Lower Priced PL Mount Options for S16...Adapters for 35mm Still Lenses?

[David Fitch]

I'll preface my post by stating that this may be somewhat of an ignorant question, but do there exist adapters which can convert a 35mm still zoom lens (Canon, Nikon, Sigma, etc.) to PL mount for an Arri S16 camera? Judging from the fact that I haven't found much in the way of PL adapters online, I'm guessing not. Plus, I'm sure there are numerous optical considerations including distance between the rear element and film plane, flange focal distance, whether or not a zoom lens will cover the entire S16 frame on the short end, and so on that couldn't be rectified by using a simple adapter.

 

I'm thinking about buying a S16 camera and likely doing so without a lens included, so I'm just weighing my options for adding a zoom lens to the camera. As PL mount zoom lenses (and primes, for that matter) are on the pricey side for a hobbyist like me, I'm just trying to determine how much more the glass will add to the expense and am trying to consider any lower-priced options that may exist.

[Aapo Lettinen]

the main problem is that because most of the still lenses have shorter ffd, the whole back of the lens should fit INSIDE the PL adapter. Most of the still lenses have such a large outer diameter that this is not possible (the outer diameter of the rear part of the lens can be no more than 48 or 49 mm at the first 1.5 - 2 cm from the flange. Very few stills lenses are designed this way because the mount bayonet is usually quite large in size and the internal mechanics also need some space (plus there is usually no need in the stills world to make such a small lens because the stills cameras accept very wide range of lens sizes and shapes by their design)

 

T-mount lenses and mid/large format lenses are possible to fit to the PL with interchangeable adapters. Some usable tele lenses can be found in T-mount which is very easily adaptable with a simple screw-on adapter.

 

With most of the other still lenses, almost only possibility is to permanently change the mount and in most cases, also re-build some of the internal mechanics (for example iris ring mechanics and maybe part of the focusing system) . With some lenses, adapting is not even possible without completely re-building the whole lens using custom mechanical parts and taking only the optical elements from the original lens design.

[Aapo Lettinen]

All 35mm format lenses cover S16 format. If you really need to adapt the modern stills zooms (remember to choose a model which has a possibility to mechanically change the iris) , then I'd consider you to talk to a very skilled lens technician about the possibilities and usable lens models. You really should choose the best model you can get for the job, the conversion will not be easy or inexpensive...

 

If the price is a problem, then you could buy a camera which already has a stills lens mount (nikon F is the most used in these older camera modifications) , or choose a camera which has such a short ffd mount (other than PL, for example C-mount can be found in some Eclairs) that you can use interchangeable adapters for the mounting.

[Aapo Lettinen]

if you use the lenses for purposes where you don't need good focus mechanics, then the easiest and maybe most affordable way could be using old Russian OCT-18 primes with PL adapters. The price can be under 200 dollars per lens and the look is very "cinematic" in a good way :lol:

Edited December 16, 2013 by aapo lettinen

[Adrian Sierkowski]

The Russian OCT lenses can be great-- I think OCT-19 goes to PL the easiest, however.

They have some nice zooms and the only major problem is that it's generally marked in meters, not feet. However, I much prefer them to stills lenses.

[Freya Black]

The Russian OCT lenses can be great-- I think OCT-19 goes to PL the easiest, however.

They have some nice zooms and the only major problem is that it's generally marked in meters, not feet. However, I much prefer them to stills lenses.

 

This is true but the lenses have to be converted rather than using an adaptor sadly.

There are Oct18 adaptors for PL but the lenses aren't as nice mechanically and the mount often obstructs focusing properly.

 

Freya

Edited December 16, 2013 by Freya Black

[Freya Black]

Sorry havn't had enough sleep. Didn't realise we were talking about zooms!

The OCT-18 zooms can be used with a PL adaptor much more easily because they have focusing on the barrel.

 

Also there are adaptors for the CX-2M 16mm camera lenses too which might be a good option for S16, including the zooms that are available for that camera. No idea what coverage is like for Super16 tho.

 

Freya

[Aapo Lettinen]

Sorry havn't had enough sleep. Didn't realise we were talking about zooms!

The OCT-18 zooms can be used with a PL adaptor much more easily because they have focusing on the barrel.

 

Also there are adaptors for the CX-2M 16mm camera lenses too which might be a good option for S16, including the zooms that are available for that camera. No idea what coverage is like for Super16 tho.

 

Freya

I actually meant primes… the zooms can also be useful, but at least the Foton zoom makes too much CA for S16 and also too soft (my opinions)

 

Even the Lenkinap (before Lomo) primes from the 50's can make reasonable image for smaller formats also, old zooms can be much more painful. The primes have, in the other hand, this focusing issue which I meant when advising not to use them when focus pulls are needed.

OCT18 can be very simply adapted, a simple adapter on the original mount will usually do the trick :)

 

Like you mentioned, also I have understood that at least some versions of the 10-100 Lomo zoom in Kinor16 bayonet can be adapted to PL via simple adapter, others need slight modification. This would indeed be better option if the image circle is big enough and the camera has room in the mount for the big rear part of the lens

Edited December 16, 2013 by aapo lettinen

[Aapo Lettinen]

If one wants hard PL mount and good focusing, then the OCT19 mount primes are much much better option despite their mounts need to be changed to custom PL mounts, simple adaptors are not possible for this mount (otherwise than if your camera mount is Canon EF or other shorter ffd mount)

[Todd Anderson]

David,

If I were you I would go for a Aaton XTR (or XTR Plus) S16 camera with a Aaton mount. Aaton gave the option of either their own proprietary mount or a PL mount for the XTR's. The benefit of the Aaton mount it that the FFD is such that it can accept an adapter for Nikon still lenses. When it comes around used online, you can usually find the Aaton to Nikon adapter on ebay for $75 - $150. You can also get an Aaton to Arri B mount adapter for Arri B mount lenses, which in S16mm, are usually are a bit cheaper than their PL mount equivalents.

Hope that helps,

-T

Edited December 17, 2013 by Todd Anderson