{"id":1798,"date":"2014-04-22T07:30:53","date_gmt":"2014-04-22T17:30:53","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/suggestionofmotion.com\/auto-draft\/"},"modified":"2015-04-03T10:22:45","modified_gmt":"2015-04-03T20:22:45","slug":"panasonic-gh4-lens-options-adapted","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/suggestionofmotion.com\/blog\/panasonic-gh4-lens-options-adapted\/","title":{"rendered":"Adapting Lenses for the Panasonic GH4"},"content":{"rendered":"
The Panasonic GH4’s Micro Four Thirds (MFT) mount may just be the most versatile lens mount on the planet<\/strong>. Virtually any lens under the sun can be attached to this mount.<\/p>\n All you need is the right adapter.<\/p>\n That’s why this post is all about one of the GH4’s greatest strengths– using adapted lenses<\/strong>.<\/p>\n Here’s the deal: Because the Panasonic GH4 is a mirrorless<\/strong> camera, the lens mount can be positioned much closer to the sensor than on a standard DSLR (which needs to fit an articulating mirror in between). The distance between the lens mount and the camera’s sensor is referred to as the flange focal distance<\/em> (FFD).<\/p>\n Very little distance between lens mount and sensor<\/p><\/div>\n Simply put, any lens that is built for a camera with larger<\/em> FFD than MFT (i.e. the lens mount is positioned farther<\/em> from the sensor) can be adapted for use on the GH4. The adapter acts as a spacer<\/strong> that fills in the gap between the MFT mount and the FFD that the lens was built for.<\/p>\n Quick example:<\/p>\n SLR FFD compared to MFT FFD (by Shigeru23<\/a>)<\/p><\/div>\n Since the FFD of the Nikon F mount is greater than MFT’s FFD, you can use Nikon lenses on the GH4 with an adapter that positions the lens 27.25mm away from the GH4’s lens mount.<\/p>\n Nikon to MFT Adapter<\/p><\/div>\n Adapters for a wide array of lens mounts are readily available for the Panasonic GH4.<\/p>\n The list goes on and on– if you have a lens, there is likely an adapter to use it on the GH4’s MFT mount.<\/p>\n While an adapter might merely<\/em> be a spacer between a lens and camera, it still needs to be precise<\/strong>. If the adapter is not precisely built, then the distance between the lens and the camera will be wrong, causing issues with image quality and focus. This is why it’s important to use quality adapters.<\/p>\n Thankfully, a quality adapter does not need to break the bank. Here are a few places where you can get quality adapters at affordable prices:<\/p>\n While I would not recommend using budget adapters for mission-critical work, they should not be ruled out entirely. For example, if you just want to experiment with an old lens, a budget adapter is a good option.<\/p>\n I’ve been testing this inexpensive “Zebra” Nikon G adapter<\/a> that costs less than $15.<\/p>\n My copy has a nice tight fit with no play and a smooth clickless aperture ring. If you have some Nikon mount lenses and you want to test them out on the GH4, I’d recommend checking out the budget adapter one before dropping $140 on the Metabones adapter<\/a>.<\/p>\n The Metabones adapter likely has better build-quality, better quality control, and tighter tolerances, but for your uses, the budget adapter may be all you need.<\/p>\n Also, while a Ciecio7 C-mount adapter (eBay)<\/a> ($42) will surely be well made, the price is a bit steep when some C-mount lenses<\/em> sell for half that. For example, you can get a 35mm f\/1.7 C-mount lens with<\/em> an MFT adapter<\/a> for $25 all said and done. I’d recommend getting the lens\/adapter combo first before picking up the more expensive adapter. You’ll probably be just fine with the included adapter.<\/p>\n So you can use pretty much any lens on the Panasonic GH4 with an adapter. That’s nice, but what’s the big deal? Why should you care?<\/p>\n Because depending on your shooting needs, adapted lenses could offer huge benefits<\/strong>.<\/p>\n While there are a few exceptions, adapted lenses will be fully manual on the GH4. This means you have full control over the lens– no autofocus hunting, no fly-by-wire focus rings, and no fiddling with DOF previews. You set the aperture and the focus directly on the lens.<\/p>\n Video shooters in particular will welcome manual control over focus that enables them to set focus marks and consistently repeat them.<\/p>\n Some manual lenses have a clickless aperture<\/em> that allows you to smoothly stop down or open up a lens when lighting conditions change. This is extremely useful for run-and-gun shooting where you have no control over the environment.<\/p>\n When you enter the world of adapted lenses, your lens catalog grows exponentially.<\/p>\n The Panasonic GH4’s MFT mount is relatively new, so you don’t have decades of lenses for this mount like you do with other mounts like Nikon, Canon FD, or C-mount.<\/p>\n However, with the aid of adapters, you gain access to this huge back catalog of vintage lenses, some of which were considered defunct prior to the introduction of the GH4’s MFT mount.<\/p>\n When Canon introduced the EF mount, decades of FL and FD mount lenses suddenly became obsolete. As users upgraded to new camera models, these “legacy” lenses became unusable.<\/p>\n Now, using an adapter, you can mount some amazing glass<\/strong> on the GH4 that rivals Canon’s latest lenses, but at a fraction of the price. One of my favorite lenses– a Canon FD 50mm f\/1.4 “Chrome Nose”– renders a beautiful image and cost me less than $30<\/strong>.<\/p>\n What can you do with a 45-year old $30 lens? Plenty.<\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n
Any Lens? How can this be?<\/h2>\n
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Adapters for All<\/h2>\n
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Selecting an Adapter<\/h2>\n
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A Different Approach: Budget Adapters<\/h3>\n
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Benefits of Adapted Lenses<\/h2>\n
Manual Control<\/h3>\n
Access to Vintage Lenses<\/h3>\n
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