The GoPro Mission 1 Pro ILS is a camera that’s hard to categorize. The ILS looks like a classic GoPro, but it’s not waterproof. It is a mirrorless camera, but the one-inch sensor and non-electronic mount are different from pretty much every current model mirrorless out there.
But just like the idea for the ILS came from hackers cutting off the lens to old GoPros, a number of creators have tried something unusual for such a modern camera: using vintage lenses.
GoPro itself lists using lens adapters for older lenses as an option on the list of GoPro-supported lenses.
But the reason that I think using vintage lenses on the GoPro Mission 1 Pro ILS makes a lot of sense is not for what the camera includes, but what it doesn’t have. The ILS doesn’t have electronic contacts in the mount, so autofocus lenses that use focus-by-wire won’t work at all on the ILS. The lens needs to be a Micro Four Thirds (or a Micro Four Thirds adapter) that’s fully manual and has an aperture ring on the lens.
That narrows down the list of possible Mission 1 Pro ILS lenses quite a bit. It also means that the ILS is a manual-focus-only camera and, thanks to that lens mount, it’s not waterproof like most GoPros.
But none of those factors matter when adapting a vintage lens meant for a film camera to a digital shooter. I‘ve tried using adapters to put film lenses on my mirrorless camera, and it creates a look that’s much more film-like than a simple editing preset. But I don’t tend to use this setup often because it’s manual focus only, and the adapter isn’t weather-sealed (not to mention that weather-seals emerged late in film photography and weren’t very common).
Even modern lenses on the ILS are manual focus, though, so using the ILS for adapted film lenses makes a lot of sense. Or, at least it makes a lot of sense for shooting 8K video on a budget – as I think there are better options for stills. Pairing vintage lenses with a retro camera body – like the OM System Pen or Fujifilm X-T30 III – makes a lot more sense for still photography.
The only caveat that the ILS has that may not make sense with vintage lenses is that the ILS needs an external support system when using lenses over 250g – the downside of building the world’s smallest mirrorless camera. A lot of vintage lenses are metal, which adds some weight over plastic designs. But the lack of autofocus on older manual lenses helps some, so it’s not terribly hard to find wider prime lenses that fall under that limit, though the weight of any adapters will need to be factored in as well.
Fotodiox – the brand behind a majority of the GoPro-recommended adapters for the ILS – recently shared some footage captured adapting an old M42 lens to Micro Four Thirds, and the results look pretty promising for creators prioritizing a more film-like look over sharpness.
The Mission 1 Pro ILS’ stabilization system also requires selecting the appropriate lens inside the camera’s menu. As I found when testing the camera, missing this step makes the HyperSmooth look terrible. I suspect the best vintage lenses to use will match one of GoPro’s recommended lenses or be built into a gimbal rig or used with a tripod.
Using vintage lenses on modern cameras helps capture that film-like look without sacrificing the convenience of digital – and shooting with vintage lenses already has the manual focus, non-sealed limitations of the ILS.
The Mission 1 Pro ILS is a rather niche camera built for filmmakers needing something small, stabilized, and with 8K at a budget price. But perhaps reviving old film lenses could be one more niche for the unusual ILS.
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Read the full GoPro Mission 1 Pro ILS review, or browse the best lenses for the Mission 1 Pro ILS.
