Kipon and IB/E Optics announce the Baveyes focal reducer for APS-C cameras

 

 

When Metabones first announced their Speed Booster focal reducer adapter, they probably had no idea what they were setting in motion. Not only proved the device extremely popular with end users, but also with copycats. First we saw the Chinese-made Mitakon Zhongyi Lens Turbo, and now another such device has been announced. The Baveyes, jointly developed by Kipon (China) and IB/E Optics (Germany)‒the same company that created the Ibelux 40mm f/0.85 lens that was recently announced, sports a focal reduction ratio of 0.7x, which means that besides turning a 35mm full frame lens into its APS-C equivalent, it'll also reduce the relative aperture rating by exactly one stop, making, for example, an f/1.4 lens an f/1 lens.

In that regard, the Baveyes works similar to the Metabones Speed Boster and the Mitakon Zhongyi Lens Turbo, the only difference being that each company uses its own reduction ratio. In case of the Baveyes, the ratio is 0.7x, which will turn a 50mm into a 35mm lens, a 35mm lens into a 24.5mm lens and so on. This allows you to use your legacy full frame Leica R-mount, Canon EF-mount or Nikon F-mount glass on your Sony NEX or Fuji X camera with hardly any loss in angle of view, and with an extra stop of speed, gaining you faster shutter speeds at lower ISOs.

The Baveyes will be available in January 2014 and will retail for about US-$ 300 according to the official announcement. There's no word yet as to which retailers will actually carry it.

(via Mirrorless Rumors)