How many lenses have you used/handled?

[rbsinto]

I love participating here, but please, what is the purpose of a "survey" like this one? The number of lenses one owns or uses or owned might be of some interest, but handled? I often shoot with a group of photographers, and have "handled" many different lenses, some of them even Canon (as long as I remember to disinfect after I touch them), in fact far more lenses than I currently or have ever owned. And I'll bet that if one works in a camera store one might have handled literally thousands of lenses. So what? I don't mean to start a war, but I don't see the point of this particular survey.

 

[NIKON KIU]

Unscintific polls such as this may not have a lot of meaning when you look at them individually, but look at a bunch of them such as: "are you that old", "How many unused camera...", "how many pictures...",and it gives one a pretty good idea of what this forum is about and to some extent, what interests the members most.

Although this poll is very new compared to some other polls, and the numbers may change, I thought the majority would vote under 25!!


I like to remind everone that at any time, there are twice the number of "guests" compared to "members" visiting the RFF.

Just to be clear, I realized that we have X-camera shop workers that may answere 500 or more and those are valid numbers, but when I mentioned "handled" I meant like when you borrow or rent for the purpose of using, not the stuff you play with in the camera store.
So Jon, Tokyo camera shopping doesn't count😛

Kiu

 

[VinceC]

This did make me think about all the lenses I've used over the years.

Used regularly but not owned (usually owned by my employer):
Canon FD: 35/2.8; 50/1.8; 135/2.8
Vivitar in FD mount: 75-205/3.8
Nikkor: 20/2.8; 24/2.8.

Owned by me (in rough chronological order -- many I no longer own):
Pentax: 50/1.7; 135/2.8
Canon FD: 28/2.8
Viivitar: Series One 35-85/2.8 (in Canon FD an Nikon F mounts); 19/3.8 in Nikon F-mount. Series One 70-210 (in Canon FD and Nikon F mounts)
Nikkors in F-mount: 35/2; 50/1.4; 50/2; 50/2.8 Macro; 85/2; 105/2.5; 135/2.8; 135/3.5; 180/2.8; 200/4; 300/4.5
Nikon Series E 28/2.8 (an underrated lens. I like it a lot)
Tokina for Nikon-F mount: 17/3.5; 24/2.8; 400/5.6

For Kiev II
28/6; 35/2.8 (two of these); 50/2 (two of these); 85/2; Sonnar 50/1.5

For Nikon RF:
Zeiss Biogon 21/4.5
CV 25/4
Nikkors: 28/3.5 (two lenses, black and chrome); 35/2.5; 35/1.8; 50/1.4; 50/1.4 Millenneum; 85/2 (two lenses, black and chrome); 105/2.5; 135/3.5.

I'm sure I missed some.

 

[Kim Coxon]

This is another of those threads that I refuse to answer on the grounds that I might incriminate myself, 😉 (especially if the other half sees it. 😱 )

Kim

 

[sepiareverb]

I currently have 23 lenses (not counting fixed lens things), but over the last 27 years I've handled many many more than that- I'm in the 100-150 category I would guess. Years of assisting various photogs brings up my count- both roll film and sheet film stuff- how many polaroids I've shot I couldn't begin to guess.

Of all of them perhaps the best lens I've shot is the current 50/2 Summicron I use almost daily. Most exotic would be the 15/3.5 AiS Nikkor- what a front element!

 

[NL2377]

LF = 2
MF = 8
Digital = 10
Rangefinder = 12
Enlarger = 3
SLR = 30

= 65, that I have owned at one point or another.... I work at a camera shop, so there's no telling how many I've actually used/held...

 

[David Goldfarb]

I currently own about 50-60 for various formats--mostly large format (depending on whether you count fixed lens cameras, convertible lenses as more than one, is a doubler a lens?, etc.). They do pile up, don't they? I suppose I've used at various points around 100-150.

 

[NIKON KIU]

The 15mm f3.5 Nikkor is one of the most impressive lenses out there.
It's price actually has dropped some in the last couple of years, I got mine under $800.


Come on people keep voting.

Kiu

 

[Gabriel M.A.]

Is this like that question which gets the follow-up question: "what do you mean 'all the way'"? I think they had that deposition back in 1998 courtesy of dizzying oodles of taxpayer dollars.

Anyway...I've "handled" at least 200. Easy. Owned at one point or another? About 30 or 40. Easy. Hands down, tied, blindfolded, chocolate sy...

 

[erikhaugsby]

2007
(RF)
I had:
35/3.5 Summaron, but sold it.

I have:
28/2.8 Rokkor-M
50/2 Summicron DR
90/2.8 Elmarit

(SLR, all Canon)
I had:
18-55 kit, but then got carried away with a screwdriver.

I have:
17-40 f/4L
28/1.8
50/1.8II
85/1.8
70-200/2.8L

That makes 8 I own, 10 I owned.

2013
RF
I had:
35/3.5 Summaron

I have:
28/2.8 Minolta Rokkor-M
35/2.8 Summaron
50/2 Summicron DR
90/2.8 Elmarit

SLR
I had:
(all Canon)
18-55/3.5-5.6
17-40/4L
28/1.8
50/1.8 II
85/1.8
70-200/2.8L

I have:
(all Nikon)
24/2.8D
35/2D
85/1.4D

LF
I had:
127/4.7 Kodak Ektar

Few enough to remember them all. 😛

 

[Stephanie Brim]

At the moment I own four lenses (three of which mount on the Kiev) and have probably touched four or so more. I feel nowhere near as gear-headed anymore.

 

[topoxforddoc]

I've owned 30-40. Currently own 16-17.

Charlie

 

[potomo]

Slr FD: 7 EF: 3 (all original Canon)

RF: 5 (all russian Lens!)

Potomo

 

[Roger Hicks]

"Handle" is a somewhat vague term. Do you count the ones you look at in shops? On friends' cameras? In well over 40 years, I reckon I may well have actually used (= taken pictures with) at least 500 lenses, never mind handled them. Even a dozen lenses a year for 45 years is over 500 lenses. For my original Zeiss road test I used 6 lenses -- http://www.rogerandfrances.com/subscription/zeiss.html -- and I've tried four more since, including two that I still have, 18mm and the 50 C-Sonnar.

As for handling, at a single photokina I might handle (= not shoot with) 40-50 different lenses, and I've been to something like 15 photokinas. Then there are other trade shows and camera fairs. In other words, time plays a large part in it: you just handle more lenses in 40 years than you do in 4. Another factor is how you earn your living!

Cheers,

R.

 

[sevo]

Another factor is how you earn your living!

Amen to that! I once jobbed in the back office of a pro shop. In that time, I probably handled a five digit number of lenses, just by virtue of unboxing and price tagging all incoming shipments and registering every item in each rental kit before it went out and after it returned...

 

[raid]

I voted 75-100 lenses, but this is most likely an undetcount since I had in my lens comparisons 25-40 lenses each time, plus my own lenses that may be 50 RF lenses, plus who knows how many SLR lenses I have used.

 

[jsrockit]

I own three lenses. I use three fixed lens cameras too.

 

[Dwig]

Owned and used: something around 40, all told, counting those lenses fixed to various cameras that I've owned and used over the last 55+ years.

Handled: probably several thousand. I managed camera stores for nearly a quarter of a century and between the new and used items that I sold and the customer's equipment i handled and serviced the total number of different lenses would have to be many thousand.

 

[hepcat]

Oh my... probably at least a couple of hundred on a couple of dozen camera systems over forty years. I really would have to sit down and try to recall. I've worked with issued camera systems, and bought and sold many over the years.

 

[Godfrey]

Can't even estimate. I've been doing photography since I was 8yo, and that's a long time ago. :-\

G