Leica/Panasonic L-mount lens adapter help

[Nunchak]

I am getting a bit confused.

I have an Leica/Panasonic L-Mount lens (same as SL-Mount?) which I would like to adapt to Fujifilm X-mount.

Which adapter should I be using?

Will the L-M to FX adapters work?

Thanks

 

[FTOG]

I am getting a bit confused.

I have an Leica/Panasonic L-Mount lens (same as SL-Mount?) which I would like to adapt to Fujifilm X-mount.

Which adapter should I be using?

No such adapter exists as far as I am aware.

Although X mount has a shorter flange distance than Leica L, for modern, electronically controlled lenses, you'll also need an adapter that facilitates electronic communication between the adapted lens and Fuji X mount camera. The L mount alliance will not give access to their protocols, so an adapter maker would need to reverse engineer them.

Fringer is among the most popular "smart" adapter makers, and they only offer Nikon F, and Canon EF/EF-S for Fuji X mount. Not aware of a competitor offering Leica L mount adapters.

Will the L-M to FX adapters work?

The flange distance of Leica L mount is shorter than Leica M mount, so no, this won't work.

 

[Nunchak]

The lens I want to adapt is an all manual Kipon Iberit for L-Mount no electronic connections. Will that make a difference?

 

[Jared Willson]

I am getting a bit confused.

I have an Leica/Panasonic L-Mount lens (same as SL-Mount?) which I would like to adapt to Fujifilm X-mount.

Which adapter should I be using?

Will the L-M to FX adapters work?

Thanks

I don’t know whether anything will work—not sure about registration distances. Certainly, though, what you are proposing WON’T work. The L-M adapter goes the other way. It lets you use M lenses on L/SL mount bodies (since M flange to sensor distance is shorter than L).

The flange distance for L mount is 20mm. For X mount it’s 17.7. That’s not much room for an adapter. My guess is there is nothing available.

 

[Strangefinder]

I am getting a bit confused.

I have an Leica/Panasonic L-Mount lens (same as SL-Mount?)

Yes, the same mount. Also known as T or TL mount, previously.

which I would like to adapt to Fujifilm X-mount.

Which adapter should I be using?

I doubt it exists, however, sometimes unusual unbranded adaptors do appear on eBay or Chinese markets. For instance, I’ve seen a m4/3 to Sony E adaptor, and that is a comparable ~20mm to ~18mm working space.

Typically, the advice is to find a broken Fuji X lens or telecoverter, and salvage the mount from that as a replacement for the Kipon lens mount.

Kipon, or a dealer, may be willing to let you trade in the L-mount for an X-mount if you ask. (Or an M-mount which could be used on both systems with an adaptor.)

L-mount is also a great system, with great colour and interesting features - so perhaps find an older, cheap Leica T to use it with if you don’t already have an L-mount camera.

Will the L-M to FX adapters work?

As stated, this is a different Leica mount from the mid-Twentieth century. M-lenses are popular for adapting to multiple different mirrourless mounts.

Thanks

If you find such an adaptor or other solution then please report back

 

[CrashTestHuman]

I am getting a bit confused.

I have an Leica/Panasonic L-Mount lens (same as SL-Mount?) which I would like to adapt to Fujifilm X-mount.

Which adapter should I be using?

Will the L-M to FX adapters work?

Thanks

Some history: The only reason that mount adapters are practical at all for any format is because mirrorless cameras are shallower than SLRs. SLR cameras had to make room for the mirror between the lens and the sensor/film. You don't have a mirror with mirrorless cameras (obviously), so you can fill that difference in space with an empty mount adapter (basically just a spacer ring) and adapt the mounting bayonet at the same time. That makes it relatively easy to convert SLR lenses to newer mounts.

You don't have that extra space when converting one mirrorless mount to another, so adapting requires additional optics in the spacer so as to compensate for the distance you're inserting. This would not only be difficult and expensive, but would almost certainly change the behavior of your lens, so no one really tries to do that.

 

[mainoo]

I am getting a bit confused.

I have an Leica/Panasonic L-Mount lens (same as SL-Mount?)

Yes, the same mount. Also known as T or TL mount, previously.

which I would like to adapt to Fujifilm X-mount.

Which adapter should I be using?

I doubt it exists, however, sometimes unusual unbranded adaptors do appear on eBay or Chinese markets. For instance, I’ve seen a m4/3 to Sony E adaptor, and that is a comparable ~20mm to ~18mm working space.

Typically, the advice is to find a broken Fuji X lens or telecoverter, and salvage the mount from that as a replacement for the Kipon lens mount.

Kipon, or a dealer, may be willing to let you trade in the L-mount for an X-mount if you ask. (Or an M-mount which could be used on both systems with an adaptor.)

L-mount is also a great system, with great colour and interesting features - so perhaps find an older, cheap Leica T to use it with if you don’t already have an L-mount camera.

Will the L-M to FX adapters work?

As stated, this is a different Leica mount from the mid-Twentieth century. M-lenses are popular for adapting to multiple different mirrourless mounts.

Thanks

If you find such an adaptor or other solution then please report back

I found this and this - I am more than a bit dubious though. K&F list this adapter as being for mounting Leica M to Fuji and they don't even list L mount as a category of lens for which they make adapters. Either the 2 outlets are mis-selling or they know something we don't.

 

[Strangefinder]

I am getting a bit confused.

I have an Leica/Panasonic L-Mount lens (same as SL-Mount?)

Yes, the same mount. Also known as T or TL mount, previously.

which I would like to adapt to Fujifilm X-mount.

Which adapter should I be using?

I doubt it exists, however, sometimes unusual unbranded adaptors do appear on eBay or Chinese markets. For instance, I’ve seen a m4/3 to Sony E adaptor, and that is a comparable ~20mm to ~18mm working space.

Typically, the advice is to find a broken Fuji X lens or telecoverter, and salvage the mount from that as a replacement for the Kipon lens mount.

Kipon, or a dealer, may be willing to let you trade in the L-mount for an X-mount if you ask. (Or an M-mount which could be used on both systems with an adaptor.)

L-mount is also a great system, with great colour and interesting features - so perhaps find an older, cheap Leica T to use it with if you don’t already have an L-mount camera.

Will the L-M to FX adapters work?

As stated, this is a different Leica mount from the mid-Twentieth century. M-lenses are popular for adapting to multiple different mirrourless mounts.

Thanks

If you find such an adaptor or other solution then please report back

I found this and this - I am more than a bit dubious though. K&F list this adapter as being for mounting Leica M to Fuji and they don't even list L mount as a category of lens for which they make adapters. Either the 2 outlets are mis-selling or they know something we don't.

The images are of the Leica M to Fuji X adaptor. An adaptor from Leica/Sigma/Panasonic L to Fuji X would be a thin disc, a bit like the Leica M to Fuji GFX adaptor, but even more delicate. It’s unlikely to be made, as it would be easily damaged, and would be of limited use except with all-manual third-party lenses which are probably already available in both X and L mounts.

 

[mainoo]

The images are of the Leica M to Fuji X adaptor. An adaptor from Leica/Sigma/Panasonic L to Fuji X would be a thin disc, a bit like the Leica M to Fuji GFX adaptor, but even more delicate. It’s unlikely to be made, as it would be easily damaged, and would be of limited use except with all-manual third-party lenses which are probably already available in both X and L mounts.

Thanks for responding.

I realise that there are only millimetres in it but, I thought, who knows maybe the tech exists (all sorts of materials are being used nowadays).

I'm a bit confused by the second part of your response - the purpose of the adapter would be to mount Lumix S lenses to Fuji cameras specifically - I would expect there to be quite a market for that (if it were technically, economically, etc feasible). Am I missing the point?

 

[Strangefinder]

The images are of the Leica M to Fuji X adaptor. An adaptor from Leica/Sigma/Panasonic L to Fuji X would be a thin disc, a bit like the Leica M to Fuji GFX adaptor, but even more delicate. It’s unlikely to be made, as it would be easily damaged, and would be of limited use except with all-manual third-party lenses which are probably already available in both X and L mounts.

Thanks for responding.

I realise that there are only millimetres in it but, I thought, who knows maybe the tech exists (all sorts of materials are being used nowadays).

I'm a bit confused by the second part of your response - the purpose of the adapter would be to mount Lumix S lenses to Fuji cameras specifically - I would expect there to be quite a market for that (if it were technically, economically, etc feasible). Am I missing the point?

I think it would be technically and commercially challenging to incorporate reverse-engineered chips into such a narrow, flat object for such a small market. In a few years, the market may be there as a motivator, but the technical challenges would remain.

None of the first-party lenses (Leica, Sigma, Panasonic) are all-manual. Whereas, IRIX, Kipon, Sirui, Venus etc, generally provide lenses in Fuji X and Leica L both already.

It’s not without precedence. The three comparable products are:

• M to GFX, this doesn’t require electronics, and has more depth and width to work with. The M market is large.
• Unbranded eBay M4/3 to E. There are Voigtländers and Laowa which could be used with this. Difficult to find, and lacking support/re-course/confidence since it is unbranded.
• E to Nikon Z with electronics. Again, wider and with a hungry market (many Nikon F shooters switched to Sony E years ago and built E-mount collections, then switched again to Z, but it lacked lenses.)

--
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"If lies can begin wars then the truth can end them." Jx/xxn Xssxngx
“Remember that all through history, there have been tyrants and murderers, and for a time, they seem invincible. But in the end, they always fall. Always.” Gandhi

 

[mainoo]

I think it would be technically and commercially challenging to incorporate reverse-engineered chips into such a narrow, flat object for such a small market. In a few years, the market may be there as a motivator, but the technical challenges would remain.

None of the first-party lenses (Leica, Sigma, Panasonic) are all-manual. Whereas, IRIX, Kipon, Sirui, Venus etc, generally provide lenses in Fuji X and Leica L both already.

It’s not without precedence. The three comparable products are:

• M to GFX, this doesn’t require electronics, and has more depth and width to work with. The M market is large.
• Unbranded eBay M4/3 to E. There are Voigtländers and Laowa which could be used with this. Difficult to find, and lacking support/re-course/confidence since it is unbranded.
• E to Nikon Z with electronics. Again, wider and with a hungry market (many Nikon F shooters switched to Sony E years ago and built E-mount collections, then switched again to Z, but it lacked lenses.)

Thank you very much for taking the time to respond so fulsomely.

 

[Strangefinder]

Thank you very much for taking the time to respond so fulsomely.

You’re welcome

 

[Tom Schum]

Maybe Kipon could change the mount for you.

From the Wikipedia article:

Flange focal distance - Wikipedia

Leica L mount is 20mm, from the flange surface to the sensor.

Leica M mount is 27.80mm.

Fuji X mount is 17.7mm.

A dumb adapter for Fuji X to mount L mount lenses would be 2.3mm thick, less than 0.1".

From this Wikipedia article:

Lens mount - Wikipedia

Throat diameter is the size of the hole in the lens mount. For Fuji X it is 49mm and for L mount it is 51.6mm. So, you can't nest one inside the other.

Camera manufacturers provide space around their lens mounts in order to accomodate the outside diameter of their lenses. Chances are, the L mount is going to be too wide for the Fuji camera anyway.

My guess is that an adapter without optics is not possible.

Kipon charged me 2x the price of the Fuji version for my L mount version of their 75mm F2.4. I see in B&H that the 40mm Ibelux F0.85 is $1080 for Fuji X and $1480 for L mount even though both are for APS-C.

 

[kamerakiri]

I am getting a bit confused.

I have an Leica/Panasonic L-Mount lens (same as SL-Mount?) which I would like to adapt to Fujifilm X-mount.

Which adapter should I be using?

Will the L-M to FX adapters work?

Thanks

The adapter should be a thin disc. It can be made. But L mount is not very popular. Fuji X to Nikon Z adapter became available just a year ago. It is a 1.3 mm disc. L mount to Fuji X would be a 2.3 mm disc. So it is possible to make it. Just that it has not been done till now.

If you know any CNC machine shop guy/service that can do a custom design for you, maybe that's the only option for now. Or go to a lens repair guy and see if he can add some thin rings and replace the mount with a Fuji one.

 

[mainoo]

I am getting a bit confused.

I have an Leica/Panasonic L-Mount lens (same as SL-Mount?) which I would like to adapt to Fujifilm X-mount.

Which adapter should I be using?

Will the L-M to FX adapters work?

Thanks

The adapter should be a thin disc. It can be made. But L mount is not very popular. Fuji X to Nikon Z adapter became available just a year ago. It is a 1.3 mm disc. L mount to Fuji X would be a 2.3 mm disc. So it is possible to make it. Just that it has not been done till now.

If you know any CNC machine shop guy/service that can do a custom design for you, maybe that's the only option for now. Or go to a lens repair guy and see if he can add some thin rings and replace the mount with a Fuji one.

Thanks for responding.

The idea would be to be able to use the L mount glass on both L and X so an adapter would be the way to go (as opposed to changing the mount on the lens).

Looked into CNC shops and they do exist but I wouldn't begin to know how to go about specifying what I need -

what does the profile of each mount type look like?

Is there sufficient depth to accommodate all the protrusions and cutouts (the X to Z adapter that you referenced suggests the answer is yes).

what the cost would be.

Still looking into it because then my strategy wouldn't be to buy canon adapters for both (which will cost quite a bit). Anyone with any experience of designing, speccing or making an adapter like to chime in?

 

[kamerakiri]

I am getting a bit confused.

I have an Leica/Panasonic L-Mount lens (same as SL-Mount?) which I would like to adapt to Fujifilm X-mount.

Which adapter should I be using?

Will the L-M to FX adapters work?

Thanks

The adapter should be a thin disc. It can be made. But L mount is not very popular. Fuji X to Nikon Z adapter became available just a year ago. It is a 1.3 mm disc. L mount to Fuji X would be a 2.3 mm disc. So it is possible to make it. Just that it has not been done till now.

If you know any CNC machine shop guy/service that can do a custom design for you, maybe that's the only option for now. Or go to a lens repair guy and see if he can add some thin rings and replace the mount with a Fuji one.

Thanks for responding.

The idea would be to be able to use the L mount glass on both L and X so an adapter would be the way to go (as opposed to changing the mount on the lens).

Looked into CNC shops and they do exist but I wouldn't begin to know how to go about specifying what I need -

what does the profile of each mount type look like?

Is there sufficient depth to accommodate all the protrusions and cutouts (the X to Z adapter that you referenced suggests the answer is yes).

what the cost would be.

Still looking into it because then my strategy wouldn't be to buy canon adapters for both (which will cost quite a bit). Anyone with any experience of designing, speccing or making an adapter like to chime in?

I will suggest that the best(and easiest) bet right now is to contact the guys at Fotodiox, Inc. – Fotodiox, Inc. USA

Fotodiox, Inc.

Fotodiox, Inc. USA

fotodioxpro.com

They are very friendly and specialise in all manner of mount adapter production. It is possible that they may have such an adapter in works. If you request, they can probably run a short batch in China and make one available in a few months. The quality and controls of their adapters are very good. You can probably ring them up and talk in person if you live in US.

I mean, it is better than nothing.

 

[Tom Schum]

what the cost would be.

Still looking into it because then my strategy wouldn't be to buy canon adapters for both (which will cost quite a bit). Anyone with any experience of designing, speccing or making an adapter like to chime in?

For the Kipon lens, there are no electronics so low cost Canon adapters are out there.

I bought one for my Fuji X, and I believe it was in the $30 range.

For L mount, Adorama has the "Urth Canon EF/EF-S Lens Mount to Leica L Camera Mount Adapter" in stock for $34.

If your non-electronic lenses are Canon EF mount, adapters are certainly affordable. But, you would have to get a Kipon lens with EF mount. And, you already have one with the L mount. Problem!

 

[mainoo]

I will suggest that the best(and easiest) bet right now is to contact the guys at Fotodiox, Inc. – Fotodiox, Inc. USA

https://fotodioxpro.com/

They are very friendly and specialise in all manner of mount adapter production. It is possible that they may have such an adapter in works. If you request, they can probably run a short batch in China and make one available in a few months. The quality and controls of their adapters are very good. You can probably ring them up and talk in person if you live in US.

I mean, it is better than nothing.

Thanks for suggesting this. I just got off the phone to tech support and, as you said, they were friendly and helpful. Nothing in the works right now but the person was going to send a message to the owner to let them know there is interest. So, if you are interested in this possibility, you might want to add your voice at some point.

From the conversation, 3 challenges were identified (over and above the mechanical challenges):

• Lack of AF - which, for me is not an issue - I'd be happy to focus manually.
• The behaviour of the clutch when engaging manual focus - is it a purely mechanical action or switching between MF and AF involve electronic connection with the body? If electronic then this would preclude just making a dumb adapter.
• Actual focus -is it manual of focus by wire. Same considerations as above.

So, it looks like there might be more to this than just going the custom route and paying a CNC shop to turn one out for you (not that that is simple).

Thanks again

 

[mainoo]

what the cost would be.

Still looking into it because then my strategy wouldn't be to buy canon adapters for both (which will cost quite a bit). Anyone with any experience of designing, speccing or making an adapter like to chime in?

For the Kipon lens, there are no electronics so low cost Canon adapters are out there.

I bought one for my Fuji X, and I believe it was in the $30 range.

For L mount, Adorama has the "Urth Canon EF/EF-S Lens Mount to Leica L Camera Mount Adapter" in stock for $34.

If your non-electronic lenses are Canon EF mount, adapters are certainly affordable. But, you would have to get a Kipon lens with EF mount. And, you already have one with the L mount. Problem!

Thank you for responding.

To clarify, I do not have a kipon lens - so far, just the 70-200/4. The only other lenses I am considering getting are the lumix 50mm 1.5 or the Sigma 40mm 1.4. I am looking for a way to use these lenses on my Fuji camera (in all manual mode). I would be willing to pay quite a bit for such an adapter as it would allow me to shoot them (and any other L mount I get) natively and still use them on the Fuji X-H1.

I expect it will be possible to find a CNC shop to make one but I would need to be quite certain of the design - and that's where the problem lies.

 

[Strangefinder]

I will suggest that the best(and easiest) bet right now is to contact the guys at Fotodiox, Inc. – Fotodiox, Inc. USA

https://fotodioxpro.com/

They are very friendly and specialise in all manner of mount adapter production. It is possible that they may have such an adapter in works. If you request, they can probably run a short batch in China and make one available in a few months. The quality and controls of their adapters are very good. You can probably ring them up and talk in person if you live in US.

I mean, it is better than nothing.

Thanks for suggesting this. I just got off the phone to tech support and, as you said, they were friendly and helpful. Nothing in the works right now but the person was going to send a message to the owner to let them know there is interest. So, if you are interested in this possibility, you might want to add your voice at some point.

From the conversation, 3 challenges were identified (over and above the mechanical challenges):

• Lack of AF - which, for me is not an issue - I'd be happy to focus manually.
• The behaviour of the clutch when engaging manual focus - is it a purely mechanical action or switching between MF and AF involve electronic connection with the body? If electronic then this would preclude just making a dumb adapter.
• Actual focus -is it manual of focus by wire. Same considerations as above.

The "DN" lenses and Lumix S / S PRO lenses are focus-by-wire. The "HSM" (SLR-based design) lenses should all focus mechanically, except for the macro. Aperture may remain wide-open, or possibly be able to be changed on an L-mount camera then transferred to the adaptor. ND-based exposure may be required in some conditions.

So, it looks like there might be more to this than just going the custom route and paying a CNC shop to turn one out for you (not that that is simple).

Thanks again