Tag: 50mm
Canon nFD 50mm f1.2 Review
The Canon New FD 50mm f1.2, not to be confused with its more expensive and rare ‘L’ brother, is the more affordable of Canon’s two ultra-fast nFD 50mm lenses released in 1980. Unlike the big brother, it does not have the aspherical elements and commands a much lower price. Canon used a different optical formula…
Voigtländer Nokton 50mm f1.5 Lens Review
Voigtländer Nokton 50mm f1.5 is another outstanding lens designed by Albrecht Wilhelm Tronnier and released with the Voigtländer ProminenT rangefinder camera in 1950. It is fast enough to allow shooting without additional light and sufficiently sharp to out-resolve the film. It is still well-regarded today and has even inspired a series of modern Nokton lenses –…
Schneider Kreuznach Rollei SL Xenon 50mm f1.8 Lens Review
Schneider Kreuznach Rollei SL Xenon 50mm f1.8 is a reasonably uncommon lens for the Rolleiflex SL35 camera utilising the QBM mount, and it also probably has the longest name. In 1973 this Xenon lens replaced the Carl Zeiss Planar 50mm f1.8 as a standard kit lens for the SL35 but was only manufactured between 1972…
Canon FL 50mm f1.4 Lens Review
Canon FL 50mm f1.4 is a classic lens from 1966. I wanted to try this lens because the early Canon OM 50mm f1.9 gave me excellent results, and I wanted to see if these slightly later lenses would provide similar results. Due to their age, they fly under the radar of most vintage lens hunters,…
Canon OM 50mm f1.9 Lens Review
Canon OM 50mm f1.9 is an unusual, rare lens – created through a unique collaboration between Mamiya, Canon, and Osawa – resulting in a Canon lens for the Exakta mount sold only alongside a Mamiya 35mm SLR camera body. Build, Ergonomics and Radioactivity Canon OM 50mm f1.9 is built like a tank. I have used…
Carl Zeiss Contarex Planar 50mm f2 Review
Carl Zeiss Contarex Planar 50mm f2 is an engineering marvel, just like the other Contarex lenses. Carl Zeiss introduced it in 1957 as the first lens for the Contarex system, and even today, its mechanical beauty, precision and usability are unmatched by anything else – even Carl Zeiss itself. This lens is in the middle…
Konica Hexanon 50mm f1.7 AR Lens Review
Konica Hexanon 50mm f1.7 is the entry-level standard lens in the Hexanon lineup, along with a faster 50mm f1.4 and the iconic 57mm f1.2. All three lenses are great but have slightly different characteristics. Konica AR Lens guide describes it eloquently as “Budget priced standard lens. Lightweight and compact. Focuses down to 18 inches“. Although…
Mamiya Sekor 50mm f2 M42 Lens Review
Mamiya Sekor 50mm f2 is one of the four standard prime lenses for Mamiya TL and DTL cameras, released back in 1966. Mamiya was a professional camera manufacturer and made many excellent camera lenses – most of them are often overlooked by enthusiasts in favour of the better-known brands. Lenses in the range are the…
Voigtländer Septon 50mm f2 Lens Review
Voigtländer Septon 50mm f2 was top of the line lens for the Bessamatic cameras – introduced in 1959 and made until 1967. This lens competed with the best lenses from other German manufacturers like Carl Zeiss and the wave of Japanese imports coming into the market. It was exceptionally well made, utilised the best materials…
E. Ludwig Meritar 50mm f2.9 Review
E. Ludwig Meritar 50mm f2.9 was the entry-level option for the Ihagee Exakta line of cameras and cost only 59 Deutschmarks back in 1959. For comparison, another standard Exakta lens – a Biotar 58mm f2 cost six times as much. Given it was considered a cheap lens at a time, I was not expecting too…
Carl Zeiss Ultron 50mm f1.8 Lens Review
Carl Zeiss Ultron 50mm f1.8 is a lens for short-lived Zeiss Ikon Icarex line of cameras. Famous on the internet – it generally has good reviews and recommendations, so I wanted to try it for myself. It turned out to be one of my favourite vintage lenses. I use it a lot, taking it on…