In 1979 Nikon released a lineup of cheaper manual focus lenses called “Series E” instead of “Nikkor”. Today we will have a closer look at the Nikon 50mm 1.8 Series E, probably the most popular lens of that series and definitely the smallest.
Interestingly out of the big camera manufacturers of the (D)SLR era only Nikon ever produced a 28mm 1.4 fullframe lens. They started in 1993 with the world’s first lens with these specifications, the Nikon AF 28mm 1.4D, and then released an updated version in 2017, this Nikon AF-S 28mm 1.4E. It was one of their last f/1.4 primes still designed for DSLRs, so let us find out what it is capable of in this review.
Martin recently reviewed Lomo’s replica of a Petzval lens. I commented, perhaps slightly snidely, that vintage Petzval lenses are still around, often for less money, and often with better centre sharpness – and certainly with a vast choice of models and thus rendition nuances.
Martin suggested I share my knowledge in an article. And like an inverse Spice Girl, one became two. This one seeks to introduce you to the weird magic of Petzval lenses and their widespread availability from old cinema film projectors. The next will look at adapting them, and indeed any old projection lens, to a modern-day camera.
So here we go, I guess.
All pictures were taken on full-frame evils: a Sony a7r2 and an a7cr. Some were cropped; all were adjusted for proper blacks and whites according to ancient darkroom principles. None had additional sharpening or aberration correction applied.
Continue reading Projector Lenses – Reviving the Joy of Old Petzval Lenses (Guest Article)
The Sigma 105mm 1.4 DG HSM Art was one of Sigma’s last flagship lenses designed for DSLRs and one of the few that hasn’t seen a successor designed for mirrorless cameras yet. If you read my review, you know it is an impressive lens, but I still had some reservations calling it the “Bokeh Master”. Now I get the feeling someone at Sigma read my comment and decided to take it as a challenge by designing this Sigma 135mm 1.4 DG Art – the actual “Bokeh Master”. To me, this is one of Sigma’s masterpieces, so let’s have a closer look!
Continue reading Review: Sigma 135mm 1.4 Art DG – The actual Bokeh Master
In 2025 no one makes slide film faster than ISO100 anymore, but that wasn’t always the case. Back in the day there were several different higher ISO options available and Fujichrome Provia 400x seems to have been one of the more popular ones. As it went out of production a long time ago, today people pay up to 40 bucks for a single roll, so let’s see what it is all about.
Processing (E-6) was done at ProLab in Stuttgart, scanning was done by one of our readers via a DSLR. The pictures you see in this article are from one roll.
Continue reading Analogue Adventures – Part 45: Fujichrome Provia 400X (expired)