I have always been fascinated for years by Bjørn's 28mm TS lens manufactured out of a 28mm PC lens and a little bellows with TS movements.
At some point years ago I decided I would have a try at making one (fool me), taking an opportunity on eBay where a 28mm/4 PC lens that had been separated from its barrel and focusing helicoid was being offered. (pictured below)
The naive me did not know what I was getting into.
Whatever contraption I devised has never really worked, but I have had years of fun in the process.
I have made such Frankenstein contraptions that were super fiddly and imprecise, not to mention flimsy and heavy. It has been a journey full of adventure in the boring rain-filled winter afternoons and evenings.
Recently I have found something that seems potentially to fit the bill, although it is larger than Bjørn's nice little Hama bellows.
This however has all the movements on the front standard and the potential to fit multiple lenses.
It is the Bronica Attachment II. You can Google it or check a picture of the actual one I bought below (sorry, crappy image from my phone).
Usually these things are quite expensive in eBay, but I had a stroke of luck and got it really cheap.
Adapting it has been very easy. Take off the rear standard and the foldy bit, replace with a handmade black goatskin bag bellows, put a Nikon F mount at the back, attach to my camera (a Fuji) with a hollow adapter or a speedbooster. Voila', see third image below
Now this thing can be used with a Nikon camera (should I get one at some point) or my Fujis - and with the latter I can choose to have a DX crop or reduce the focal length with the speedbooster (fourth image). Awesome! (if I may say so).
There is "only" one last snag. The eagle eyed of you may have noticed that a different Nikkor is attached to the bellows. It is Bronica's standard 75/2.8 lens, which used Nikkor lenses. I have not yet found a way to attach securely the 28/4 PC to it. The fifth picture shows the bellows in an improbable movement simply to prevent the lens from falling down!
But just keeping the lens in place with my hands I have been able to confirm that indeed the lens can be focused to infinity. I reckon I could perhaps even fit a 24mm PC lens (Olympus used to make a 24mm PC with a humongous, bulbous front element made of soft, easy-to-scratch glass that goes on eBay for a fortune and a half...)
The final necessary step would be to scavenge a bayonet from a lens for Bronica S2 and attach it somehow to my 28mm PC. More easily said than done, but I will try.
If you have suggestions on how to do that send them in!
Just for fun, I might also explore other lenses for Bronica, either at the wide end (40mm is the widest possible) or short telephoto (150 or 200), if they come up cheap on eBay.
