The Vintage Lens Thread

The "TW" could mean Telephoto - Wide, and it could have something to do with the macro focusing of the lens.

Don't be too frustrated; I have used macro lenses that took me for ever to figure out.
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ah, I see, thanks.

I'll set it up on a tripod and just play around with it until it starts to make some sense.
 
cyclonebill said:
Sorry to dominate this thread, but I have one last question and I figure this is the place to ask it.

I have a Kiron lens, 35-135mm. It's a push/pull zoom, has a big focus ring, an aperture ring and a third, macro ring. I find when focusing, both the macro ring and the focus ring need to be adjusted to properly focus the subject more often than not, which is very tedious and difficult if you're not using a tripod. Can anyone enlighten me on the theory behind how this Macro ring actually works and is tied to the focus ring? At this point I'm just screwing around with the ring until I get the subject in focus and it's more time consuming than it probably should be. I have a picture of it below, it's the ring in the middle. (sidenote: anyone know what the TW means exactly in regards to the aperture ring?)

View attachment 29110
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I have a few lenses like this. The TW is to show what the max aperture is at Tele and Wide ends. In this case, your lens is f5.6 @ 135mm and f3.5 @ 35mm (just follow the indicator lines)

The "Macro" setting is just lengthening the barrel, similar to a extension tube. Many of these older lenses only had close focus of 5 or 6ft without the macro feature.
 
cyclonebill said:
Anybody have any insight on the: Tamron SP 28-80mm CF f/3.5-4.2, K-mount zoom lens? Is it worth $60 including shipping?
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28-80 isn't anything special rangewise and it's not constant aperture.

The manual focus Tamron's are Adaptall lenses, the rear mounts are removeable and interchangeable.

The Tamron 17/3.5 seems popular. The 28-105/f2.8 would be a nice addition, and it tends for go for about $150-.
 
does anyone have advice about old nikon primes, nonAI (nikon O, 1959-1976) and AI (1977)? im looking at a 35mm f2, one AI and one nonAI nikon O and cant decide which one to get.
 
I think the general understanding is that non-AI versus AI does not matter on our camera. It matters for older Nikon cameras that used holes in the lens to meter light before taking the shot or something like that. Shouldn't make a difference to us.
 
dishe said:
I think the general understanding is that non-AI versus AI does not matter on our camera. It matters for older Nikon cameras that used holes in the lens to meter light before taking the shot or something like that. Shouldn't make a difference to us.
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...except that AI lenses have glass with coatings the non-AI lenses don't.
 
Yeah yeah, i actually have found out the 35mm f2 lenses im looking at are actually nikon nikkor-O nonai and nikon nikkor nonai. Not sure the difference, the bodies are different tho :/
 
So, I just got lucky and picked up a Super Takumar 50mm f1.4 for free the other day, salvaging it from certain doom. However, I have no clue what mount type it is.

Can anyone give me a clue as to how to figure out what mount type it is? Are there any identifying characteristics? Basically, I would like to mount it on my T2i, but I don't know if it's compatible.
 
in looking to get some vintage prime lenses i dont really want to spend a lot but im wanting a 28mm so whats a good 28mm thats cheap
 
I personally bought a vivitar F mount 28mm F/2.0, and have been pretty happy with it (especially for the price). I was spoiled by my Nikkor 50mm 1.4, however, and always avoided using the 28 unless I needed it.
Now, I ended up needing an AF lens for some photography gigs, and invested in a Tamron zoom lens that cover the 28mm range well enough that I barely use it anymore.

I wish I could find something in that range that's a little faster than 2.0. Otherwise, its a great little lens!
 
zac watson said:
in looking to get some vintage prime lenses i dont really want to spend a lot but im wanting a 28mm so whats a good 28mm thats cheap
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28mm Nikons go for under $100 on eBay (a little more on KEH). I just bought one that was in pristine condition for $70. I haven't done enough tests with it yet, but I do have a ton of shoots in April and May, where I'll be putting it through its paces. From what little I've done with it, it's an overall sharp and colorful lens, like most Nikons. It appears to be sharp at 2.8, but again, I haven't done the necessary pixel peeping.

A 28mm f2 is going to put you about $200 out, though, at least in Nikons, because of the speed increase. There are a few middle-of-the-road f2.5 28mm's; can't remember if any are Nikon, but I saw some Vivitars, which are just rehoused Nikons, if I remember right. And those were around $100.
 
If you are on a budget, I have found the Tamron Adaptall 2 28mm f2.5 (around $50 or less) to be not a bad option at all for video. Warm colors, nice bokeh and focuses really close.
If you need almost 1 stop faster (f=2.0) it is going to cost much more. The Vivitars (Kiron or Komine) are a good option to consider.
Then there is the more scarce Vivitar Series 1 28mm f1.9 by Tokina which is kind of "dreamy" wide open but with a unique zoom-type bokeh, and which becomes very sharp when stopped down.
 
I'm thinking about picking up a Carl Zeiss Jena Sonnar 180mm f/2.8. Is there a difference between the M42- and the Pentacon Six-Version?

Has anyone of you used this adapter or this adapter yet? I guess I won't need an AF-Confirm Adapter for a non AF-lens, so the second one would be a good choice... Or am I mistaken here?


Thanks in advance and best regards.
 
GHK said:
So, I just got lucky and picked up a Super Takumar 50mm f1.4 for free the other day, salvaging it from certain doom. However, I have no clue what mount type it is.

Can anyone give me a clue as to how to figure out what mount type it is? Are there any identifying characteristics? Basically, I would like to mount it on my T2i, but I don't know if it's compatible.
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Should be. Does it have screws on the back mount?
 
For my 60D I want to get a 50mm equvalent so I'm thinking about buying a 35MM lens. I have three lenses in my current closer selection:

1. Pentax Asahi 35/2 SMC Takumar
2. Mir 24M
3. Vivtar 35/1.9

At the moment I'm opting towards the Super Takumar since I have the 50mm 1.4 and I'm totally in love with it. I'm just not sure about the other two? Are there any differences when shooting wide open in terms of sharpness?
 
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