m42 + 500d...

[jj_glos]

Apologies for what is probably a much asked simple question, but an "M42" search string is to short to give any answers!

It may be my age, but I like the idea of using old quality lenses on my new bit of kit. I should make it clear at this pont that I am a complete novice at all this! I've just bought a 500d and I see that you can get an m42 convertor (very cheap, or versions that allow you to program aperture?), giving access to a wealth of "cheap" quality lenses. Is this an avenue worth pursuing?

 

[patrickeaton]

The idea is good but be careful. I have one of the basic M42 to Canon ef converters. I purchased it many years ago to allow me to use a M42 perspective shift lens on an EOS film camera. Image processing has made that particular lens more or less redundant. If you already have a few M42 lenses you know are good then why not pick up a converter and experiment?
I am sure there are many lenses out there that are were bench marks for quality in their day, none of which were likely to be zooms I hasten to add, however, you need to take in to account the quality modern lenses have reached. These days for a lens to be considered exceptional it really has to survive intense scrutiny. It is very possible the results from the older lenses may not be as pleasing as you hope. I would still recommend you try, do some comparison tests and have a bit of fun. It is also worth remembering that sadly a lot of older lenses have not survived the test of time as well as we might hope. Sticking irises, fungus and internal lubrication migrating onto the glass are not uncommon problems.