Hidden gems among lenses

DrDave

The Kobori 28-200/3.5 is a much better lens for this particular range.

Vitaliy_Kiselev

The Kobori 28-200/3.5 is a much better lens for this particular range

What do you mean under it.

As Vivitar is just brand name, so it can be exactly same lens.

DrDave

Sorry--Kobori lenses with serial beginning 777, which identifies it as from the Kobori factory--which still has a website with photos of the lens. This lens is very different in construction and of course quality from the Vivitar lenses covering the same range. All 777 lenses are from this factory. There is also a smaller, F4 push-pull which is also very good and compact, but does not have the quality of the 28-200 Kobori.

Vitaliy_Kiselev

@DrDave

In fact, if you look at first page, serial begins with 77, and it is first two digits that show manufacturer, not three.

So, I still do not understand remark.

whynot

@Brianluce Does ETC have to be on to use this lens?

DrDave

I'm sure you are right, that it is the first two digits, I just happen to have two that start with triple 777 for some reason. What I mean by my comment is that I have tested quite a few of these legacy zooms, and I have found the Koburi to have better color and sharpness, for lenses that cover a similar range. None of them is as sharp as something like a Leicasonic, but they have a big range and are cheap.

FW200

I'm just got a 300mm F/4.5 Tair lens in (photosniper one).. just waiting for the tripod screws to arrive and then I can try it in the wild.. pretty excited to try it and see if it is any good..

virgilr

I haven't shot any real footage with it yet, but I find the Tamron Adaptall 80-210mm f/3.8-4 a fabulous performer in the bargain basement range when shooting stills. I've compared it to a 70-210mm 19AH SP Adaptall-2 in some not-very-controlled comparison tests on my Pentax k100d Super for stills, and it performs quite admirably in comparison- and it's so much lighter and easier handling.

Used it in some closeup work on a quick and dirty test when first got my hands on a gh2, and footage matched up very nicely with that shot with a Pentax M 50mm f/1.4.

I've seen it in the $10-$35 range depending on condition/seller: Mine came in a job lot with some other fantastic lenses for 80 bucks, so I'd have to say I paid ~$25.00, but it wasn't why I grabbed the job lot, believe me! (Pentax K 55mm f/1.8 and M 35mm f/2.8 were the big attraction).

Details here: http://www.adaptall-2.org/lenses/103A.html

bunuelll

Not able to find any details about this one.Need advise before buying a not so clean lens with fungus on it. Is it worth buying ? This could be a hidden gem.There is very little mention about it on the net. The serial number on the lens is -77510152

http://www.flickr.com/photos/29504544@N08/6050245876/

tetakpatak

Canon FD lenses are indeed very famous in this moment.
But one of the very best FD's is not popular at all.... it's real hidden gem: the 50mm f/3.5 Macro!

I own set of 14 FD primes in all focal lengths between 17mm and 200mm. I don't know if I am just lucky to own especially good copy this lens, but it kind of outperforms almost all other FDs I have. I find it just indispensable.

Nobody wants 50mm f/3.5 lenses today, so one can buy it for next to nothing, if just a bit lucky. Straight from maximal aperture onwards great IQ: no flare, no ghosting, no CA, razor sharp all over, good colors rendition. Its optical elements are as small as Panny 20mm/1.7's
This is the one:

flablo

Hope not to go off topic, but I bought a Vivitar (Kobori) 28-200 and it doesn't seem to focus at, let's say, 1 mt distance (without going in macro mode when it does focus). I tried the Lumix 35-100 to check/compare and it does indeed focus at that distance. Should it be a fault of the adapter (which is not a cheap one but an Italian custom-made adapter (http://www.adrianololli.com) with aperture control which I bought for the Tokina 11-16)? Or could it be that I got a faulty lens? Sorry for the lame question btw ...

markus_b

I wonder why nobody has mentioned the KMZ TAIR 11A 2.8/135mm (M42) yet. 20 Aperture Blades: can you spell BOKEHHHH ! ;) Rare to get one in very good condition, needs a good tripod but absolutly beautiful in terms of IQ/color rendition and the creamiest bokeh of all russian glass.

Still looking for a good one myself, only had the chance to borrow it from a friend of mine till now (he got a rare one with a leading zero in the serial no. ) :(

apefos

@tetakpatak do you have the Canon FD 20mm 2.8 in your set? If yes I would like to ask if you have this same issue:

When I use it on the GH2 the image sharpness is ok in center and corner at 2.8 (wide open) because GH2 just uses the center of image circle due to the sensor crop factor.

But when I use it on the Canon FD A1 old full frame film camera, the corners are very soft and blurred at 2.8 and the lens becomes usable at f5.6 and above.

The FD 20mm 2.8 I tested was very good condition, looks like mint, so I supposed the corner softness in full frame is normal from this lens at wide open f-stops.

tetakpatak

@apefos yes, I have it, it is correct behavior, as FD 20mm f/2.8 just isn't top class lens. It is just good, nothing exceptional. It is not a gem and it is also not hidden :-)

DouglasHorn

@apefos - yes, I see the same thing. The crop factor really classes up the FD lenses by removing their soft corners.

@tetakpatak - Thanks for the comments about the FD 50mm F/3.5 macro. I would buy one but I have the Panasonic/Leica 45mm macro which is just a phenomenal lens. (It sounds like we have very similar FD lens kits except for the 50mm macro.)

fosterchen

I've got a Soligor 35-70mm f2.5~3.5, declicked w/ 8 aperture blades, and does macro pretty well.

Pluss

@Vitaliy_Kiselev thank you for lens suggestion and hacks, thank you for everyhting.

Cheers!

brudney

Does anybody know if Soligor 28-200 3.5-5.3 (no.99...) is the same construction as Vivitar/Kobori? Thanks!

Vitaliy_Kiselev

Does anybody know if Soligor 28-200 3.5-5.3 (no.99...) is the same construction as Vivitar/Kobori? Thanks!

No one knows it, I think. But it can be. If you can get it cheap you can test it yourself.

TheLoneRoger

Just bought a Vivitar 28-200 (777) on eBay with M42 mount; can anyone recommend a suitable Micro 4/3 adapter? Cheers. Agree with the comments about the 25mm and 75mm Cosmicar lenses - great lenses for the price, even if the 25mm looks ridiculous on an AF101!

nomad

Which 75mm Cosmicar is this? There are versions in 1.3, 1.4 and 1.8 floating around in the bay.

tetakpatak

@TheLoneRoger
Just check eBay. It's full of the adapters. I've ordered often directly from Hong Kong for just a few $ and they were all really well-done.

Tscheckoff

@TheLoneRoger: I can recommend the "Bigis" one. It´s working like a charm. (And it´s also pushing the pin inside the lens ... Which is neede for "auto" lenses. They only work manually when the pin is pushed inside the lens.)

TheLoneRoger

Thanks. I've ordered one on eBay that looks to be the same as the Bigis one - I think a lot of these Chinese parts are the same but branded under many different names - certainly if they're anything like Chinese motorcycle parts, they are! The Cosmicar 75mm I've got is f1.9 - see below. The one in the picture above is a Pentax branded 25mm, which is f1.4

tetakpatak

I think a lot of these Chinese parts are the same but branded under many different names

I couldn't agree more, +1

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