Excuse me for the usage of such a clickbait title (again). The photography world is a declining market, which is why some big photography related websites already went out of business. Others are so loaded with advertising these days, it is barely possible to spot the actual content anymore. Some also opted for membership programs like Patreon. We on the other hand always financed this blog exclusively through unobtrusive affiliate links. This is only possible because it is a passion project by people with actual jobs that just happen to love photography.
I still have no intention to add annoying adverts or introducing a membership/Patreon/Onlyfans system, as I have always been an advocate of free internet and freely accessible information. I also don’t want to push junk software with high margins that I would never want to use myself or offer questionably useful presets.
This means I have to push this article 1-2 times per year – similar to what Wikipedia is doing every now and then – to reach more people.
There are many articles here that generate zero income: for example the Analogue Adventures and everything from the Technical Knowledge category, as these are not really about a product that could be bought by you. Same is also true for the reviews of simply bad lenses. Why would you buy them through affiliate links if we just told you they suck?
Affiliate links also don’t work for everyone and every item. If you are not from Canada or the US, B&H is surely less attractive. Many people from Europe don’t like ordering directly from Asia because of import duties and some items may also not be available through our affiliate partners at all.
Thinking of reviews of affordable vintage lenses: if you buy a lens for $50 on eBay, we only get a $1 commission for that. So in these cases, you would do us a bigger favour by donating $5 and buying that lens at a lower price locally (if possible), than using the affiliate links.
If you find yourself in one of these categories – or if you simply want to support us without using affiliate links – you can do that by using this Paypal donate button under our articles:
via Paypal (BastianK)
via Paypal (Martin)
The money you donate will go directly to the author of that article. Even though the blog had two million visitors last year according to our statistics, only around 100 decided to make a donation, so you can make a real difference here.
And if you often find yourself ordering from one of our affiliates: why not use any of our Amazon or eBay links as starting point for your purchases? It won’t cost you anything extra and helps us a lot. It doesn’t matter what you order, whether it is photography related or not, as long as you clicked on one of the links first.
PS: In my case any money would be used to track down and review further exotic lenses that you cannot find really useful information on elsewhere (like e.g. the Zeiss Hologon 16mm 8.0 or the Olympus OM 180mm 2.0).
Latest posts by BastianK (see all)
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- Review: Nikon 58mm 0.95 Noct-Nikkor – The Ultimate Lens? - November 9, 2024
- Review: Tokina 17mm 3.5 SL RMC - November 7, 2024
Hi Bastian. You might want to consider a very low price subscription. I do this for Luminous Landscape, and have kept it going for several years despite there being not a lot of posts. Usually worth reading but often not as good as yours. I know this always seems a big step for many people but if it came to it I would happily subscribe. I also promise to send some PayPal next time I have some money on it. Keep up the good work
I agree, I pay LL $12 a year and don’t notice it. I don’t even go there much since Michael died but I like supporting them. I’d do the same for this site.
Yeah I understand why you wouldn’t want a paywall, but a Patreon or whatever sub could just be a supplement (early access, random Discord perk, etc.) rather than something that blocks off information… This site is one of the few where I’d pony up for that, but otherwise I’ll send a few bucks via PayPal once a year and/or when I read a review of interest (as I have with Cameralabs in the past, idk how Gordon does it tbh).
Thanks for providing this easy to use donate button! I’ve send some bucks and intend to do so again in the future.
would love an option to set up an automatic reccuring donation please.
nevermind I am an idiot I see it.
I have just donated with pleasure – I just hope this site will not die like DPreview for example. Modern world with its instagram and smartphone has pushed real photography into the tight corner, so I am really happy I can come back here and read the “nerdy reviews” ;-). Your in-depth articles, excellent sample pictures and fun-to-read texts have helped me get some really worthy gear and enjoy slow manual focusing. Keep on!
Your support and feedback is greatly appreciated!
And I think there are still plenty of lenses I should review in the future 🙂
Hi Bastian,
I’m glad you will stand by the labour of love of reviewing manual focus lenses and sharing your adventures in photography. You have created a valuable resource for photographers, beginners and experienced, which is well worth returning to. I always learn and discover something new on each visit.
Thinking about lens reviews that might provide some revenue and spur the interest of readers, I think Voigtlander’s SL lenses for Nikon F-mount are quite interesting. They are more affordable than Voigtlander’s E-mount lenses, equally well built and even more compact (https://www.cosina.co.jp/voigtlander/en/slr-mount/). The latest addition to the SL line-up, the Nokton 55mm f/1.2, is a very interesting proposition (https://www.cosina.co.jp/voigtlander/en/slr-mount/nokton-55mm-f1-2-sl-iis/).
Another lens line-up I consider interesting and overlooked, are the discontinued Zeiss Classic ZF lenses (with aperture ring). Compared to their Milvus overhaul, which added a ton of lens elements for correction of chromatic aberrations, akward form factor–arguably to cater to videographers–, size, weight and disappointing rubberized focus rings–let alone prize–, they are a more compelling alternative for photographers. Some of them can of course be found in their previous Contax Yashica versions, but the Classics are arguably better built and feature newer coatings.
Both lens line-ups mentioned are SLR lenses, so they don’t have the problem of M-mount lenses, which perform suboptimally on E-mount due to ray angle, without inelegant tweaks and hacks when wider than 50mm.
I would also love your take on Asahi Super Takumar lenses and some interesting TOPCORs. I think there’s still a ton of great legacy MF glass out there just waiting to be discovered and revived.
Keep up the generous and excellent work
Rawiri
Thank you so much for your feedback!
I have already been thinking of reviewing the Cosina SL lenses.
Problem is, that if I do, I will most likely end up buying an FM2 or FM3a to get along with them.
For the time being I tried to avoid that because of financial reasons 🙂
That was my first thought too, but I already have a Novoflex adapter for F-mount lenses to E-mount cameras for my Nikkor 105mm f/1.8 and 135mm f/2.8 Ai-s lenses. The adapter is rather long, but quickly forgotten as you get used to it. It’s not longet than the Novoflex C/Y adapter for E-mount.
With your help, I bought my first f1.2 vintage lens and I love it. You’re all the best at what you do. I find deep joy in reading your work, and you’ve made me awe photography from new, beautiful perspective. I donated a bit to say thanks, I hope you’re all able to continue doing this ❤️
if i order anything from amazon, can i “affilinate” you?
Always!
Just go to one of our reviews and click the Amazon.de link first.
For me you can use this one: https://amzn.to/3MEWMzP
For Martin you can use this one: https://amzn.to/4e3tLcM
Lol so when I go buy new kitchen ware on Amazon I’ll affiliate you
One day someone bought 29 sets of low noise rollers for office chairs.
It was one of the most lucrative days in the history of the blog.
I am not complaining about kitchens 🙂
Thanks to your reviews I got me one of my now favourite lens, a Laowa 33mm f0,95 sony e-mount. And I also got back to film photography beside my digital. So I also donated a bit as Thank you for your work!
Greatly appreciated, thanks a lot!
I too hope this website does not disappear. It has continued to have great articles from the past.
It seems that donations cannot be made from Japan via PayPal.
Love your website, I just donated. Please don’t turn it into Luminous Landscape, keep it free!
How do I use an affiliate link for amazon.se? Is there one already or can you set one up? I will use it always. Keep up the good work!
This is a link to a 128 GB ProGrade SDXC UHS-II V90 Memory Card on amazon.se
https://amzn.to/4ejs2Ah
You can use this link, and when on Aamazon.se you search for any product and order it. It will be counted.
Thanks
Martin
If you are missing links to a country-specific Amazon site (e.g. amazon.co.uk, or amazon.fr, etc), we can easily include that in the article even after publishing it, or send you a link by email.
Including all country-specific Amazon links in the article for all the products is just not practical (currently there are 17 of them).
Thanks
Martin
This is the best photography blog, period. Happy to help to keep it running.
This is one of the only sites that I personally find worth supporting. However, when I try to donate via PayPal, I get the message: “Donations to this recipient aren’t supported in this country.” (Singapore)
There are always restrictions I am not aware of.
Thank you for trying!
Two donate buttons here, are just you two managing the site?
Or are you more than two?
If so, is there somewhere a general donate link, so the money goes to the site — for site support or for distribution among you?
I ask because I don’t read all articles, so occasionally donating personally would be somewhat unfair.
Also I’d prefer to pay yearly or quarterly (like I do with Wikipedia).
And thanks for bringing this up now – I’ve known about your site just a few months.
It is only us.
You can split your donation into two if you like and send us both something 🙂
Right.
I’ll be back later – I reckon this double link will stay open?
There are two sites I find far more informative than others I happen to know, Dustin Abbott’s and yours!
( I’m glad though that DpReview came alive again – for general tech info and occasional articles they’re great.)
Yes, they stay open!
I do like Dpreview’s camera reviews. I admire those poor guys that recreated the whole camera menu for the website 🙂
Aye!
Lots of info in them.
Try also
https://www.optyczne.pl/
and click “Testy”. Google translate helps…
( After a while you read their graphs without translating.)
I guess you know Lenstip.
P.S.
Lots of good stuff in Ming Thein’s archive.
Hi Guys,
Thanks for your ongoing efforts and passion in reviews. Also to the rest of the team in the past. It’s my primary source for photo related reviews. I would pay a membership, but saw through your link that I can do a monthly paypal, so it’s fine to (and i don’t have to remember to click the button each time 😀 )
By the way if there’s interest in reviewing the Sony 70-200 f4 II, the new 24-50 2.8 or as a throwback the Leica CL (digital) with TL 23mm f2 just let me know. I’m from Germany and could lend it to you (of course for free). I know you have probably quite a review backlog, just if there’s interest in it 🙂 .
Beste Grüße
Christoph
Thanks a lot!
I may come back to you on that 24-50mm 2.8 🙂
I just activated two monthly donations for both Bastian and Martin – PR is one of the two photographic websites that mostly helped me with my hobby (the other is OpticalLimits). In addition to receiving excellent technical info, you provide me also with enjoyable photos and inspiration (at the point that I read almost all articles, including those that are clearly related to lenses that I would never be interested into).
For what concerns «I have always been an advocate of free internet and freely accessible information etc…» I get the point and agree. But consider that you could e.g. activate a Patreon account to provide subscribers with an anticipated access to a new article (e.g. a few days, or a week). This wouldn’t work against the concept of freely accessible information. I honestly don’t know how this could be successful in raising some money (I’m not expert of Patreon and in general monetisation strategies for the web), but I see that some other website does that, so maybe… it works?
Thanks a lot, greatly appreciated!
I am also thinking of an early access system, but I do need to figure out how to implement it, which takes away time from other tasks.
What I’m seeing elsewhere is something (apparently) very simple, such as: you publish a post, you have a public URL for it _but_ you don’t “link“ it immediately to the site: i.e., it doesn’t appear in the home page, nor in the index, nor in the RSS feed, etc… But Patreon subscribers are notified about it.
A few days later you make the URL to appear everywhere.
Of course everybody could access it… if he guessed the URL, which is substantially impossible. Still, the URL could be “leaked” privately or in other places (e.g. public forums) by a Patreon subscriber… but maybe it’s only a theoretical problem.
Thanks a lot Fabrizio, appreciate it a lot.
/Martin
Done. I just want you to keep going the good work. This is my favorite website for photography with fredmiranda, and I want it to keep running the way it does. I hope that this article led to many donations.
Yes, we got really great feedback here! Every one is greatly appreciated!
Bastian, thank you doing what you are doing! I hope you will continue.
I believe you should try what some of the readers here suggested in terms of $1 subscription and advertising on the front page only. We know that nothing comes free. You and team are doing very good job here not to mention the quality of the photography, which is awesome.
Any other ways to donate besides paypal? They have been particularly nasty to me in recent years, so I’m trying to abstain from using their service and paying their commissions.
I will look into alternative options, so far only PayPal.
Q for Bastian,
I’m trying to buy something quasi expensive on Amazon and am hoping to use your affiliate link. I live in the states and the affiliate link you used about was like Amazon.de or something. Do you have a link for Amazon in the United States? I wouldn’t want to use the wrong link.
Thanks!
Most reviews do contain links to Amazon.com, but you can just use this one: https://amzn.to/4dvoRnX
Greatly appreciated, thanks!
There ya go. It was like $570 total so you should get enough money for a latte and breakfast sandwich 😀