35mm Adapters – MUST have lenses

With 35mm adapters being all the rage, there are a lot of questions one might ask when getting into these tools, especially “what mount should I get (nikon, canon FD, canon EF)” and “which lenses should I use?”

I want to talk about my setup and workflow for 31Films. For me, I wanted to buy the least amount of lenses possible for the best possible price. My gearbag includes:

• The Canon XH-A1 and the Letus Extreme adapter with Canon FD lens mount
• Canon FD 85mm F1.2
• Canon FD 50mm F1.2
• Sigma FD mount 50mm F2.8 MACRO

Why did I go with the FD mount?

Canon FD mount is used for the old manual focus lenses for the older canon cameras. The canon EF lenses are auto-focus and while you can get an EF mount for your adapter, you will NOT be able to utilize the auto-focus capabilities of your lenses. Because 99% of photogs are using auto-focus lenses, you can get FD mount lenses for an extremely low price. I bought my 85mm 1.2 from KEH.com for $500. This lens is typically over $1000 in the EF mount version. I bought my 50mm 1.2 from ebay for $150! The EF version is around $1000. So you can see why I went with the FD mount over the EF. I absolutely love my lenses!

What is the difference in the “look” of each lens?

85mm F1.2

When buying lenses you want to go with F1.2 or F1.4. These are more expensive, but they are better for shooting indoors and at receptions. The adapter will already kill some of your light, so you want to have the brightest lenses possible (unless you are shooting outside during the day). The 85mm gives an extreme shallow dof. I love this look as I can shoot someone far away and the background is still waaaay out-of-focus. While this a great effect, sometimes it can get a little too much in my opinion. I use this lens sparingly.

Here are some stills from the 85mm F1.2. Notice the extreme shallow dof.

50mm F1.2

The 50mm is a very versatile lens. It is a little bit wider than the 85mm and gives you more dof. This lens shoots very similar to the way your eyes see. Here are a few stills.

50mm MACRO F2.8

One thing you will notice with the 85mm and 50mm is that you can’t focus when in close proximity to the subject, so don’t think that you can get tight detail shots with those lenses. This is where the macro comes into play. This lens allows you to get those sweet close ups of rings, shoes, etc.

There is a still above of some shoes with the 85mm. Here is the same pair of shoes shot with the macro close up.

Keep in mind that because the macro shoots so close, you might have a slight problem with it focusing on dust and dirt specs in my adapter.

So as you can see all of these lenses serve different purposes. I am not a huge fan of ultra wide-angle lenses, so that is why I didn’t get anything really wide. To each is own. These lenses work great for us and between the 3 we get ultra close, ultra shallow dof, and moderate dof.

One more piece of advice for all you adapter shooters… clean your adapter before every shoot. I use a rocket blaster to clean mine.

Comments and questions are welcomed!

Joey Mathews
31FILMS

Joey Mathews