real world vintage and modern lens reviews for the photographer and cinematographer, helping you navigate between the good the bad, and the ugly, in the world of optics. join me out in the real world as i snap away happily with a fist full of lenses.
Nice review and pictures to go along with it as well as video. Just wondering if this is the same lens as the Pentacon 50 mm 1.8 lens? Didn’t Zeiss Jena make them both for both companies?
Nice review! I don't have this lens but I did find an ML 50/2.0 lens for a similar bargain price at a charity shop here in Canada and it has become my favourite 50mm for everyday use. By the way, nice to see the stepping stones at Ogmore castle and your shot of Southerndown beach. I was born and raised in Bridgend so I have good memories of these places.
@@peterdavies9166 thanks for the comment, love that you recognised ogmore castle, did you ever go across the stepping stones and see candleston castle?
Had this lens since I started photography in 2013. This is the only other lens I got aside from the kit lens for my NEX-6. This lens introduced me to manual and characterful lenses. Cant use it now because of molds. Hopefully I could get it cleaned.
Like many camera collectors, from time to time I find it necessary to pare down my overgrown collection. A few years back this meant getting rid of my Minolta gear, a decision I agonized over simply because of this lens. It has a look I've never seen replicated by any other. A contemporary review I ran across in one of the old photography magazines described it as primitive and outdated. Of course, this was long before Western photographers discovered the concept of "bokeh" in the early 2000s.
@@BriansPhotoShow thank you, I find that very interesting, this particular lens certainly has a unique character to it, that's what encourages me to try out different vintage lenses for myself.i have a few good modern lenses , but I feel that many modern lenses are technically very good but lacking in character
Thank you very much for a nice little review... and yeah, I found a few on ebay for so cheap I'm going to probably snag one. Not that I need another 50 cos I've got the Hexanon, but... it really does look like I'd be pleased.
@@janedaggeryou can never have to many fast fifties😊,I've recently got a few Konica hexanon lenses ,I'm very impressed by them, beautiful colour palette and great build quality.
@@fistfulloflenses Well, I'm a yankee and on the dole (social security) and skimping is not just an idea, its a need I constantly ignore. At least there's beans. ROFLMAO!
@@photographyforenjoyment I never really tried them before this lens , but since trying this one I've added another, that I'm looking forward to testing
Seems a nice lens. I've got two copies of the Yashica DS-M - a 1.7 and a 1.4. They look very similar to yours so should be just as good. To my shame I haven't ever used them so I need to do something about that. Great video, thanks for uploading.
Partly right, Chromatic aberration also called, chromatic distortion, colour aberration etc , is a failure of the lens to focus all colours to the same point, in short, causing the light to be dispersed, chromatic aberration manifests itself as fringes of colour along boundaries, so in theory if you can eliminate chromatic aberration you can make the image appear sharper , of course the other benefit of using thorium is that it reduces the necessary curvature of the glass allowing the lens elements to be thinner and therefore lighter, phew a long winded explanation 😊
Another one i'm missing out on for it being too modern! I do however have the 1971 Thorium-baked version, and that is one of my favourite manual lenses (along with the excellent 55 1.8). Nice vid - cheers very much.
Very nice. I've not tried this lens, but I do use the Super-Multi-Coated Takumar version. I always wonder how the earlier variants stack up against the later - or vice-versa. I do know, however, that whenever I pick mine up (as I just have) I want to use it.... Surely a good sign. Cheers from New Zealand.
New Zealand,a beautiful country, very nice to hear from you, I've not used the super takumar version, but I am impressed with the build quality of the Pentax lenses I've got.
Build quality is certainly one factor that endears them to me too - they have a very satisfying feel to them. And although I do have very good digital glass, I'm always a little worried that it'll spontaneously die on me (like the bodies do!) and throw me back into poverty. No such fears with good vintage lenses!
@@luzr6613 yes your right, I have a mix of old and new glass, much for the same reason, also the cost factor ,and its interesting to try out new optics
@@christopherleecowan very true, they always seem to be pretty good, it was such a popular focal length for so long, the manufacturers had plenty of experience producing great 135s
Nice one Karl! Honest answer? I couldn't tell you which image was shot on the different bodies. Perhaps the same shot taken at more or less the same time with each camera would be conclusive, but there again does it really matter when the results are that good?
@@photographyforenjoyment thank you Alan, good to hear from you,I've thought about doing comparison shots , but feel it could get a little bit tedious. Glad you're enjoying the channel.
I decided id rather viewers to have an unbiased mindset when viewing the images ,and rate the photos on merit rather than a preconceived opinion as to which sensor is best,also I felt that putting up which camera took which images is distracting.
One of my favorite lenses! I bought one about a year after I bought my first 35mm SLR, a Pentax MX in 1978. A voiceover audio editing suggestion: Use a pop/sibilance shield on your voiceover microphone to reduce high frequency noise. You can also try filters in your video editing software. Also try a little bit of compression of the audio to reduce the volume variation in your narration. Thanks.
One thing to say, Vivitar was a design and marketing company they did design the lenseyand send the specs to the manufacturers,and any from kino or komine are very good also cosina
I used to really like the Canon breech-lock lens range. The way the lenses engaged onto the body before tightening the ring seemed to be a clever design, only to be scrapped with the later FD bayonet.
can get one around here for around 50 euro's, owned one, liked the images especially from 5.6. My copy did had a lot of color fringing below 5.6 though Colors at goldenhour were something special!
Just ordered one of these a few weeks back. it's been a positive experience thus far. the metal variant appears to be in higher desired and I'm unsure of if theres any particular reason why.
There are two lenses with this spec made roughly in the same period, the 4/4 design here, and a 6/6 design which is supposed to be better, but is also heavier.
Hi, I've just tested this lens from a reseller and found the focus ring had a little movement when moved left to right (not turned, but moved) like if it was a little loose, and also made a little click sound when doing this. I'd like to know if this is normal or I should avoid buying it. Thank you very much, wonderful review BTW.
All I can say is in my copy there is no movement or clicking, so you may want to check it carefully before you buy , if you get one in good condition, I'm sure you won't be disappointed (good luck)
I have a couple thorium lenses. I don't bother treating them with UV light. It's easier to do a custom white balance with a gray card if you don't want the yellow tint in your photos.
Oooohhh, brilliant!! Even though I know little about lenses, cameras, photography in generalI, I really enjoyed watching that, as I do with all of them. Look forward to the next episode!
