Fujifilm Pro X1 or Sony Nex 7....What to do?

[federico_prieto]

<p>I am very interested in to buy a Fujifilm Pro X1 mainly for use with a trio of M mount lenses I have, and may be with a lot of Olympus OM and some Mamiya 645 lenses I have collected over the years.<br /><br />But I am very affraid to take this decision because I understand the original Fuji adaptor for leica lenses does not works very well and, worst than that, this beautiful Fuji camera has serious problems with manual focus operation.<br />If that´s right, my I guess an intelligent option is to buy the Sony Nex-7.<br /><br />Any usefull comments about?<br /><br />tia</p>

<p>Federico</p>

[SCL]

<p>Personally, I'd want to hands on test out both if I was in your position. Nothing substitutes for personal judgement...what works for one person might be totally unsatisfactory for another.</p>

[peter_gilbert4]

<p>Which M mount lenses do you have? The NEX 7 has issues with lenses having focal lengths wider than about 25mm (magenta cast and corner smearing), most of which can be corrected using CornerFix but not entirely. OTOH the NEX with focus peaking is wonderful (I use a NEX 5N that has the same peaking function). The Fuji supposedly has some in-camera corrections (JPEG only?) that can be applied to up to 6 lenses (i.e. different focal lengths) provided that you use Fuji's own M adapter. The NEX 7 will work well with your OM lenses though.<br>

<br /> What type of photography do you do? Slow, contemplative style (landscapes etc) then AF speed is of minor importance, but accurate manual focusing is a requirement. I have not used a Fuji in MF mode (my friend who let me play with his for a short time has only the 35mm Fuji lens and no M adapter so I could not try my CV lenses), but I found the Fuji viewfinder hard to get used to, mostly because I needed a diopter adjustment (shame on Fuji for not including a variable adjustment in the camera).<br>

<br /> Another option for you might be the upcoming NEX 6 which is basically a NEX 7 but with a new 16mp sensor. This should be announced (officially!) in September, I suppose during the Photokina show. The 16mp sensor used in the NEX 5N is much better with the wide rangefinder type lenses (non retrofocus design) compared to the 24mp sensor in the NEX 7, but no-one yet knows if the 16mp sensor that will be in the NEX 6 (and NEX 5R that is supposed to be announced next week) will perform as well as the one currently in the 5N. I need CornerFix with my 15mm, and sometimes with my 21mm, but only rarely with my 28mm.<br>

<br /> There was another "leak" just today of a new Fuji camera body, the X-E1, that looks like the X-Pro1 but without the hybrid viewfinder, i.e. the X-E1 just has an EVF (for the new zoom lens also being released). Nothing known about this yet, but again, Photokina should be the time it's officially announced so then you can compare both the NEX 6 and the Fuji X-E1 as well as the NEX 7 and X-Pro1.<br>

<br /> I second what Stephen said, these cameras are so different you need to handle both before deciding. You might want to rent both from LensRentals for a week or so and try for yourself (if you are outside the USA there may be an equivalent place to rent from?)</p>

[carbon_dragon]

I've noticed very few magenta corner issues with my NEX 7 with wide lenses just I noticed few problems with the Leica

M8. People are different and what bothers some doesn't bother others.

[federico_prieto]

<p>Thanks a lot for your comments. I like a lot the fuji camera and I consider it is -in an aesthetically way- the camera that has one of most beauty body around.</p>

<p>But in my case an accurate manual focusing is mandatory and I am affraid the Xpro can't do that. I have not option for to test both cameras before the buy. So, looks like the nex 7 is a more intelligent option for me. I can use my leica lenses without important problems, and other lenses to like OM Zuiko and may the Mamiyas 645 (I have an arsenal of mamiyas and Olympus lenses). By other side, buying the Nex7 I can save some $$$</p>

<p>In any case I am open to hear manual focusing experiences with this Fuji</p>

<p>Federico</p>

[carbon_dragon]

<p>The magnification options and focus peaking make the NEX-7 very nice for manual lenses. I'm having a lot of fun with a whole range of adapters including Leica M, Contax RF, Minolta MC/MD, Contax SLR, Minolta/Sony AF, and so on. </p>

[peter_gilbert4]

<p>@David: I think it's more that lenses are different wrt the amount of fringing. The more symmetrical the lens design, the more prevalent the issue seems to be</p>

[federico_prieto]

<p>David: any special or recommended brand for lens adaptors for the Nex?</p>

[carbon_dragon]

Well I started out with the translucent mirror Sony one and two Novoflex (Leica and Contax SLR). They were all excellent,

but the novolflex for the Contax SLR lacked a tripod mount and honestly those contax lenses are very heavy and I'd be

hesitant putting them on a tripod with the camera mount. I bought a photodiox for the Minolta and it had a tripod mount

and was cheaper. I bought a cheap Contax RF mount and it worked great but it didn't allow me to use internal mount

lenses (50mm). I subsequently bought one from china with some trepidation and it does allow you to use internal mount

and its quite a jewel of an adapter -- the one downside is that focus isn't the easiest turning ring.

 

 

I guess what I'm saying is that if your lenses are heavy get a tripod mount and it seems like you really only have to get the

expensive ones if you're going to use them a LOT and maybe not even then. Start with a cheap one and go from there.

That said the novoflex Leica M mount is really solid and the Sony AF adapter ($300) is a jewel and gives you fast

accurate AF. I use that with the Sony/Zeiss 16-80 zoom. Great.

[peter_gilbert4]

<p>FWIW I use Kipon, Metabones and Hawks Helicoid adapters for M mount to Sony E. The Hawks of course is in a category by itself. The Metabones adapter seems a lot heavier than the Kipon, maybe brass instead of aluminum, but they both work well. I was forced to return a (standard, not their "pro") Fotodiox LM adapter because it failed to focus correctly at infinity (i.e. focused the lens short of infinity). I do own other Fotodiox adapters (Nikon S mount to Sony E, and Tamron Adaptall to Sony E) that work correctly however.</p>

[peter_n1664876959]

<p>I had this same choice for my Leica M lenses and got a NEX-7. So far no problems and I recommend it; the focus peaking is very easy to use. I use Novoflex and LME helicoid adapters for Leica M, and a cheap eBay adapter for Exakta bayonet CZJ lenses. No issues with any of them.</p>

[carbon_dragon]

It's kind of cool using the Zeiss Opton 50/1.5 internal mount Contax RF lens with the NEX-7 but I'm kind of dissapointed in

not being able to use my 21/4.5 because it projects back too far. Dang.

 

 

I feel like we should be able to make sensors which allow you to set the frequency sensitive range in software so you

could easily switch to infrared. The M8 is the closest I've seen to that ideal, but I have to admit I'd like a NEX modified for

Infrared photography.

[federico_prieto]

<p>Peter... may I see some pictures taked by you with leica lenses and Nex7?</p>

<p>tia</p>

<p>federico</p>

[peter_n1664876959]

<p>Sure Federico, no problem. I took a few test pictures in my living room soon after I got the NEX-7 to make sure that the camera and adapters were working properly. They were taken with a 35mm Summicron ASPH and are nothing special but the objects are very familiar to me and I was interested also to see how they were rendered. The one of the books on top of the piano is a significant crop yet the IQ is still very acceptable for what I use a digital camera for - family snaps and suchlike. All are JPEGS straight out of the camera: <a href="http://www.nolan.com/test/">Things in the living room</a>. Camera and lens are shown below.</p><div></div>

[blairhall]

<p>X-Pro1 user here. I've got adapters for M39, M42 and Nikon F. I've had no problem with manual focusing. The two that I use the most are a Jupiter 8 on the M39 adapter and a Nikon 85mm f/1.4 with the Nikon adapter. Both focus just fine. The only gripe I have is a small lag between focusing and the EVF updating. As long as I'm not in a hurry it's not a problem. That being said, and this has been brought up in just about every review of the XP1, it's not a camera made for fast shooting and focus changes. I have the M-mount adapter in anticipation of picking up some Leica or Voigtlander glass in the future, so I can't comment specifically, but I can't see why the manual focus would be different than what I'm using.</p>

<p>Hope this helps... cheers!</p>

[federico_prieto]

<p>Nice pictures Peter... Great camera and fine lens!</p>