When Techart submitted for review the TZM-02 Leica M to Nikon Z autofocus adapter, there was the small problem that I couldn’t find any Leica lenses to review, only the Canon EF. But the great thing about the adapter is that it can be stacked with additional adapters, allowing for versatile use for a wide range of lenses, including the Canon EF mount. Armed with both converters, I set out to test the capabilities of these converters on the Nikon Z 7II.
Construction and Quality
The Nikon Techart TZM-02 Lens Adapter has an all-metal construction and feels solid. The mount points to the camera body are correct, as they should be, and I had no hesitation or worry that it would damage the camera’s lens mount like I’ve done with other adapters I’ve tried. . The adapter does not add significant weight to the camera lens assembly, and due to the redesigned focus motor it creates a slim profile when attached, allowing clearance from any mounting plate.
Firmware updates are performed via a micro-USB point on the adapter’s baseplate, and you can simply drag and drop them onto the adapter’s icon when connected to a computer.
Flexibility
For this review, I have two adapters connected to the camera, the TZM-02 and one EF-M. You’ll end up buying an adapter that matches your choice of camera and lens, and both adapters work together without error, allowing me to test a few EF-mount lenses. Even when two adapters are connected, there is no significant difference in size and weight.
Performance
I tested a combination of adapters using two lenses, and the 50mm is noticeably noisier than the two in terms of how the adapters work. New streamlined internal motors allow the lens to move back and forth within the adapter to find focus, but the movement is small and relatively quick. The noise is minimal, but I think it’s worth mentioning in case your subject needs silence. Then I discovered that if you put your lens at infinity and then focus, the noise is greatly reduced and almost nothing left.
Even with two adapters, everything works as expected in terms of connectivity and power. It’s also important to note that you must turn off the camera when swapping lenses, as the manufacturer claims that not doing so could damage the adapter’s motor, bricking it. The compact size and construction of the adapter is another plus when attaching lenses, as it doesn’t add any weight to the camera, allowing you to attach a wide range of lenses. However, I personally wouldn’t stick with the larger focal lengths due to their size, as I would feel a bit hesitant to use them.
concentrate
Focusing with the converter is powered by four small servomotors encased in a housing and allows for quieter motor noise and faster focusing speeds when moving the lens in and out of the camera body. There is very little movement among these due to the streamlined design being newer than the older version.
Autofocus is fast and works well in a variety of lighting. However, in low light it has trouble focusing and once locked, it doesn’t always come back with a sharp image. Manual adjustments work well in fixing this, but not in all cases. Eye detection for both humans and animals works as expected and locks in quickly. During the day, focusing is quick, but sometimes, won’t return a sharp image. These could be the lenses I’m using, as they’re old and used so wear a bit badly, but it would be against my moral judgment to tell you everything is great with the findings mine when in reality it’s not.
To better illustrate this point, I set up a series of unscientific focus tests with lenses to see if I could figure out why this was happening. I used still subjects and the same light for all, and although there is no equivalent focal length, I re-shot them with the Viltrox 35mm f/1.8 just to see the sharpness. I understand there is no comparison between lenses and the original lens will perform better, but I wanted to see if I could determine what the problem was.
As you can see from the images below, some images are sharp, while others tend to be soft. I also noticed that the focus point was off at times, as can be seen in the final image of the gallery, where my focus was locked on the castle ruins and not the marram lawn in the foreground.
The video below illustrates the autofocus speed
Conclusion
The adapter opens up a world of possibilities when it comes to lens selection and means you can use your old lenses on newer camera bodies, giving them new life. With a slim profile and near-nothing weight, it doesn’t add bulk or really any weight to your camera. It can be used in conjunction with other adapters from the Techart range, allowing for more flexibility when it comes to lenses. The autofocus speed, as you’ve seen in the video above, is great, and the ability to allow the manual focus lens to work with the camera’s system, including eye and face detection, I think there will be a lot of photographers who are very interested in converters and absolutely right.
What I like
- Compact size.
- Quality construction.
- Firmware update via the base cap.
- Flexibility.
- Enables autofocus on manual lenses.
What I don’t like
Low light performance.
Some key issues.
Buy, lean on, cling to
You can check this adapter this and others from limit to see if they are available for your camera.
