Canon EF Lens to Sony NEX Smart Adapter (Mark III)

Key Features

This model MARK III (MB_EF-E-BM3) is discontinued! New version of EF-E Smart Adapter (MARK IV) is available now.

Firmware release note 

  • Name: Firmware update V0.40 for EF-E Smart AdapterTM MARK III
  • Release date: 3 Feb 2015
  • Benefits and improvements:
    • Support Sony A7II with 5-axis or 3-axis stabilization (refer to the following table for stabilization support in Sony A7II).
        pitch/yaw roll x/y
      Sony E-mount OSS lens lens camera camera
      Sony E-mount non-OSS lens camera camera camera
      most Sony A-mount lenses camera camera camera
      manual focus lenses camera camera not available
      Canon IS lens + Metabones lens camera camera
      Canon non-IS lens with distance information + Metabones camera camera camera

      older Canon lenses and Zeiss ZE lenses with no distance information

      camera camera not available
    • In "Green" mode, wide open button on adapter serves double-duty as assignable "Focus hold" button found on Sony G series lenses. You may for example assign "Aperture Preview" to the the "Focus Hold" button on A7II and get the same DOF preview function as on a Canon DSLR. Image Stabilization ON/OFF status is displayed on A7II as the SteadyShot icon. 
    • Adds support for Sony A7s silent shutter mode.
    • Fixed Sony A7s intermittent startup issue.
    • More detailed EXIF data.
    • Reliability improvements with some Sigma and Tamron lenses. 
    • Fixed distance display (in Advanced mode) on VG, FS and A7 series.
    • Fixed EF70-200/2.8L IS II USM's IS on/off switch intermittently inoperative issue. 
    • Fixed issue of EF40/2.8 STM being wrongly identified as an OSS lens.
    • Fixed NEX-5N becoming unresponsive issue when movie capture started
       

Firmware release note 13-Aug-2014:
Firmware relased V0.32 

  • Name: Firmware update V0.32 for EF-E Smart AdapterTM MARK III
  • Release date: 13 Aug 2014
  • Benefits and improvements
    • Sony A7S compatibility

For existing MARK III customer who wants to have firmware upgrade service, you may send your adapter back to us for servicing. And customer is required to pay the returning shipping fee by using our Service Request page.


 

Electronic aperture, EXIF, image stabilization, autofocus

Your PayPal receipt is your order confirmation. There is no separate email confirmation until shipment takes place.

This Smart AdapterTM has the following features:

  • True electronic integration of aperture diaphragm - let camera automatically choose aperture in P or S exposure modes, or dial in yourself on the camera body in A or M modes.
  • Powered by camera body. No external power source required.
  • Wide open button (opposite of depth-of-field preview function) makes manual focusing easy.
  • The tripod foot is detachable and compatible with Arca Swiss, Markins, Photo cam ball heads.
  • High performance 32-bit processor and efficient switched-mode power supply.

Disclaimer: we are NOT licensed, approved or endorsed by Sony or Canon.



Description

Compatibility

Supported Not supported

EF lenses (see below for list of tested lenses)

EF-S lenses (see note 1)

Image stabilization (IS)

Electronic manual focusing (e.g. EF 85/1.2L II and discontinued EF 50/1.0L)

EXIF (focal length, aperture, zoom range)

P, A, S, M exposure modes

Autofocus (see autofocus support section below)

Distance and zoom display on VG and FS series camcorders (see note 3)

Auto magnify (see note 2)

Contax N mount lenses modified to Canon EF by Conurus

Contax 645 NAM-1 adapter modified to Canon EF by Conurus

Sigma, Tamron and Tokina lenses in Canon EF mount (see note 3)

Lens correction such as peripheral shading, CA and distortion

Focus confirmation "chip" (e.g. Dandelion)

Stacking another lens mount adapter on top (see note 4)

Lens: Tamron SP 17-50mm F/2.8 XR Di II VC

Note:

  1. Vignetting at corners may occur for certain EF-S lenses because they are designed to cover a 1.6x crop image circle but Sony NEX has a 1.5x crop sensor.
  2. Requires lenses supporting distance information.
  3. A third party zoom lens may need to be registered with the Smart Adapter first in order to detect its maximum aperture. Autofocus is disabled for most third-party lenses.
  4. For example, some improperly-made M42 screw mount adapters may cause a short-circuit with the electronic contacts of the Smart Adapter and cause damage to the Smart Adapter and/or camera body.

Tested Camera Bodies

  • A7 (Mark III supports auto "APS-C Size Capture" with EF-S lens)  
  • A7R (Mark III supports auto "APS-C Size Capture" with EF-S lens) 
  • NEX-FS700 (autofocus works only in photo mode, but is disabled in movie capture mode)
  • NEX-FS100 (autofocus works only in photo mode, but is disabled in movie capture mode)
  • NEX-EA50
  • NEX-VG900 (Mark III supports auto "APS-C Size Capture" with EF-S lens)
  • NEX-VG30
  • NEX-VG20
  • NEX-VG10
  • NEX-7
  • NEX-6
  • NEX-5R
  • NEX-5N
  • NEX-5
  • NEX-C3
  • NEX-3
  • NEX-A6000

Tested Lenses

The following lenses have been tested for autofocus operation. Minimum firmware version required shown in parenthesis. Thanks to the community for reporting success with lenses shown in bold.

Canon EF primes

EF 14/2.8L II USM
EF 24/1.4L II USM
EF 24/2.8 IS USM
EF 35/1.4L USM (Ver.19)
EF 50/1.2L USM
EF 85/1.2L II USM
EF 85/1.8 USM (Ver.18)
EF 100/2.8 USM macro (Ver.17)
EF 135/2L USM (Ver.17)
EF 200/2.8L II USM (Ver.17)
EF 300/2.8L IS USM
Extender EF 1.4x III
Extender EF 2x (mark I)

Canon EF zooms

EF 8-15/4L USM fisheye
EF 17-40/4L USM
EF 20-35/2.8L (Ver.18)
EF 22-55/4-5.6 USM
EF 24-70/2.8L USM II
EF 28-80/3.5-5.6 II (Ver.18)
EF 28-90/4-5.6 III
EF 35-350/3.5-5.6L (Ver.18)
EF 70-200/2.8L IS USM II
EF 70-200/4L USM
EF 70-200/4L IS USM
EF 70-300/4-5.6L IS USM
EF 70-300/4-5.6 IS USM
EF 100-300/5.6 (non-L, not USM, push-pull zoom) (Ver.18)
EF 100-400/4.5-5.6L IS USM

Canon EF-S

EF-S 10-22/3.5-4.5 USM
EF-S 17-55/2.8 IS USM
EF-S 17-85/4-5.6 IS USM
EF-S 18-55/3.5-5.6
EF-S 18-55/3.5-5.6 IS
EF-S 18-135/3.5-5.6 IS
EF-S 60/2.8 macro USM

Sigma DC

17-70/2.8-4 DC OS HSM (Ver.15)
30/1.4 DC HSM old version (Ver.18)

Tamron

SP 24-70/2.8 Di VC USD A007 (Ver.15)
SP 70-200/2.8 Di VC USD A009 (Ver.31)

Tokina (full frame)

28-80/3.5-5.6 (Ver.18)

Tokina DX

AT-X PRO SD 11-16/2.8 (IF) DX (Ver.15)

   

Note:

  • Sigma 17-70/2.8-4 OS HSM may occasionally run into a focus accuracy issue at the telephoto end.

Manual Focus Only

The following lenses have been tested with previous firmware versions with manual focus, aperture control, image stabilization (if applicable) and EXIF support. Autofocus is supported only for those lenses marked with an asterisk (*) on NEX-5R/6

Canon EF primes

EF 14/2.8L (mark I)
EF 20/2.8 USM*
EF 24/1.4L USM (mark I)
EF 24/2.8 (old version, non-IS)
TS-E 24/3.5L
TS-E 45/2.8
EF 50/1.4 USM
EF 50/1.8 II
MP-E 65/2.8 macro
EF 85/1.2L (mark I)
EF 400/5.6L USM

Canon EF zooms

EF 24-70/2.8L (mark I)
EF 24-105/4L IS USM*
EF 28-70/3.5-4.5 II 
EF 35-80/4-5.6 

Contax N modified by Conurus

Vario-Sonnar 17-35/2.8
Vario-Sonnar 24-85/3.5-4.5
Vario-Sonnar 28-80/3.5-5.6 
Planar 50/1.4
Planar 85/1.4
Makro-Sonnar 100/2.8 (Ver.21)
NAM-1 adapter

Sigma (full frame)

24-70/2.8 EX HSM
24-70/2.8 EX DG HSM
50/1.4 DG HSM (Ver.17)*
50/2.8 DG Macro
70-200/2.8 EX DG Macro HSM
100-300/4

Sigma DC

12-24/4.5-5.6 EX ASPH
17-35/2.8-4 EX HSM ASPH
18-125/3.5-5.6 DC OS HSM
30/1.4 EX DC HSM new version (Ver.17)

Tamron

18-270/4.5-6.3 VC
SP 28-75/2.8
SP 70-200/2.8 Di LD A001

Tokina

AT-X PRO 28-70/2.8

Zeiss ZE

ZE Distagon 15/2.8
ZE Distagon 21/2.8
ZE Distagon 35/2
ZE Makro-Planar 50/2
ZE Makro-Planar 100/2

 

This Smart Adapter is also compatible with fully manual lenses which have no electrical contacts. Customers have reported success with the following fully manual lenses.

  • Samyang 35/1.4
  • Zeiss CP.2 25mm/T2.9
  • Zeiss CP.2 100mm/T2.1

Note:

    1. Lenses not listed above are not tested and they may or may not work. We do our best to resolve any compatibility issue you find but firmware updates are by factory service only and there is a nominal shipping/handling charge.
    2. Mount lens on EF Extender 1.4x or 2x first before attaching both on Metabones Smart Adapter.
    3. Mount Contax 645 lens on modified NAM-1 first before attaching both on Metabones Smart Adapter.

 

Autofocus

Autofocus is supported, with the following known limitations.

  • Autofocus speed is very slow and inadequate for most moving subjects. The autofocus speed is unfit for professional use for sure, and it would disappoint most enthusiasts.
  • Only Canon-branded lenses introduced in or after 2006 are officially supported. Autofocus may be disabled for older Canon lenses and most third-party lenses, including most Sigma, Tamron and Tokina lenses and all Contax N lenses modified by Conurus.
  • On NEX camera bodies in camcorder form factor (e.g. FS series), autofocus may be available only in photo mode but not in movie capture mode.
  • Continuous AF is not supported.
  • DMF mode (direct manual focus) is not supported.
  • For non-camcorder camera bodies (e.g. NEX-7), during movie capture, if the subject moves to a different distance, half-press the shutter release button to re-activate autofocus and lock onto the subject again. Since autofocus speed is slow, there may be visible disruption in the resulting footage.
  • The first two autofocus attempts are used to calibrate the lens and as a result may not lock successfully on the target. Half-press the shutter release button again and autofocus will lock successfully.
  • Autofocus may have difficultly locking onto subjects which are very close to the nearest focusing distance of the lens.
  • Autofocus accuracy depends heavily on the working condition of the lens. Lenses with hidden problems which may not be apparent on Canon DSLRs will lead to inaccurate and unreliable autofocus on Sony NEX. Typical problems of this kind that we have seen include an unsmooth/erratic autofocus mechanism (e.g. getting stuck intermittently at a certain focusing distance), a faulty/worn-out distance encoder or other faulty/worn-out internal sensors.

Why Metabones®?

Since its inception, Metabones has been designing and manufacturing lens adapters recognized among professionals and enthusiasts as leaders in design and workmanship.

Contrary to the popular trend of other factories using an aluminum ring painted black on the camera-body-side, we instead take no short-cut but use precision-machined brass with chromium plating on both the camera-body and the lens sides of our adapters, in order to ensure smooth mounting, great appearance, and durability. The lens side of the adapter features a strong leaf-spring structure, strengthening the adapter-lens connection and ensuring tightness of the lens in order to reduce wear and prevent focus errors and optical alignment issues from appearing.

Metabones uses matte-black treatment to keep internal reflection to a minimum in order to maintain the maximum optical quality possible with the lens.

All Metabones Adapters follow this tradition of uncompromising precision, robust build quality and outstanding finish. Our new Smart AdapterTM series of products add industry-leading electronic interfacing technology from Canada, with true electronic control of the lens' aperture directly from the camera body.

Features

Our Smart AdapterTM  series adapters have the following additional features