Olympus Zuiko 135 F4.5 Bellows Lens

No experience, but that is a BEAUTIFUL image!

today the last stuff needed to mount the lens correctly on my minolta tilt shift bellows arrived. The problem with mounting an old mount lens on to an equally old but different bellows is finding the correct adapter. The person who recommended the lens to me( not the particular one I purchased) had told me how to assemble an adapter:

The following equipment was needed

• Olympus OM - MFT adapter


• A MFT extension ring set


• A Step down filter adapter


• A reversing ring

I had been told specific sizes but like in the army every plan is perfect until contact with the army.

How the adapter is assembled is you take the front ring from the extension ring set and fit it on the the OM to MFT adapter{ MFT = Micro Four thirds}. Now my advisor had got an extension ring set with a 57mm thread diameter, I had purchased every thing on ebay he had advised. Yet when I received MFT extension ring set I found I had nearly everything I needed. The reason being the thread on my extension ring set is 52mm. I only had to buy a different filter step down ring. I purchased a 55-52mm step down ring. this ring is used as a 52mm male to 52mm male connector. I connected it to the male 52mm thread on the front piece from the extension ring set. I then attached a 52mm Reversing ring to the other side of the step down filter. Note it is very important to get a cheap step down filter ring( the type where the female thread, 52mm in this case, extends for the complete width of the step down ring). The better made ones don't have the female thread extending all the way through.

Heres a picture of the lens and the bits needed to mount it:



Now in assembling the adapter I realised there may be a simpler approach using the OM-MFT adapter the MFT extension ring set( just the front element) and a Minolta MD extension ring set(modern type same as the MFT) the rear element of the MD extension ring set may fit into teh front element of the MFT extension set. One can always make do with another extension ring set.. so One is in the post...when it arrives I will know if it will work.

The lens performance is brilliant.. I can say with out a doubt this is the best bellows lens I have( it even has a focusing helicoid for fine focus. to keep tisshort heres two links with details about the lens( first one you need to scroll down:

http://www.mir.com.my/rb/photograph...rozuikoE.htm

http://www.alanwood.net/photography...-135-45.html

I took some test photos. these are straight out of the camera with no editing: After the first photo I put a Circular polarizing filter on the lens:



I then tried a dime( smaller than the shilling) I had to add an extension tube to the bellows to get it to fill the sensor( Note Used full shift, 5mm, hence the dark right hand corners)



By way of comparison the Shilling with the same extension tube:



These photos can be improved on. They were just tests and as yet I haven't worked out what the best F stop for this lens is
Btw This lens gave me what I wanted...a long subject to lens distance:
With the bellows at full extension plus an extension tube( giving a total of 34 cm from the lens front to the camera sensor. I had a distance of 20cm between the coin and then lens ( 30 cm = 1Ft)

edit: I had a much more serious attempt with an NZ penny. the lens is brilliant....but I would love to see what it could do on a Full frame camera with EFCS: { @ F8 , seems to be best, colour is correct to life....I picked the coin because it is one of those diabolical subjects}

Those are phenomenal! Well worth the extra work. That Thaler shows outstanding detail for such subtle colors. I'd be tempted to brighten it a bit, but those are beautiful. You must be rather pleased!