Question 1

How do I know if a lens can be adapted to my camera?

Accepted Answer

Compare flange focal distances — the gap between the mount and the sensor. An adapter can only add distance, never remove it, so a lens adapts cleanly when its own system has a LONGER flange distance than your camera’s. That is why almost anything goes on mirrorless mounts (16–20 mm) and almost nothing goes on PL (52 mm).

Question 2

Can I put PL lenses on a Sony, Canon RF or L-Mount camera?

Accepted Answer

Yes. PL sits at 52 mm and mirrorless mounts at 16–20 mm, leaving room for a solid mechanical adapter. Use lens support: a mirrorless bayonet is not built to carry a cine zoom. Also check coverage — many PL lenses only cover Super 35, so a full-frame body needs its S35 crop mode.

Question 3

Why can’t I use Canon FD lenses on a Canon EF camera?

Accepted Answer

FD lenses expect the sensor 42 mm away; EF bodies put it at 44 mm. The lens ends up 2 mm too far forward and loses infinity focus. Glass adapters fix that but soften the image, so people either replace the mount (EdMika conversion kits) or use a mirrorless camera, where FD adapts trivially.

Question 4

What is a speed booster?

Accepted Answer

A focal reducer: an adapter with optics that squeezes a full-frame image circle onto a smaller sensor. You get a wider field of view (typically 0.71x) and about one stop more light. It only works when the lens covers more than the sensor needs — full-frame glass on Super 35 or Micro Four Thirds.

Question 5

Will an adapted lens keep autofocus and iris control?

Accepted Answer

Only with an electronic adapter, and only for electronic lenses — in practice Canon EF glass onto Sony E, Canon RF, L-Mount, Nikon Z, Fujifilm X and MFT. Everything else is a plain ring: manual focus, and iris on the lens itself.

Question 6

Does the lens cover my sensor?

Accepted Answer

Mounting and covering are separate questions. A Super 35 lens on a full-frame camera mounts fine but vignettes until you switch to the camera’s S35 crop mode. We flag every such pairing with “needs crop mode”.

Mount	Flange distance	Throat	Type	Since
Nikon Z	16 mm	55 mm	mirrorless	2018
C-mount16mm-format lenses: most cover no more than a Super 16 / 1-inch sensor.	17.526 mm	25.4 mm	cine	1926
Fujifilm X	17.7 mm	43.5 mm	mirrorless	2012
Sony E	18 mm	46.1 mm	mirrorless	2010
Canon EF-M	18 mm	47 mm	mirrorless	2012
Micro Four Thirds	19.25 mm	38 mm	mirrorless	2008
Canon RF	20 mm	54 mm	mirrorless	2018
L-Mount	20 mm	51.6 mm	mirrorless	2014
Fujifilm G	26.7 mm	65 mm	mirrorless	2017
Leica M	27.8 mm	44 mm	rangefinder	1954
Canon FD	42 mm	48 mm	slr	1971
Minolta SR (MC/MD)	43.5 mm	45 mm	slr	1958
Canon EF	44 mm	54 mm	slr	1987
ARRI LPL	44 mm	62 mm	cine	2018
M42 screw	45.46 mm	42 mm	slr	1949
Pentax K	45.46 mm	44 mm	slr	1975
Contax/Yashica	45.5 mm	48 mm	slr	1975
Olympus OM	46 mm	46 mm	slr	1972
Nikon F	46.5 mm	44 mm	slr	1959
Leica R	47 mm	49 mm	slr	1964
B4 (2/3" broadcast)Designed for 3-chip prism cameras with a 2/3" image circle — only usable on larger sensors through an optical adapter.	48 mm	46 mm	broadcast	1992
ARRI PL	52 mm	54 mm	cine	1982
ARRI Standard	52 mm	41 mm	cine	1937
ARRI Bayonet	52 mm	41 mm	cine	1965
Panavision PV	57.15 mm	49.5 mm	cine	1972
OCT-19 (Lomo / Konvas)	61 mm	47 mm	cine	1950
Mitchell BNCR	61.47 mm	68 mm	cine	1967
Mamiya 645	63.3 mm	62 mm	medium format	1975
Hasselblad V	74.9 mm	69 mm	medium format	1957
Pentax 6x7	84.95 mm	72 mm	medium format	1969

lens ↓ body →	Z	C	X	E	EF-M	MFT	RF	L	GFX	M	FD	SR	EF	LPL	M42	K	C/Y	OM	F	R	B4	PL	Arri-S	Arri-B	PV	OCT-19	BNCR	M645	HV	P67
Z
C
X
E
EF-M
MFT
RF
L
GFX
M
FD
SR
EF
LPL
M42
K
C/Y
OM
F
R
B4
PL
Arri-S
Arri-B
PV
OCT-19
BNCR
M645
HV
P67

Cameras that take the KMZ Helios 40-2 85mm f/1.5

M42 screw → Canon EF

M42 screw → Sony E

M42 screw → Canon RF

M42 screw → L-Mount

M42 screw → Micro Four Thirds

M42 screw → ARRI LPL

Flange focal distance chart

Adapter matrix

Adapting lenses, answered

Know what fits — and what’s free on the day