It was the beginning of 2019 when I published my first review of a 7Artisans lens, the 28mm 1.4 FE+ – an M-mount lens optimized for Sony E-mount. Now, 5 years later, this 7Artisans 50mm 1.8 AF is their first autofocus lens. Let us find out what it is capable of.
As you may or may not know there have been several different versions of the Nikon AF 180mm 2.8 over the years. Most notable was the addition of the “D” feature in 1994, allowing the lens to transmit distance information to the camera for more accurate usage of camera flash. As this lens was first released in 1986 some of the samples approach an age of 40 years. As with every product that old, there are some things to be aware of when you are looking to buy a used sample. One of our readers, Q. Xu, did a side-by-side teardown of both versions, so we get to have a closer look at the differences between these versions and what to watch out for.
Of course this article may also be of help if you are looking to perform some kind of repairs on this lens on your own.
Continue reading Nikon AF 180mm 2.8(D): Versions, Teardown and Repair Guide
I found a few rolls of Kodak Farbwelt 200 that must have expired some 20 years ago and most likely they haven’t been properly stored at all. This first roll I exposed as ISO50 and I had absolutely no idea what to expect. The lab wasn’t happy and told me the film was massively expired and the scanner had a hard time scanning the negatives. Let’s see if some usable pictures came out of this.
Processing (C-41) and scanning was done at urbanfilmlab in Germany.
Continue reading Analogue Adventures – Part 29: Kodak Farbwelt 200 (expired)
Introduction
Impact-Site-Verification: a2860072-f116-4f45-9cf9-c8b7959dd6e4
This time we take a look at another famed vintage lens, namely the legendary Helios 40. It’s an 85mm f/1.5 lens, known for, let´s see if we get it from its many titles: The King of Bokeh, The Bokeh King, the Russian Bokeh King, The Funky Bokeh King, The King of Russian Weird Bokeh, The Vintage Lenses’ King of Bokeh, etc. etc. etc. Dear child has many names. You get it, it has a reputation for its bokeh. It is also very popular among videographers seeking a dreamy vintage look with beautiful bokeh in their footage. While this lens was quite popular even back in the day, it has grown in popularity during the digital era to new heights and created kind of a cult around itself.
It was made by KMZ in the former Soviet Union for the Zenit range of SLR cameras. Like the previously reviewed “Helios 44”, there is a belief that when Russians got their hands on Zeiss Jena factory by the end of WWII, they took back the technology and drawings of many lenses to the Soviet Union, copied, and manufactured them. This one is believed to be a “copy” of Carl Zeiss Biotar 75mm f/1.5 from 1938. While the optical formula is very similar, it is a widespread Double Gauss Planar design. Besides, it is an 85mm lens. Therefore, some claim it was designed by Russian engineers themselves “based on” the Biotar 75/1.5 in 1950. Anyway, let’s have a closer look at it!
Continue reading Review: KMZ Helios 40, 85mm f/1.5 – Can the Legend Live up to Its Reputation?
Before the release of the Voigtländer VM 50mm 1.0 Nokton in 2022, this Voigtländer VM 21mm 1.4 Nokton was Cosina’s most expensive M-mount lens and also one of their most complex ones – thanks to 13 elements in 11 groups, 4 aspherical surfaces and a floating elements design. Unfortunately this also made it one of their heaviest and most expensive lenses and I have the feeling it didn’t quite get the momentum Cosina expected for their flagship lens, hence in many parts of the world the price has been reduced several times since release – reason enough to have a closer look at this intriguing lens now.
Lens is being reviewed on Sony A7rII and Leica M10
