Cheap lenses that wowed you...

Jupiter 12, got it for €120 with M-Adapter.
Hexanon 90/2.8 in M-mount, got it just below the "bar", but I'd not qualify it as "cheap"

And there was (finally sold it) the 50/1.8 EF lens, "plastic fantastic" lens. It gave very good results, survived two hard crashes... in the end I did not trust it as ush as I used to, so I sold it for €30.
 
S-M-C Takumar 1.4/50. the lens that hooked me for good with manual lenses, for me 'the' archetype of a lens.

Pen-F Zuiko 1.4/40, must be the sharpest f1.4 lens wide open that I have tried. The halfframe lens only covers APS-C, I find the equivalent 60mm great for intimate head shots.

Canon LTM 3.5/100, nuf said

Auto Takumar 1.8 and 2/55, small, sharp, love their colors
 
KoNickon said:
Well, given that he listed the Konica Pearl
I and Leica Minilux, I didn't think we were limiting this to interchangeable lenses only. But if we are, though still not really along those lines, I'll mention the older "silver" Mamiya Sekor TLR lenses, which are really quite good, even if supposedly improved upon by later versions.

I'll also emphatically second the Micro-Nikkor 55/3.5, and endorse any of the AR Hexanon lenses. And I would also nominate the MC-Rokkor line of lenses, which have superb overall optical qualities, are beautifully made, and seem to be really inexpensive these days.
Click to expand...

Sorry, didn't mean to sound accusatory. And you are right. Sometimes at work I read too fast so as not to spend too much time away from my paying work.
 
f16sunshine said:
The Yashinons and Yashica ML's for sure.
There is something about those DX coated Yashinon lenses that make them perfect for B+W photography.

The Zuiko 50mm f1.8 and 100mm f2.8. Brilliant lenses. I would put those against summicrons any day.
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I second the Yashicas.
Their Binoculars aren't bad either.

Meyer Optic Oreston 50 1.8.
As good as the Pancolar. & 5 quid!
 
If you draw a graph of lens prices for rangefinder cameras, it's a classic bell curve. The Industars are on the left, where there are a few very cheap lenses. In the middle are the majority of lenses, from $300 to $500. This comprises probably 95% of all the RF lenses ever made. Collapsible Summicrons, Canon 1.4s, rare Japanese LTM lenses are in here. These are very good lenses, but not really cheap, comparatively. Finally, on the right are the Leica Summilux, rare Nikkors, Cookes, etc. Those cost from $500 to $5,000.

Can we get back to what are great, CHEAP lenses? 90% of the RF lenses will cost under $400, but only 10% will be under $150. I'm interested in those, not the mainstream cost lenses.

I'll start - the Cannon LTM 135/3.5 is a very good bargain, and trumps most lenses in the center of the bell curve.
 
Most 50s are pretty spectacular in terms of cost/performance ratio. I have tried and liked the Industar LD and the Nikkor AF 50 1.8 ($80 NEW!!!!).
 
rbsinto said:
My bargain gems are all SLR manual focus lenses in Nikon f mount:
Vivitar 19 3.8
Vivitar 17~28 f4.0-4.5
Tamron SP 35~105 2.8
Tokina ATX 80~200 2.8
zoom Nikkor 35~70 3.5 AIS
Nikkor 85 f2 AI
micro-Nikkor 105 f4 AI
Nikkor 105 2.5 AI
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Yessir. For sure. Built better than the Nikkor 70-210mm too. Got mine for EUR 200!

I also shoot the Tokina 3.5-4.5/20-35mm AT-X (non-PRO version from the 1990's, sharper than the later PRO model, cost EUR 129) and the Tokina 2.8/28-70mm AT-X PRO version 1, the Angenieux clone. It is sensational and cost me EUR 300 including shipping and customs! 😱

The 28-70mm lens:
10830658_799301750106980_6553635747684807284_o.jpg
 
Canon 50mm f1.8 LTM ($100 and a CLA) Except for a small bit of easily removed fog on the rear lens, this lens looked and performed as new. Stupidly I traded it away.
Jupiter 8 50mm f2 LTM ($50 and a CLA) I lucked out and bought a good one.
Industar 61 L/D (Was sent to me as a body cap on a Barnack clone)
Vivitar 24mm f2 Nikkor Ai mount (used on a Sony a6000 + F-Nex adapter)
 
I like the Nikkor 50/3.5 micro a lot.
Another excellent budget lens is the Canon 100/3.5 ltm and the Canon 50/1.8 ltm.
The Zeiss 50/1.4 in QBM (Rollei mount) is a (budget) super lens on a M 4/3 camera.
A checked-out/shimmed J-3 is hard to beat.
 
rbsinto said:
My bargain gems are all SLR manual focus lenses in Nikon f mount:
Vivitar 19 3.8
Vivitar 17~28 f4.0-4.5
Tamron SP 35~105 2.8
Tokina ATX 80~200 2.8
zoom Nikkor 35~70 3.5 AIS
Nikkor 85 f2 AI
micro-Nikkor 105 f4 AI
Nikkor 105 2.5 AI
Click to expand...

I have not tried the off-brand lenses but I certainly agree with your Nikon picks. I have each of the ones mentioned and have been impressed by their performance. In particular I would say the Micro-Nikkor 105 f4 is a hidden gem. Most people overlook it in favour of the f2.8 variant but its a cracker at both micro distances and infinity. In general I have found that pretty well any lens by a major manufacturer in a "standard" focal length (35mm, 50mm, 135mm in particular) and having something other than a super fast speed tends to be good to excellent lens. The other lenses of this sort that I have been impressed by are the old Pentax M42 Screw Mount lenses. It is hard to find one that is anything other than excellent. With the exception of one or two rarities all are inexpensive.

One final thought. A lens I was frankly surprised by when I first tried it, was the Leica Elmar 50mm f3.5 (a cheap and once common lens in Leica's lineup). Then I recalled its design is based on the Tessar design and that as with Zeiss lenses of this type (e.g the color skopar lenses it made for various cameras) this simple basic design (with only 4 elements and developed because in those early days when there were no lens coatings so a simple design was essential) works well within its modest design parameters. A surprisingly good and in Leicas terms cheap lens.
 
Vivitar 135mm f2.8 Komine. It has a lovely signature and is pin sharp. It cost me £15 in pristine condition on evilbay. My only gripe is that it focusses the oposite way to my Nikkor lenses.
 
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