Zeiss lenses on Olympus evolt

[stan_parry]

Is it possible to get an adaptor for my CY lenses to use with the Olympus evolt e500. If so where and what is the conversion factor?

Many thanks,

 

[gunteach]

Stan,

I see that they are advertised as available on cameraquest.com While I have no direct experience with this firm, I read a lot that this guy is reputable. The attractive thing about this set-up to me is buying one adapter for all your C/Y lenses.

By the way, I'm seriously considering buying an E-volt E-500, so any reports or impressions you have of your camera would be valuable to me. I can be reached at gunteach2000@yahoo.com if you have any comments you would care to share, particularly with regard to this as a first DSLR.

Regards,

Tom Crawford

 

[nickser]

Hi Tom,

Here is a Steves digicam review;

http://www.steves-digicams.com/2005_reviews/e500.html

Regards

Paul

 

[jsmisc]

That is interesting, thanks Paul. I have handled one and it is nice. It is very light which to me is a bonus but the viewfinder is small. I believe Olympus have brought out a magnifier to attach to the viewfinder which I expect will help with this.
John

 

[biggles3]

Hi there - I've just taken delivery of the adapter and have popped a couple of lenses onto it. It all seems to be fine - I'll try to get round to posting a couple of images. By the way, there will shortly be an uprated version of the E-1 - no news yet on changes - but it will be unashamedly a pro spec and will be much heavier than the E-500, so if that's not your thing, I'd go and buy the 500 and an adapter.
Cheers, Graham

 

[gunteach]

Graham,

Thanks for letting us know about your adapter. It seems you got that pretty quickly. If you don't mind, what was the final cost? Does it appear well-made? Do your C-Y lenses mount easily on it when it is installed on your Olympus? What's the crop factor with the E-Volt? How's the handling, obviously you manual focus, do you also manually stop down meter? How's the balance with your C-Y lenses? And finally, can't wait for you to post some images. Inquiring minds want to know!

Happy New Year,

Tom

 

[biggles3]

Hi Tom,
Yep, the moment I heard about it on this forum I asked good old Stephen Gandy of Cameraquest to send me one which he did in double quick time. It is made to a high spec and because it contains no glass, does not degrade the image quality at all. It cost $175 + p&p. It is a reassuringly tight fit both onto the E-1 and for the Zeiss lenses. I have placed a 16mm, 18mm, 85mm 1.2 & 1.4, 180mm and the 28-85mm zoom on it so far. As I use the E-1 with the power pack permanently attached, the balance is not bad though the 85 1.2 is a tad heavy. I would not like to place a heavy lens on the adapter and leave it hanging from the camera front - it should be supported. Yes, manual focus and stop down the lens - except for the 85 1.2 which for some reason won't stop down on the adapter. All the other lenses I've tried will stop down but not the 85 though it's sibling the 1.4 is fine. I have to say, I like the thought of a 170mm f1.2 - I've yet to fathom the crop factor. Images will follow soon....

All the best,

Graham

 

[gunteach]

Graham,

Thanks for the information. I really do think I am about to buy an E-500 as my first DSLR. All the reviews I have read, s&le images I have seen, and the fact that all of my field staff are issued an Olmpus C-740 digicam using XD media (of which we have a ton) and the E-500 can use these cards, all coupled with the fact that I can buy one adapter (not one per lens as with Canon) and use it for all my CZ lenses on the E-500 all sort of tip the decision in that direction. I have found prices on the 2-lens kit as low as about $750.00 so price is a big plus as well, as is the anti-dust system and the ability to work with RAW images if desired. I think my aging eyes will appreciate the larger LCD screen as well.

Oh, I answered my own question when reading a further review of the camera. Crop factor is 2:1, which is to say your 50mm CZ becomes a 100mm on the E-500 and so on. This is a bit of a downer for wide-angle use, but I can live with it and just use the 14mm end of the kit lens. I'm sort of intrigued by the prospect of very fast long telephotos myself!

The Steve's Digicam review posted earlier in this thread has some s&le images which look pretty good to me, and even at ISO 1600 appear quite usable. Can't wait to see your results too.

Tom

 

[jsmisc]

Hi everyone,
I am interested in the E420 and wondered if anyone has experience of this. I would hope to attach my C/Y lenses but I am not too keen on the idea of everything being totally manual. Do you know if there is focus confirmation and any metering with C/Y lenses and an adapter?
I have bought a Nikon D300 which is great in every way but I cannot fit my C/Y lenses to it and they are pining.
Long time to chat.
Best wishes,
John

 

[biggles3]

Hi everyone,
I am interested in the E420 and wondered if anyone has experience of this. I would hope to attach my C/Y lenses but I am not too keen on the idea of everything being totally manual. Do you know if there is focus confirmation and any metering with C/Y lenses and an adapter?
I have bought a Nikon D300 which is great in every way but I cannot fit my C/Y lenses to it and they are pining.
Long time to chat.
Best wishes,
John

Metering is quite normal - just change to aperture priority. As for focus confirmation I am unaware of any adapter that could help or provide this - ditto autometering. I have heard whisper of a Russian-made adapter plate with electrical contacts that fits onto existing 4/3rds C/Y adapters. I've seen non Contax versions for sale on ebay.

I use Zeiss lenses on my E-3 all the time (via Kindai, Cameraquest and Fotodiox adapters) but I suspect it is easier to focus than the E420 because of the larger and brighter viewfinder. Sorry I can't be of more help.