Alright, I've had it! I'm making my own Tilt-shift lens!

[Dubious Drewski]

I just won a medium format lens on Ebay (A Bronica Zenzanon f2.8 75mm, whatever the heck that is) And just now, after work I went and bought some 1/8th inch plywood, woodworking tools, some heavy black fabric and some sewing needles.

I've decided on a bellows system, held rigid by a notched-locked wooden frame. This thing is going to be a monster. I'll update this thread as progress is made. By the way, it was this fellow who finally inspired me to try it myself.

Have any of you undertaken a DIY project like this? Do you guys know of any pitfalls you'd like to warn me of when creating your own tilt-shift lens?

 

[xxx_jpk_xxx]

I'm way excited to see if this turns out. I've been wanting to do this myself really badly since they don't make Lens Babies for D-SLRs (as far as I know). You should keep us updated on the progress and upload pictures as you go. If yours turns out well, I'm definitely going to give it a try.

Good luck!

 

[reg]

I'm way excited to see if this turns out. I've been wanting to do this myself really badly since they don't make Lens Babies for D-SLRs

You can put any lensbaby on a dslr?

 

[Dubious Drewski]

Good news. They do in fact make lens babies for DSLRs, because the mounts for EOS Canon, some Nikon and all Pentax are the same whether they're digital or film. So a lens baby built for one will likely fit on the other.

 

[xxx_jpk_xxx]

Ah, really? That's cool. I had no clue. I may just get one of those, then. When are you going to get started on your DIY lens?

 

[Dubious Drewski]

The lens needs to sit a certain distance from my camera body. So to create my bellows at the proper size, I need to test that distance by looking through it and checking my focus range. I also need to create the brackets which will hold it in place, but I can't do that until I find out the diameter of the bayonet on this big thing. (EDIT: I just realized that I don't know if this lens is bayonet or screw mount. Oh boy! This will be an adventure!)

So really, I can't do jack-all until the lens physically arrives at my door.

 

[xxx_jpk_xxx]

Oh, it's not here? Whoops.

 

[icassell]

This sounds like a cool project. I've been wanting a T/S lens for some time -- have almost sprung for the Kiev one on several occasions ...

I can't wait to see how it works out for you.

Ian

 

[Dubious Drewski]

Hmm. Guys, can you look at the photo from the link in the OP and tell me if you think this lens looks like it has an aperture ring? I really really hope I didn't buy a lens without an aperture ring, because then this whole project is in trouble and I wasted my cash.

I kind of just bought the lens without asking any questions from the seller. Argh. Ebay is a curse as much as it's a blessing.

EDIT: I found some more pictures of it, and I think it's a bit clearer now. So the aperture ring is up at the front of these lenses, then?

 

[Flash Harry]

Its bayonet fitting and aperture control is where it always is, front control is for focus. H

 

[Dubious Drewski]

I don't know about that. Look at the photo:

The front-most ring looks alot like an aperture ring to me.

 

[Battou]

yes the front ring is the aperture, Canons FL lenses are built the same way. PITA once you are accustomed to them in the back but...

 

[Steph]

Interesting project but quite involved IMO. What are you going to use the lens for? 75mm is quite a long lens on a Pentax dSLR. Also, as far as I know the aperture of this lens is controlled via electric contacts from the camera body (you set the aperture with the front ring, but the lens stays fully opened until you press the shutter). If you want to stop down the lens you will have to press the depth of field preview button on the lens while you are taking the picture (not very practical).

An easier way to do it might have been to use an old M42 lens with manual aperture control. Those were designed for 35mm film and the image circle should cover an APS-c sized sensor with some movements.

 

[Steph]

Thinking about it a bit more, you might also run into problems with focusing distances. If your 'bellows' are too long you won't be able to focus farther than a few inches.

 

[Dubious Drewski]

I did think about those things, Steph. 75mm is an alright focal length for me. That's going to feel like 112mm on my K10. That's fine with me. As for using a film lens instead of this medium format lens; that's not possible. The reason I'm specifically using a medium format lens is they sit further away from the film plane than lenses for APS-C and 35mm do. This gives me room to add my bellows without turning it into a macro lens. If I used a lens meant for regular full frame, I'd have a macro lens no matter what I tried. It must be medium format.

And the bellows/wood frame system I'm creating will be calibrated to sit at the proper distance from the camera body, but the notch system will allow me to modify it further. I could use it like a tilt shift or I could purposely lock the lens out further to create an extention-tubed macro. It's all good.

The only thing that worries me is your mention of the electronic aperture. Are you sure about this? The guy who inspired me (In the OP) used almost this exact lens to make his and it seemed to work fine for him.