Canon FD lenses. Any good?

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I see alot of FD lenses on ebay that sell pretty cheap compared to EOS lenses. I have a canon 350D. They sell adapters for my cam so i can use the FD lenses on my cam. I'm wondering if those lenses are worth buying...
 
The adapters are in reality teleconverters with very poor optics in. The glass element is required due to different register distance in EOS cameras. So I wouldn't waste money on them.

Canon made a small batch of converters for some selected FD L super telephotos but they are very rare and expensive.
 
Some of the FD lenses were superb, and you can pick them up quite cheaply now, but I'd forget about using them on an EOS camera.

The best option is to buy a Canon film body, if you really want to experiment with FD glass. I've also heard of people in the US machining the mount to fit EOS bodies without an adapter. It seems to work well, but I haven't a clue what it costs and get the impression it's an enthusiasts project. There seems to be an appetite for this sort of thing in the States, because it's possible and a bit different. Converting Minolta Rokkor 50mm f1.2s is popular too.
 
I can echo the sentiment above for general use. However, using an FD macro lens with a glassless adapter is a very viable option and they come in about 1/3 the cost of an EOS mount equivalent. Operation will be purely manual and there won't be the ability to focus out to infinity but they're a very cheap way to get a good macro lens.

Bob
 
This has come up many times on different forums over the past few years, each time the answers seem to follow the same old pattern, you can't do it.

Well sorry, but yes you can if your prepared to give it a go and not listen to the herd mentality. On a number of forums I visit members are now trying the adapters for themselves and are suprised how good the results are, so they cannot be as bad as they are painted.

I have been using FD lenses on my 350D for 2 years now and I get great results from them, providing you stop down a couple of stops from maximum aperture.

Take a look here at some of the pics I have taken with FD lenses.

http://johnrollason.fotopic.net/c1429102_1.html





John :)
 
Thanks for replying. I see that some of the adapters do have a glass in it but i think this one is without glass and has buy it now option for $42.00. I'll paste what it says in the auction.

This is the adapter for using Canon FD manual focus lenses on Canon EOS auto focus mount and DIGITAL Cameras by manual focusing under manual exposure control or by using aperture-priority AE.

It allows you to use CANON FD mount lenses and macro accessories on Canon EOS cameras. The lens distance scale can be used as well as the focusing to infinity and the adapter has correction lens inside.

Package includes:

Converter for Canon FD to EF


Edited. Ok i have reread and yes i think it do have a glass inside...
Body Cap

Lens Cover

User manual (English)

Link http://cgi.ebay.com/Converter-Adapt...iewItemQQptZCamera_Lenses?hash=item3efa19bbbd

What you guys think about it now. Anymore thoughts?
 
j37r said:
I get great results from them, providing you stop down a couple of stops from maximum aperture.

Take a look here at some of the pics I have taken with FD lenses.

http://johnrollason.fotopic.net/c1429102_1.html
Click to expand...
It's good to hear that you're happy with the results, John, but to be honest the pictures in your gallery are too small to prove anything. Those pictures are 600 x 400 pixels, which is 0.24 megapixels. You could put any old bit of glass on the front of your camera and get results which look good at that size. It would be a more meaningful exercise if you posted larger pictures.
 
there are plenty of other brands of lens and adapter that are much better, so it's not really worth it IMO.

I have / use the M42 and olympus adapters ... no glass in the adapter ... some great lenses to choose from !

EDIT >> remember ... if FD glass was a good option, more people would be doing it, and they would be more expensive !
 
I had a look at the forum rules on images, no larger than 800 pixels on the longest side and no more than 200kb if hosted in an album on this site, if a link is used to full size image on a hosting site, it is still restricted to this site's limit or the link is broken by the admin staff.

Here is a link to a picture I posted recently on another site, it was taken with a Sigma FD 70-210mm F3.5 APO.

http://photo.net/canon-fd-camera-forum/00UuqD

scroll down the page to the picture.


John :)
 
Thanks everyone for all the info. I've been using the cheap 18-55mm ef lens and 75-300mm lens with pretty good results. I just now ordered a Canon 50mm 1.8. It's suppose to be sharp so maybe i can get some decent photos with it. Should have it in a week or so...
 
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