In praise of a cheap 50mm!

Dave Wilkinson

Dave Wilkinson

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Just been sat looking through my files from three or four years ago, and once again I'm reminded what a nice little lens the collapsible Fed 50 - f3.5 is. I got mine from Moscow for about £8 while going through a FSU aquisition spell. I've made a mental note to fit an adaptor and run a roll or two off again, as it has such a nice subtle rendition.
I don't have a digital rangefinder, but reckon this lens would do well on one, anyone done so?....and maybe post a result? :)
Cheers, Dave.
 
I have one ....prewar uncoated and love the old timey look of the thing. Its not too bad mechanically either. Never heard of one being used on a D camera however.
 
I have it's cousin - Industar-22 - 50/3.5 lens. I like it a lot - film or digital. Here are a few from it on Epson RD1S:

EPSN3954.jpg


EPSN3959.jpg


EPSN3984.jpg


EPSN3985_1.jpg
 
I have an Industar 22 that I slap onto my r-d1 from time to time. I am not too crazy about its color redition, but for b/w conversions, it is very good.
10966_1265715047683_1373983678_772493_4347206_n.jpg

[shot at f3.5, iso1600]
 
My Fed 50 f 3.5 has found an almost permanent place on my M 8 ! It's crisp somehow , and has a lovely colour rendition . But I have three [ from Fed 2s bought ] and just the one is outstanding .
 
I have a CLA'd Fed 2 that came with an Industar 26 for the princely sum of $45.00 from Oleg!

The lens is pretty rough with plenty of marks on the front element but it has a certain quaity that I like in some conditions. Rather soft wide open but definitely has some 'glow!'


fed160409_01.jpg
 
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Dear Krosya,

All too often I look at people's 'My lens is great' pics and think, "Why did they bother?" or "They're proud of that?"

But with those shots I can see your point, though I much prefer the colour (especially the hand and cup) to the mono.

Cheers,

R.
 
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Keith, Industar-26 is a secret gem in terms of sharpness stopped down a bit (f:4). Better than a normal Jupiter-8 or Industar-61 I think. Not too contrasty for b&w. I haven't tried it with color film though. I just wish It would have the aperture clicks like the -61.
 
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Looking at this thread reminds me that I need to make another collapsible I-61L/D in Contax mount. "Blow your socks off" deep color. The mechanics of the focus mount are not on par with the optics. So- remount for Contax using the mount of the collapsible 5cm F2 Sonnars. the last one was $1 on Ebay auction, and $6 for shipping.
 
Thanks Roger.

Johan, if its a glow you want - here is a shot I took a while back with Industar-22 on M3 and Konica B&W film:
280031573_fba0fdf780_b.jpg
 
Roger Hicks said:
Dear Krosya,

All too often I look at people's 'My lens is great' pics and think, "Why did they bother?" or "They're proud of that?"

But with those shots I can see your point, though I much prefer the colour (especially the hand and cup) to the mono.

Cheers,

R.
Click to expand...

Agreed, including the b/w. We just expect a person to be the "focus" of a shot, not the cup, which is sharp. Those color shots are stunning.
 
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