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Mirror lenses
  • Vitaliy_KiselevVitaliy_Kiselev
    Anyone know manufacturer of this lenses?


    image
    500mm F8


    Price - $127 shipped
    http://www.dealextreme.com/p/designer-s-500mm-f-8-telephoto-lens-90990


    image
    500mm F6.3


    Price - $182 shipped
    http://www.dealextreme.com/p/designer-s-500mm-f-8-telephoto-lens-90990


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    900mm F8


    Price - $256 shipped
    http://www.dealextreme.com/p/designer-s-900mm-f-8-telephoto-lens-90967

    All come with three read mounted filters (two ND).

    Two first looks similar to Samyang produced lenses, but as I know Samyang do not use metal in housing of their mirror lenses.


  • 9 Replies sorted by
  • MimirsanMimirsan
    I also thought it was Samyang...hmm
  • Vitaliy_KiselevVitaliy_Kiselev
    >I also thought it was Samyang...hmm

    They are very similar.

    But I do not see any 900mm lens in Samyang line up.
  • Vitaliy_KiselevVitaliy_Kiselev
    It looke like it is Samyang. They just played with 800mm lens renaming it to be 900mm.
    Vivitar is doing the same with 8mm fisheye calling it 6.5mm.

    image
  • MrAnthonyMrAnthony
    The standard catadioptric Matsutov lens has been around for 60+ years. The design is so simple that just about anyone could make one, and they were popular until the 1980s. As I understand it, only Sony, Samyang, and Opteka make these mirror lenses for cameras these days. Samyang includes the brands Vivitar, Bower, Rokinon, and Pro-Optic.

    The best article on these lenses:
    http://www.popphoto.com/gear/2008/12/slr-cat-did-it
  • MaxMax
    I have one (Rokinon 500mm f6.3), very bad sharpness :(
  • timbook2timbook2
    I have recently bought items from deal extreme. they did arrive from quandong china after over 1 month even though I paid extra fast shipping! additionally there were of course customs and tax charges PLUS an intermediate company here in germany that charged an extra 25€ for their "services". So the deals are not that extreme anymore once the product actually arrives.
    Thanks for the good article MrAnthony! I also would advise to try b4 buy.
  • DrDaveDrDave
    Those cheap mirror lenses are pretty bad. Look around for an old Minolta.
  • MrAnthonyMrAnthony
    Tamron made a good one as well; the Minolta was designed to autofocus on a Minolta camera, so with an adapter, you'd lose AF and it'll be more expensive because it was designed to autofocus. There are some good mirror lenses, but by and large, they aren't as good as well-designed refractive lenses, which is why they fell out of vogue. Depending upon the individual lens, it is possible to find some off-brand mirror lenses which have good center sharpness and acceptable edge/corner sharpness.
  • Vitaliy_KiselevVitaliy_Kiselev
    As I remember best ones are Vivitar Solid Cat's
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