Favorite Fast 50's from Nikon, Olympus, Pentax, Minolta, Konica, Tomioka, Yashica
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- Опубликовано: 15 окт 2024
- I’m shooting this on a 24mp Sony FF camera. These are a few of my “fast 50’s” that are especially vintage, especially cheap and especially strong in their vintage characteristics. Their aperture opens up to f/1.4 or 1.2. They include my favorite normal lens, the Konica 57mm f/1.4. I was really surprised when I first came across Konica. Before this testing, I always felt this one is especially good, combining the characteristics I like most: close focus distance, a slightly longer focal length at 57mm vs. 50, sharp in center for portraits, really nice background blur (at least to me). Subjectively, I love this lens and I’m interested to see how it holds up. The Olympus OM 50mm f/1.4 is a small gem from an OM-1. It’s light enough to keep in your pocket wherever you go. My favorite picture I ever took was captured with the Nikkor pre-AI 50mm f/1.4. The slightly less damped focus of these earlier Nikkors really lets you focus pretty quickly, and like all of my Nikon lenses, never disappoints. I’m going to test against my other two pre-ai Nikon fast 50's the Nippon Kogaki Nikkor-S and the Nikkor-SC which should be similar. These pre-AI Nikkors really are a great bargain for excellent quality. The Yashica ML 50mm f/1.4 is an absolute sleeper lens. You see those M42 Takumar’s getting snatched up all the time, and while I do have a 7-element Super Multicoated Takumar that isn’t in shooting condition at the moment, this Yashica is even better in my opinion. My Yashica ML is M42 - also known as Pentax Universal Screw Mount. But it does have some fungus in it. My Pentax-A 50mm f/1.4 was a favorite lens when I shot Pentax DSLRs. I upgraded from the f/2 version (though I’ve tested that in other reviews if you’d like to see how it did). The A version of Pentax lenses meter on their DSLRs, which means even though you won’t have autofocus, the other auto exposure functions on the camera can work. This is a manual focus lens with great coatings and is really quite modern compared to the others, so I’m interested to see how it would do in the comparison. Another m42 classic, we’re going to look at the Mamiya Sekor branded Tomioka 50mm F/1.4, which is the same lens as many other names, including rejuvinon, Sears, Ricoh, and many others. These lenses have a cult following. Mine has a touch of fungus in it, so keep that in mind - it isn’t pristine - but should make for an interesting comparison. Last but not least, I’m also going to throw in my Minolta MD 50mm f/1.2 just to see how it compares. At some point, I’d love to do a super fast 1.2 comparison of 50’s including this lens, the Nikkor 50mm f/1.2, the Pentax-M or A 50mm 1.2 and perhaps one of the many Canons. But since this is the only 1.2 in my collection at the moment, I thought it would be interesting to show whether that tiny half-stop of extra aperture opening is really worth it. I would love to have a Minolta 58mm f/1.2 to test, so I'm keeping my eye out. In future episodes, I’m going to compare even more 50 mm lenses, including a bunch of different Konica’s, a bunch of Nikkors and more. So do check out my other videos. Why is the fast 50 my favorite vintage lens? It’s pretty simple really. Out of focus blur or Bokeh - these provide the best bang for the buck. These lenses are really great when it comes to rendering. They look different from the clinical lenses modern digital cameras typically use. When I want to shoot a vintage lens, I want that special look that these really provide. Best of all, some of these are sleeper lenses. Some folks know how good they are, but they often fly below the radar. Some are amazing for portraits that deliver an organic look you can’t re-create in photoshop. Some are nice all-around lenses that can do it all on a budget. But whatever the reason, make sure you have at least one vintage fast 50 in your bag, so you can go out and take some great cheap shots. With the exception of the Minolta 50mm f/1.2, any of these lenses can be found for a bargain price, well less than $100 if you have a little patience. And if you’re a bargain hunter, you may be able to grab one attached to a camera for even less at a yard sale or thrift store. I picked up all of these for less than $20 US. It was fun seeing how they all compare, and here are a few thoughts that come time mind after looking at both portrait and landscape examples. First, sample variation plays a big role. Focal length really matters - especially for portraits. The 55, 57 or 58mm lenses provide an especially pleasing look on full frame. Questions we'll answer: Is the Mamiya Sekor made by Tomioka a special portrait lens? What's the best all-around lens? Is the olypus a good fit with other Olympus lenses that are great performers like the 21mm 3.5 and 24mm 2.8? Which is best for landscapes? I could have only one vintage lens, which would I choose?
Loving your channel 👍
I really like those fotga adapters. they are sturdy.
They are a great value for the build quality!
I have a slightly earlier copy of the Nikkor, great lens. I'd like to pickup an even earlier single coat, silver nose version.
Very nice review , very nice lenses
Thanks so much! I've enjoyed getting out and shooting with them, and am glad you can find some use from the comparisons.
My Konica 57/1.4 is minty. I rate it above the Super-Takumar 50/1.4 for colour saturation, contrast and sharpness. It’s a wee gem. Thanks for the video. 😊
Great review thanks. Love that Konica 57mm!
Thank you so much for letting me know about the voice-over overlap on the previous version Karen! Really appreciate it! And I agree about the Konica - down the line I may review the silver versus the black versions, just for kicks since I Have them both!
@@cheapshotslensreviewsandph3559 I would love to see the two 57s side by side. BTW just got my Quantaray 24mm f2.5 Nikon mount thanks to you. Just waiting for the adapter to arrive. The lens could do with a CLA as the helicoid is sticky and loose at the same time. Ever taken one apart? I have dismantled other lenses with success so I might give it a go since I only paid $25 + shipping - but they that aren’t easy to come by so it has more value to me than that. The glass is in great shape too.
Nice! You could always see if it’s easy to disassemble… in some lenses the front elements come out as a whole you can get to a fair amount of the helicoid without disassembling the whole thing. Clean up the gunk and it can make all the difference! Good luck!
I just bought my Konica 57mm 1.4 on eBay for $100 CDN (lens+shipping+duty). It was on a camera with a filter and lens is pristine. I shot it tonight at dusk. What a beauty. I just love it. Makes me want to try the Konica 57mm 1.2 (which is 10x more expensive!). Keep those cheap shots coming. I am happy to fill my lens cabinet with you favourites.
@@kmcsmart I'm so happy you snagged a good one. If I come across the 1.2 at a bargain price of course I'll snag it, but I've now got quite a little collection of those 1.4s brewing. Looking forward to getting a few more 50 / 50 reviews out soon!
I like the Contax Carl Zeiss f1.4 / 50mm Planar, the Contax Carl Zeiss f2.8 / 45mm Tessar, and the EBC X-Fujinon f1.6 / 55 mm. Thanks for your very interesting comparison. Based on your other comparison of 50mm lenses, I bought a X-Fujinon f1.9 / 50mm which is also very decent.
Super lenses, if I ever come across one cheap I’ll definitely pick it up!
Love my Konica 57mm and my Pentax SMC 50mm's. I did not like my super tak 55mm that much but I found the earlier Auto-Takumar and the later SMC versions to be nicer.
Great info and for your help giving others a sense of what you like and contributing to the conversation!
You know, Minolta makes a very nice and small MD 50mm f/1.4 with 49mm filter thread. I have the older MD Rokkor-X 50mm f/1.4 with 55mm filter thread. Highly recommend. Also, while it is an autofocus lens, it may be worthwhile to consider the Nikon 50mm f/1.4D. Also, why no Canon FD 50mm f/1.4 in the mix? I have the breech lock version of the FD 50mm f/1.4 S.S.C. and it's a lovely lens for travel, portraits, and general shooting.
This is great feedback! So since I shot these, I've since acquired an MC Rokkor-PG f/1.4 in great condition. It's almost exactly the same size as the MD 50 1.2 and probably similar to the Rokkor-X (55mm filter). AND - I also snagged an FD 1.4. So for sure, at some point there's going to be a battle between the best Nikon, Canon, Minolta and Olympus F/1.4 for sure. There should be a lot of videos as I work through all my 50 or so 50mm lenses! PS - The Nikon 50mm f/1.4 was my main autofocus lens for a long time . . . some of shots hung in my home from that lens . . . but alas it's long gone.
Hexanon 57/1.4 might be most used lens in recent years - needs a teardown though. Oily blades finally have restricted iris movement recently so it's sheleved til I get around to that. The Pentax-M 1.4 was my introduction to fast-fiddy so many years ago. Still a place in my heart. But the Hexanon is better.
I'll assume you know the 57/1.2 ... it's obviously larger and costly in comparison, but it blows the hexie 1.4 out of the water.
Even better, the Topcor 58/1.4 is absolutely ridiculous (among many others from Topcon, but I'm guessing you know that). :)
I forgot to add.... As nice as the Olympus are, I will never have one again simply because they are perhaps the most frustrating makes to open and teardown. Contact cement in quantities never before witnessed. The few I've opened to service that came through my hands were absolutely tests of patience, and I ran out. No more. LOL
While I've heard a lot about the 57 f/1.2 (and would pick one up to test in a heartbeat if one came across me at a great price). . . I haven't tried the Topcor . . . will definitely keep an eye out for it based on your recommendation. Thanks for watching and happy shooting! Next up, I may test the 57 1.4 Konicas (silver and black versions) and the 50 f/1.4. The 1.2 would be a perfect addition.
@@cheapshotslensreviewsandph3559 It's a steep one (and so is the Topcor I mentioned) and they're also quite huge, about the same size as the very large Minolta 1.2, but my goodness are they worth it (much more than I thought they'd be). For many years the only 1.2 that I had was the Pentax-K which I picked up eventually due to my love of the Pentax-M 1.4. The 1.2 is very nice but I'm honest when I say the Hexanon 1.2 puts it to absolute shame. 50s are an addiction, are they not? :D
Great comparison video, btw. I enjoyed it and it was useful to see them all next to one another like this. Cheers.
@@therealchickentender I ruined my previous 50 1.4 - the whole aperture at the front of the lens really threw me off too . . . what started with just a little haze ended with a broken aperture too . . . I hear you!
I will have to one day get my hands on one. Or a Minolta . . . many moons ago, if you can believe it or not, I passed up on the Minolta 57 1.2 because I was shooting K-Mount and was only looking for K-mount lenses (around 2009). I don't think I knew about M42-Kmount adapters either. Passed up so many great lenses in those days for cheap at flea markets or garage sales - before the mirrorless revolution lol
I have Fujinon 50mm f1.4. I think it has the most 3-dimensional rendering of all my 10 vintage lenses. It's very sharp when stopped down and has nice bokeh. Small 49mm filter. Axial chromatic aberration in high contrast lighting can be a problem. There were three versions the first being radioactive. I have a non-radioactive version m42 mount. I also have minolta 50mm f1.4 which is nice but like the unique rendering of the Fujinon.