lenses

Regarding 28mm f/2.8 lenses for Nikon. The Series E lens has for whatever reason gained in asking price and is now close towards 100 €. Some of you will say the time for Series E was when these lenses could have had for 50 € or so. A general consensus seems to be that the 28E has the worst...

I'm getting more and more frustrated that Zeiss nor Voigtländer (Cosina) make a nice MF 28mm for Sony E-mount (full-frame), so I'm thinking of getting a Zeiss Loxia 2.4/25 when a good deal comes along. To find out if that focal length works for me, I took the only 24mm I have, an old Vivitar...

The first vintage Nikkor I bought for Df was the Nikkor-Q.C 135mm f/2.8. With its four elements its design is what @BrianS calls a "unique formula". Not necessarily a Sonnar but it's not a double-Gauss either. Fast forward to this year and I was buying the Nikkor 135mm f/3.5 because of its...

Well, that didn't take long... https://www.sonyalpharumors.com/new-up-to-1000-rebates-on-sony-cameras-and-new-up-to-270-rebates-on-zeiss-lenses/ All of the sale prices that just expired are back. And the A9II and the A7sIII still aren't on sale. But if anyone has regretted not jumping on any...

I was testing some of my vintage Rolex dials for radioactivity with a dosimeter. Out of curiosity, I pulled out some of my rangefinder lenses and tested them. I had one collapsible 50mm Summicron that I was almost positive was radioactive but it was not. So then I tried the 35mm f1.5 Canon and...

Any conceivable reason to choose the non-micro f/4 lens over the Micro-Nikkor 200mm f/4?

I have thought about it, discarded it a few times, then got hyped about it again. Getting a camera body solely for the purposes of adapting older goodies. I don't have to care what the native lens options are for the given body, all I care are the specs of the body and how it enables me to...

Wide open, with Nikon D90! 20mm macro tube 20mm macro tube

Classic manual 28mm f2.8. One of several versions that were made in the 70s and 80s. Very nice lens with decent close focusing distance of 0.3m, nice coatings, and overall, very good image quality. If I could nitpick, the corners are never super sharp. However, I expected that from a lens from...

https://www.dpreview.com/news/7006098406/cosina-releases-three-new-35mm-f2-lenses-for-leica-m-sony-e-mount For those who read German, Voigtländer Germany already has write-ups on all new releases: https://www.voigtlaender.de/blog/ I'm posting this here because the new 35mm Utron f/2 II and...

I think I must get the Lensbaby optics out again and get back into this, as loved the challenge of this system. It's not to everyone's liking, my Dad hates it!

One of my first m42 lenses that I picked up for my Samsung NX1000 mirror-less camera , back in 2014. I haven't used it as much with Samsung, or later, with Nikon D90, as much as I have with my Fujifilm X-E1. Not having any native Fuji AF lenses, I started collecting vintage glass again. Presenta...

Another well kept m42 telephoto from ages ago.

This is an Obscure Lens. It is not "quite a zoom", it is variable focal length. It does not compensate focus as you change focal length, so- change focal length at any distance except infinity and you need to re-focus. The aperture is constant, max aperture is F2.8. The lens is multi-coated...

Thanks to its large high-resolution EVF, magnified focusing view, and easy-to-implement sensor stabilization, this camera is the best I've tried for adapting vintage lenses. This photo I took with a Nikon 55mm micro. The relative unpopularity of the S1R means you can find bargains on the used...

A good old manual focus lens, with nice reputation. Well kept and preserved, it feels like new. Having many Helios 58mm lenses, I'm used to the focal length. On a crop sensor, it just feels right. It's fast, with 1.4 aperture, which is often challenging with focusing, because my X-E1 doesn't...

This is by far the cheapest buy so far. Plenty of fungus and dust spots inside, but mechanically excellent! It cost me 6 dollars on a local online sale site. The lens could not focus on infinity at 200mm( probably incompatibility with my MD to FX adapter). So, I decided to do something... That...

I find 35mm to be a very versatile FL for shooters looking to achieve many things. I do a lot of hiking, & this beautiful little lens is usually invited. jt

Given the price, it seems to be very low risk. As long as you don't mind manual focus and no electrical connection to the camera. https://www.dpreview.com/news/2530835692/ttartisans-releases-a-98-50mm-f1-2-lens-for-aps-c-camera-systems

A nice compact 100mm F2.8 lens that was designed to be a value option. Wasn't allowed to carry the Nikkor name with its plasticky build. Which actually translates well to this modern mirrorless age being lighter and cheaper. My copy is sharp but needs a few stops for out of camera contrast. It...

Does anybody got info about this lens? It doesn´t say Carl Zeiss anywhere buy construction is identical as a Contax I lens. Serial number is 60080 and it says R.1038 I bought in a store in Buenos Aires. Thanks!

I was pondering today if the digial CL would work well with old LTM lenses via stacked adaptors? LTM -> M -> L ? Anyone tried this? I'm still trying to find a digital equal to my old IIIf and Summitar. I love my Nikons but miss a certain something about Leica.

https://pentaxrumors.com/2020/09/10/new-ricoh-23mm-and-28mm-f-2-8-aps-c-lens-patent-for-a-compact-camera-new-ricoh-gr-maybe/ This is exciting to me. Regardless of whether it's released under the GR name or as a Pentax or whatever, I'm always for more fixed lens prime compact options. These...

https://leicarumors.com/2020/08/16/blind-test-leica-summilux-m-35mm-f-1-4-asph-lens-vs-the-new-7artisans-35mm-f-1-4-lens.aspx/ Apart from the 7a lens being too big (it probably shows in the viewfinder quite a bit), things are looking excellent for value-oriented buyers.

Earlier this year, I was casually browsing the net and found a 16mm lens that was: - at least f/2.8 or wider, - full frame, and - it wasn't a fisheye. I mentally bookmarked it, meaning to come back to it later. Well it's later. I'm trying to find it again but am having very little luck and...

This was given to me as a birthday present, for my Minolta SRT303b. I acquired a suitable adapter and have used it from time to time with my Pentax K5. It's heavy, so not something I'm looking to do very often... It was a steamy hot day.. Tommy in the garden

I don't know how many of you have been following the threads on RFF about the Chinese replica of the 1950's V1 35mm Summicron, but it has been ongoing for close to two years. They set out to make a replica of the original Leica lens, right down to the almost unobtainable flint glass elements. I...

FF and Slow is the way to go! https://petapixel.com/2020/07/09/canon-unveils-4-new-lenses-including-the-rf-600mm-f-11-and-800mm-f-11/

https://www.dpreview.com/news/4775177835/fujifilm-releases-very-minor-firmware-updates-for-six-of-its-xf-lenses

f/ Elts l [mm] m [g] Street price 7artisans 1.25 7/6 73 600 435 GBP Leica Noctilux 1.25 9/6 91 1055 8575 GBP Leica Summilux (Mandler) 1.4 7/5 80 600* ~4100 GBP Leica APO Summicron 2.0 ~~1400+ GBP Leica Summarit 2.4 6/4 61 345 ~870 GBP CV Nokton 1.5 7/6 63 350 790 GBP...

After messing around with some non-Leica lenses, I though I'd try to shoot my Leica lenses with a tripod at the same target. I had to dismount and remount the body because the lens selection was inadvertently left in a manual mode incorrectly set in a couple of cases. Also, all the lenses were...

A few more images with adapted lenses. The CL does no allow me to choose non-Leica lenses when manually entering the lens. Some of these were taken with the Voightlander 40mm 1:1.2 Nokton, the Voightlander 21mm 1:1.8 Ultron and a 50mm 1:3.5 Canon Macro FD. So ignore the reference to the Noctilux...

You may have read, I have a long-time dream about adapting vintage SLR lenses because they are (can be) affordable and there's a magnificent selection to choose from. After the disappointment from EPL5 usability, I'm choosing to place more and more eggs in one (Leica M) basket and this means...

We know the 50mm f1 will be out this year. But, it was announced at the Fuji Summit that 4 new lenses are coming in the next 12 months. Any guesses what the other three may be?

* Cross posted at Fred Miranda, but I think it applies here as well! Lately I've been getting drawn to the low prices of DSLRs and old F-mount lenses. For example when I had tested the Z6, A7III and D750, the D750 surprisingly had sharper OOC raws over the Z6 and was not too far behind the...

Say you didn't have any foreign lenses or adapters for your APS-C body. You want to invest in one good speed-boosted 0.71x adapter. Is there any particular direction you'd take? Why? Note: Nikon G covers all Nikon F lenses.

The walk home by Harry Cutts, on Flickr

Pentax M 135 f3.5 by Harry Cutts, on Flickr

Couldn't find a thread for this one so here goes. Taken on an Olympus EM10 mk2 at f5.6, looks quite decent to me. Vivitar 17mm copy by Harry Cutts, on Flickr

I have a Carl Zeiss Jena 58mm f2 Biotar in M42 mount that I use with my Sony A7II and I'm very happy with the images. So a couple of weeks ago, I saw a 1950's Pentacon SLR on eBay, with a "CZ" lens that looked exactly like my Biotar. The description was lousy and the photos on eBay were poor...

I bought this lens 5 years ago, for 15 eur. At the time, I thought it might surprise me with image quality. It did.. Not necessarily in a good way. At that time, I had a Samsung NX1000, mirrorless camera. I wanted to test the lens, and see what the images would look like. Wide open, there isn't...

Stopped by the camera store today, have not been there for a while looking for anything in particular...but I wanted to see if they had a manual focus 200/4 or 135/2.8. They had both! I was hoping that the 200/4 would be the AI version, but not today. Price seemed OK and I wanted to try it...

HI, I picked up this lens from a charity shop (thrift store) the other day for 10 Danish Kroner or $1.50/£1.20 . At first I thought it was some kind of CCTV lens I could use with an adapter on my Pentax Q or Fuji camera but I can find nothing about it. It is called Coyal f3.5 and looks like...

There's a new player on the market, and it's looking good! TTArtisan has some new designs that tickle my interest better than what they currently have. A really good looking and capable 35 f/1.4 for ~$400 https://www.35mmc.com/24/09/2019/ttartisan-35mm-f-1-4-asph-review-by-vincent-bihler/ A...

When I left the m43 world, I wanted something that was similar to the Laowa 7.5mm f/2 but in Fuji X mount. I feel this is it!!

One of the legends! This lens is what first pulled me into the manual focus lens rabbit hole.

I'm not too into macro, but it is nice to have the option available when needed. Love this 55/3.5. It is not an AI lens, so limited on the cameras it can be used on. Not a bad all arounder lens either if you can get past the very long focus throw.

My version of this lens is cosmetically in less than optimal shape, but the glass is fine. Another lens where the rendering and sharpness are just how I like it. I might some day get the AF version, but until then, this is a great manual focus alternative. Works great on the Nikon Df and I've...