Easily build a tilt lens for Sony mirrorless system for less than $65

Nowadays mirrorless cameras are becoming more and more popular. One thing people adore is its compact size and weight, other, the ability to adapt other system lenses via special adapters.

on the technical side, though, 18 mm flange focal distance allows Sony mirrorless system to adopt practically any other system lenses, like Canon EF, EF-S, Nikon S, F, M42 etc.

Looking native lens lineup at the moment, we see that there are no tilt-shift lenses for Sony. You can adapt other system tilt-shift lenses, but they are pricey, large and heavy. Another option is to thing is to look for workaround. That’s what I did.

I found a tilt M42 to Sony E mount adapter. Price wise it was ~30$, weights 130 grams, provide maximum 8 degree tilt – exactly thing I wanted, the ability to play with focal plane and bokeh. Though it does not have the shift part of a tilt-shift lens, it is good enough for what I need.

From M42 lenses range, I already had a Helios 77m-5 (50mm f/1.8) which I bought for its swirl bokeh and quite acceptable sharpness when used wide open. It would be a nice fit for the adapter (not ot mention that this lens is also around $35-$70)

The left image shows how the combo looks like on a Sony A7II tilted to it’s maximum 8 degrees right. The right image: maximum 8 degrees down.

While this combo will only provide manual focusing, I found it to not be an issue. Sonys have focus peeking and magnification (and the second generation of Sony A7 bodies – also has image stabilization).

Here are some sample images at maximum 8 degree tilt and open wide at f/1.8