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"weirdest" lens you ever adapted?
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PostPosted: Sun Feb 06, 2022 4:15 am    Post subject: "weirdest" lens you ever adapted? Reply with quote

Doesn't even have to be something that was intended for projection, it could be your uncle's reading glasses for all I care, just wondering what's the oddest thing you adapted and how it turned out.
I only recently got a mirrorless, but less than a year ago, I bought a wide angle (I think 35mm) Meopta made enlarger lens with a square aperture, so I can't wait to try that one out.


PostPosted: Sun Feb 06, 2022 10:10 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Weirdest adaption? … either a piece of pie case for use as a pinhole lens, or maybe cutting the front off a Brownie 127 and mounting the result on a T2 mount for that "Dakon" retro effect Wink


PostPosted: Sun Feb 06, 2022 10:56 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

kypfer wrote:
Weirdest adaption? … either a piece of pie case for use as a pinhole lens, or maybe cutting the front off a Brownie 127 and mounting the result on a T2 mount for that "Dakon" retro effect Wink


Thanks for sharing.


PostPosted: Sun Feb 06, 2022 11:03 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Well, not sure if it counts, but I once made a DIY diopter adjustment for the viewfinder of a Minolta XG1, using a broken pair of prescription glasses I had. Worked well.


PostPosted: Sun Feb 06, 2022 11:23 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Not super weird: Agfa minilab lens

Minilab lens adapted by The lens profile, on Flickr

And a Yashica compact camera lens torn out of the compact into a K-mount lens inversion adapter.

Yashica 38mm 2.8 by The lens profile, on Flickr

Said Yashica:
Bokeyashica by The lens profile, on Flickr

I won't count slide projection lenses.


PostPosted: Sun Feb 06, 2022 3:30 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Probably my weirdest adaptation was reverse-mounting a D-mount movie lens to a lens cap, then mounting the cap to a lens and shooting pix with it. It worked rather well. I documented it here way back in October, 2009:

http://forum.mflenses.com/wollensak-8mm-cine-lens-for-macro-t21588,highlight,%2Bwollensak.html

I still have it around here somewhere, but I'm pretty sure that's the only time I've ever used it.


PostPosted: Sun Feb 06, 2022 7:02 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

That would be my RolleiStar 40/2.3

The 40/2.3 from a Rollei XF 35, transplanted into an early M39 Industar 50 SLR lens.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/lightshow-photography/tags/rolleixf35/





PostPosted: Sun Feb 06, 2022 8:36 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Not really an adaptation per se, but really weird is Spiratone Bird's-eye Attachment lens https://www.pentaxforums.com/userreviews/spiratone-birds-eye-attachment.html



image by PentaxForums member ProfHankD


Last edited by visualopsins on Mon Feb 07, 2022 1:59 am; edited 2 times in total


PostPosted: Sun Feb 06, 2022 8:51 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I don't consider projection lenses weird at all, having adapted a 50mm/1.2, 85mm/2.8 & a 40mm perspective control projection lens that all mounted via the same helicoid. The 100mm & 200mm projector lenses I tried weren't as good, and the very short focal length ones have terrible coverage, but might be useful now I have a pentax Q to play with.

I've also adapted telescope eyepieces/objectives, microscope objectives, microfiche lenses and several ancient lenses of unknown source. I've collected several pairs of old glasses to try, but not yet got round to it properly mainly because they all correct for astigmatism. Another one on the not yet attempted list is a 200mm f0.7 Fresnel lens which should make the basis for a hypercentric lens (see https://www.edmundoptics.co.uk/f/hypercentric-lenses/14571/ )

I think I'd class the c-mount microscope lens the weirdest I've done so far. As I mounted it in such a way that it could focus to infinity, as well as reaching 3x lifesize, depending on the zoom setting & the helicoid.

ultra macro lens set up by Mike Kanssen, on Flickr


PostPosted: Mon Feb 07, 2022 1:26 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Like 1


PostPosted: Mon Feb 07, 2022 1:30 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

I put together a "frankenlens" which I posted here.

http://forum.mflenses.com/soft-glow-of-a-frankenlens-t82675,highlight,%2Bfrankenlens.html


PostPosted: Mon Feb 07, 2022 8:12 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

RokkorDoctor wrote:
Well, not sure if it counts, but I once made a DIY diopter adjustment for the viewfinder of a Minolta XG1, using a broken pair of prescription glasses I had. Worked well.


Eye piece of my Iskra 6x6 folder still contains a -4.5 diopter part of my old acrylic glasses. Should remove it before selling the camera. Cataract operation brought my glasses back to -2.5 anyway.


PostPosted: Mon Feb 07, 2022 9:15 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

The lens from this Lego minifigure



why dont I do it again and take a few pics...


PostPosted: Mon Feb 07, 2022 9:41 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Wiederst first:

Removed three lenses of point and shoot cameras, made a symmetrical 6 element, approx. 23mm 11.0 lens of the two 35mm triplet ones, added that assembly together with a longer focal length lens into a 3D printed part in what I called an Instamatic Art lens. Front part turns on a filter ring that is attached to a reverse adapter for an FE mount. Blinds at the front divide the two images on the sensor, to roughly 24x24 and 24x12 mm parts. This is the second design stage, made several ones:

https://www.dpreview.com/forums/post/64105449
https://www.dpreview.com/forums/post/65767179

Removed two lenses from a Umax Mirage II scanner. Adapted the 107mm lens into an M42 extension tube. Adapted the 77mm lens later into the barrel of an M42 Panagor 135mm 2.8 lens and gave that one a Canon EF mount + chip for the Sigma MC-11 adapter.
Followed later by the 40mm lens (Plasmat type) of an Epson Perfection 3200 Photo scanner.

https://www.dpreview.com/forums/thread/4476274

Focal lengths measured by a collimator made of a Makinon 135mm 2.8 lens. Way more adaptations since I have digital cameras. Several compact camera 45mm lenses to Sony EF mount for example.

Before digital; transplanted a Kodak Anastigmat Special 101mm 4.5 lens onto an Agfa Record 1 as that lens was better than the Apotar 105mm and by that normal 120 film could be used instead of the 620 in the Kodak Monitor 620. Similar changes to Polaroid Pathfinder 110 and 120 cameras.

Rehoused in digital times a 150mm G-Claron (Plasmat) cells in the Apotar shutter as that one has a 10 blade aperture instead of the 5 blade straight aperture of the G-Claron barrel. M42 mounted.


PostPosted: Mon Feb 07, 2022 10:44 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

philslizzy wrote:
The lens from this Lego minifigure



why dont I do it again and take a few pics...


Minifig lens approx 20mm f2 first three at full aperture second three at approx f8







now 'stopped down' approximately f8 (going off change of shutter speed)