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Combine Your Leica M Visoflex System with SLRs
OK, Visoflex fans, this is it, the greatest thing since sliced bread. By mounting your Viso M system on a modern camera like the Nikon N90s, you can gain features like 4 fps motordrive, TTL flash metering, sophisticated data back, and 1/250th flash sync -- among others. The advantages you gain depend upon the SLR of your choice. Shown above are 135/4 Tele-Elmar and 90/2 Summicron Leica M rangefinder lens heads mounted on the Leica M Bellows II, using the same Leica adapters used to mount these lens heads onto the Visoflex II or III. The Visoflex adapter fits between the bellows and SLR body, and is available in most popular SLR mounts.
With these CameraQuest adapters, you can replace your Visoflex with the Nikon, Canon EOS, Canon FD, Minolta Maxxum, Pentax K, or Contax/Yashica of your choice. Extremely well, these adapters will work beautifully and enable you to combine parts of several camera systems.
To the left is the 90/2 Summicron M lens head on the N90s. To the right is the 135/4 Tele-Elmar M lens head on the Bellows 2 with Nikon F2AS
Viso M 90/2 Summicron on Nikon FE-2.
While all SLR bodies in the above mounts should mount the adapter and Viso M lenses with helicals, some larger bodies such as the Nikon F5 will not mount on the Bellows II without an extension tube, which may limit focusing to close ups.
Leica Visoflex M to Nikon F, Canon EOS, Canon FD, Minolta Maxxum, Pentax K, or Contax/Yashica RTS $175
The Visoflex to SLR adapters are very well made, strong, and easy to use.
If you are new to Leica and confused by the terminology, the Visoflex is a discontinued Leica made Reflex Housing which converts the Leica M cameras to a SLR. Besides using the lens heads off various 90, 120, and 135 rangefinder lenses, special lenses were made for it as well. It is long discontinued. Described on this page is a new adapter not of Leica manufacturer, which allows the Visoflex M system to be used with other SLR systems, enabling the photog to combine different camera outfits. More on the various Visoflex lenses can be found at this site, or you can visit Gary Elshaw's Visoflex Page.
Revised: November 26, 2003 . Copyright © 2002 Stephen Gandy. All rights reserved. This means you may NOT copy and re-use the text or the pictures in ANY other internet or printed publication of ANY kind. Information in this document is subject to change without notice. Other products and companies referred to herein are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective companies or mark holders.
