Article

By definition, ‘fixed-lens’ cameras aren’t designed to have their lenses removed. But that didn’t stop photographer Ronaldo Carvalho from taking apart an old Olympus Trip 35 camera to adapt its 40mm F2.8 lens to his Canon EOS R6 camera.

As shared in the above video, the idea came about when Carvalho noticed the camera was beginning to fall apart on his shelf. With the camera already in disrepair, he took the lens off entirely and started the trial-and-error process of figuring out how far the lens needed to be from his R6’s sensor to active proper focus.

After the proper distance was determined, Carvalho modified a Canon RF body cap to use as a mounting bracket for the lens. With the help of a rotary tool, some glue and a few screws, he eventually got the lens securely mounting inside the cap and had it ready to go for shooting. The DIY lens still offers the full F2.8 through F22 aperture range and delivers some incredibly soft, dreamy images that, while not technically perfect, do have a vintage charm.

Via: PetaPixel

Tags: video, canon, diy, eos, olympus, project, r6

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Comments

Total: 46

S Yu

The Trip 35 is a camera commonly seen having its lens removed for adaptation. Obviously the lens assembly should be one of the easier ones to work on.

3 days agopermalink

mxx

What a wonderful camera the Trip 35 was. Lovely sharp images, and extremely environment friendly.

5 days agopermalink

Ventura Star

I was wondering if I could adapt a Leitz 50mm Summicron M lens to fit on the front of a vintage Kodak Box Brownie camera. Wouldn't that be great? Maybe I could just file or grind down the rear metal part of the lens and attach it with some superglue?

6 days agopermalink

Rodrigo Lopes

This guy is kinda Gyro Gearloose here among us photographer and he comes from a humble origin and did almost everything you see in his channel by himself. A terrific guy!

6 days agopermalink

Alun Thomas

I have quite a few repurposed lenses from fixed lens cameras. I found the lenses from rangefinder cameras didn't work that well, the corners are pretty fuzzy. Apparently sensors and film are different when it comes to the angle they can accept light from. Lenses from fixed lens SLRs were somewhat better, but not so much better that it was worth doing as opposed to just adapting an interchangeable lens from an old system, rangefinder or SLR. These days I'll only adapt the lens if the camera is not recoverable to working order.

6 days agopermalink

Wildbegonia

Ingenious and very resourceful.

6 days agopermalink

P10004K

Would be better off to get the TTArtisan 40mm f/2.8 Macro Lens for Canon RF ($99) and shoot in APS-C format IMHO.
https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1669921-REG/ttartisan_a32b_r_40mm_f_2_8_lens_for.html

6 days agopermalink

Tom_A

Not at all. The whole point is to experiment and have fun and who knows, sometimes the result will be nice as well. Everyone and his dog can buy a lens.

4 days agopermalink

technotic

I wanna see him so that with a Leica Q2.

6 days agopermalink

CaPi

I find this hard to watch

1 week agopermalink

snapa

What is hard to watch, his ear rings & lip metal, or the lens changing?

6 days agopermalink

CaPi

The camera.. modification

3 days ago*permalink

SCC322

Creative? Yes. Practical? No.

1 week agopermalink

Roland Karlsson

That lens is probably dirty. He have handles it badly during the work. The surface needs cleaning. By far too soft result without Vaseline or some such.

The last photo where he succeeded in catching the sonson of Frankenstein's monster is hilarious though.

1 week agopermalink

TBLF

Give that man a Scooby snack! Heh... Fun video, you just have to be in the right frame of mind to watch it. He sets the proper tone with the over-the-top reaction to the lens "falling off" so you pretty much know what you are in for with the rest of the video.

1 week agopermalink

marc petzold

The best YT'ber for weird Lenses is since ages Mathieu Stern, and noone else.
https://www.youtube.com/c/MathieuStern/videos

1 week agopermalink

blåland

The quality should be much better with that lens.

1 week agopermalink

Tons o Glass 0 Class

Perhaps the one he was using was a little greasy or hazy - I think the rear element looked a little cloudy in the video around the 4 minute mark. That, and the camera he harvested it from didn't look particularly fresh to begin with.

1 week agopermalink

blåland

Yes, it could also be light leaks and internal reflections.

1 week agopermalink

marc petzold

Yes, IQ looks cr@p compared to the real thing, Olympus Trip 35.

1 week agopermalink

Slouch Hooligan

This lens is not optimized for use with digital sensor micro-lenses.
That could be another factor contributing to the poor image quality.

1 week agopermalink

Mr Bolton

Def poor microcontrast.

6 days agopermalink

Horshack

I always appreciate these flight of fancy videos that showcase the creativity of people.

1 week agopermalink

ProfHankD

If you're interested in this sort of thing, visit the adapted lens forum here at DPReview ( https://www.dpreview.com/forums/1065 ). Many of us started with body caps for custom adapting, but now it's more common people either assemble pieces from other adapters and/or 3D print adapters.

1 week agopermalink

GoDP

Brazilian Senate approves tax exemption on imported photographic equipment
https://agenciabrasil.ebc.com.br/geral/noticia/2022-03/senado-aprova-isencao-de-impostos-em-equipamento-fotografico-importado
Better late than never!
No more "Frankensteins"

1 week agopermalink

whitelens

Finally a third party solution since Canon lenses are too expensive?

1 week agopermalink

Michiel953

No, because they're duds. Everyone knows that.

1 week agopermalink

norman shearer

That was cool. He made it look so easy. If I tried I'd probably end up with a dead camera!

The Olympus 35 trip does have a nice lens as do many other vintage fixed lens cameras. You could make a living out of converting the lenses for cameras that are often just sitting in a cupboard un-used. Vintage or not the gear, or parts thereof, are meant to be used not kept as ornaments,,

1 week agopermalink

photophile

As someone who has owned an Olympus Trip-35 camera since 1978 (and continued to use one until 2003), the lens was known for producing tack sharp, contrasty images. if Ronaldo is getting "incredibly soft, dreamy images" then either he hasn't adapted it right, or the author of the article has used artistic license.

1 week agopermalink

Kerensky97

Or maybe mounting a fixed lens from a 50 year old camera to a modern DSLR is a bit difficult and you won't get the perfection you get from a camera+lens system that was purpose designed and manufactured?

1 week agopermalink

QuietOC

I have a Rokkor-QF 40mm F1.7 adapted from a Minolta Hi-Matic E. I wish I could control the aperture/leaf shutter.

1 week ago*permalink

Michiel953

I really enjoyed watching that, although my lack of Portuguese was a bit of a problem. Not too much though.

High precision, low-tech solution! Love it.

1 week agopermalink

Maoby

Why not ...everyone has their hobbies. Nex!

1 week agopermalink

cosinaphile

i "bodycapped " a 10 dollar nikkor H 50mm f2 with full focus and aperture in 2009 on my first mirrorless camera the olympus pen and had a wonderful portrait lens [100mm fov]

he should have used a helicoid adapter for 30 bucks cause his distance to sensor is way off ... or its softer than it need s be m these lenses that are commonly called fixed are actually zone focus wit 3 focus zones with the mountain icon for infinity

1 week agopermalink

Michiel953

Not really important. Who strives for perfection anyway?

1 week agopermalink

cosinaphile

not me , but id settle for meeting its optical potential

i salute his effort either way

1 week ago*permalink

theBitterFig

@Michiel953 - That's the great thing about using a helicoid instead of a body cap--you have the choice either way. Get the distance between the lens and the camera right, and you'll have the sharp images the lens can produce. Adjust it to add dreaminess.

1 week agopermalink

trungtran

I am generally against butchering vintage camera gear working or not.

1 week agopermalink

Eric Hensel

And I love repurposing tools to give them another life. It's a big world out there.

1 week agopermalink

trungtran

This is repurposing - https://petapixel.com/2014/09/12/18-year-old-retrofits-old-konica-rangefinder-sony-nex-aps-c-sensor-works/

Not many of these rangefinder cameras left and there are people that restore them to their former glory. Maybe the Olympus brand is not worth saving anymore.

1 week agopermalink

cosinaphile

the sheer volume of unused manual lenses is beyond imagining .... the number
of old cameras , non functioning , but with optics capable of repurposing is also a large number

putting an old MF lens on a modern digital camera is one of the most
environmentally friendly and longevity friendly things a shooter can do

the volume of technology sent to the third world or to the trash is shameful ... popping an old unused lens[ many are superb ] on to a modern digital camera is a thing of beauty and a wise and honorable
action in the face of so much waste and carelessness

a working lens from 200 years ago or 20 deserves a thinking shooter
with an interest lenses and the potential they all offer

most are crisp and sharp if infinity focus i achieved when repurposing

5 days ago*permalink