and will give a FOV of 28mm on the 645D and 35mm on a FFM SLR. Is that correct.

Regards,

Scott

[Boris_Akunin]

From what I understand a 645 35mm lens has the image circle and view of a 21mm lens on full 645 and will give a FOV of 28mm on the 645D and 35mm on a FFM SLR. Is that correct

Yes, that's right.

Adapters to canon aren't hard to find: pentax 645 canon adapter | eBay
Adapters to Sony A seem to be rare.

[Ed Hurst]

I have used Pentax 645 and 67 lenses on a Canon 5Dii and Nikon D800E with a lot of success. The focal length is unchanged by the adaptor, so a 35mm lens remains a 35mm lens and gives the field of view that that focal length provides on the format being used. I.e. a 645 format 35mm lens gives the same angle of view when used on a FF camera as a 35mm lens intended for the FF format. Just as you say.

I have found that the best Pentax 645 and 67 lenses perform well on the 5Dii and D800E - but the ones that are only 'good' can be a little indifferent. Expect a little fringing in contrasty light. I have had good results with the 645 35mm A, the 67 300mm EDIF, the 67 75mm f2.8AL, the 645 150mm FA and various others.

[Boris_Akunin]

Are there Tilt and/or shift adapters for Pentax 645? You might as well make use of the larger image circle.

[Ed Hurst]

I think Zork does one using the Pentax 67 45mm lens...

[revdocjim]

I've used Pentax 645 and 67 lenses on my Sony NEX7. If you want full frame you might check out the new Sony Alpha 7. Adapters are easy to come by and easy to use given the short registry. On my NEX I used an E-mount to Nikon adapter and then a Nikon to Pentax 645 adapter, and when using 67 lenses I added the 645 to 67 adapter. Works just fine!

[Smolk]

I am afraid that the 645 35mm remains a 35mm on FF. But you do use the best part of the glass.
In a comparison with 135mm Pentax equivalents which I once did for myself, the 645 35mm A version really shone (= outclassed the M 2.8/35mm, M 2/35mm, and M 4/20-35mm). Note that the 645 35mm is 645 heavy.

Edit: just realise the first bit had been covered already before I finished my post.

[Jusuf]

Former "lurker", I am a new arrival to the forum. I just had to give you a useful response to this question:

I am using the Mirex-Tilt-Adapter for Pentax 645, one on Canon 5D II and another on Sony A99. (There is no such Adapter for Nikon mount - Hasselblad to Nikon would be the option Mirex has to offer).

The setup with Mirex is working great for landscape work. I can recommend Pentax 35 A, 45-85 FA, 80-160 FA and 200 FA for this purpose. Perhaps the Zooms are at their limit at 24 Megapixel. The 45-85 and the 35 A perhaps are best tilted to a max of 8 degrees (which is plenty), as corner-sharpness is going down when tilted to the max (10 degrees). Tilted or shifted, the 35 A is better than the FA-version!

The tele lenses generally suffer from chromatic aberrations wide open. But for most landscapes from 50mm and above, even when tilted, I need to stop down to f14 anyway if I want to achieve even sharpness throughout. In that range, the mentioned Pentax lenses are as good as any L-lens, so I do not mind if the Zooms cannot perfectly resolve future 30+ Megapixel sensors or if some lenses show chr. aberrations wide open.

The whole setup to me remains the optimum compromise between tilted medium-format digital-back (which I do not own) and Nikon D lenses tilted on a NEX (size-, quality- , and costwise). It is much more flexible and has further reach than Canon TS-E 45 mm and 90mm. If you need wider angle than 35mm, add the TS-E 24 and 17 to your Canon-wishlist (and hold your thumbs for a mirrorless medium-format to come).

You can also adapt 67 lenses to the Mirex-Adapter by removing the spring inside the Adapter and then adding the regular Pentax 67 to 645 Adapter. But e.g. the FA 45-85 is just as good as the 67 55-100 when tilted on 24x36.

Best thing about the Mirex is that a tripod-foot is provided, so you can shift and stitch without any seems. Also you can switch lenses without having to readjust the tilt-angle. It is SO MUCH FUN! As further plus, you can always adapt the whole setup to A7 or A7R buy fitting in yet another adapter.

I do not recommend the Zörk 67 tilt-Adapter. I own it. It is nice for intuitive portraits with minimum dof the 67 105/2.4 or 165/2.8, but the Mirex is clearly preferable for any precision or landscape work.

Additional note: For me, liveview of the 5DII worked best, despite Sony's invaluable peaking option is missing unless you add Magic Lantern. It is just easier and faster to scroll through the liveview with the Canon when you need to zoom in and check for focus from corner to corner. Sony's liveview is still somewhat sluggish compared to Canon.

Kind regards, Cornelius

[2351HD]

Thanks everybody for your info.

I like the look of the mirex adapter and it could work ok for horizontal shift panoramas too.

I really would love live view on my 645D, so maybe even the new 645D that is recently announced would be the best solution, as then my current 645D would be the backup body!

Scott

[Jusuf]

Hey Scott,

If you want a backup and can afford it, the 645D II would of course be wonderful. But then, why not consider selling the 645D and buying the 645D II plus a 5D II or an A7 with the Mirex? That way you can make maximum creative use of your 645-lenses without having to carry two 645Ds. There simply are scenarios that cannot be photographed without tilting, basically whenever it comes to landscapes that have a forground whilst employing lenses above appr. 35mm.

And as a worst-case backup, relying on 645 A 35mm as your widest lens on FF is perhaps ok for you. If not, add a 24-70 to either the 5DII or the Sony A7(R). You will not get much nearer to perfection unless we will see a mirrorless medium Format and Mirex producing the tilt-adapters for it.

Of course, if depth of field never will be your priority and instead, you are maily doing people/portraits in a way that does not benefit from tilting, then having two 645Ds available with different lenses attached might be more important and straightforward to you than integrating a little fumbly FF into your workflow.

Regards

[yurihuta]

I have a Zoerk/Zork shift adapter that lets you mount a Pentax 67 lens on a Pentx 645 body (then add an adapter to give you Pentax 645 lens mount on a DSLR of mirrorless body).

EDIT: did not see Jusuf's post until after posting my reply. The folks at Mirex are very responsive and helpful. Below is my exchange with them.


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Please take into account:
A TILT-SHIFT-Adapter for Pentax (or Mamiya) 645 lenses / Nikon camera is not possible (available).
Due to the higher flange focal distance of your Nikon camera opposite M42 camera, the
position does not suffice for this any more.
(Focusing would open be infinite no longer possible).
The combination of our ts-adapter with M42 connection with a Nikon/M42 adapter is not possible.
(The Nikon/M42 adapter has a lens inside to compensate the difference in the flange focal distance. This is not good results achieved.)

We can offer you the following possibilities.

1.Mirex Shift-Adapter for Pentax 645 lenses / Nikon camera.
(It comes to restrictions of the shift-ways at camera models with a big
prism housing. (for example Nikon D700/B800/.....)
Please take into account:
The used Mamiya 645 lenses should be used manually (aperture / focusing).
The TS-Adapter is conceived for lenses of 35mm to approx. 120mm focal
lenght.

2.Mirex Tilt-Shift-Adapter for Hasselblad lenses / Nikon camera. (direct
connection).
(The ts-adapters for Hasselblad lenses are usable without restrictions).
They can use lenses with the following name (C / CF / CFi / CFE / CB / FE).

3.Mirex Tilt-Shift-Adapter for Pentax 67 lenses / Nikon camera. (direct
connection).
(The ts-adapters for Pentax 67 lenses are usable without restrictions).

We like to be at your disposal for further questions.

Best Regards,
Markus Michelberger

MICO-Treppenwinkel GmbH
Bachstr. 27
97990 Weikersheim-Laudenbach

Are there Tilt and/or shift adapters for Pentax 645? You might as well make use of the larger image circle.