Pancake lenses... Lomo LC-A MINITAR-1 vs Brightin Star 28mm vs ...?

[Asahizuiko]

I was thinking about a Brightin Star 28mm F2.8 as a pancake lens for my R-D1, and then I remembered about the existence of the LC-A MINITAR-1 32mm lens from Lomo.

Both are F2.8 pancake lenses. The LC-A is known for it's strong vignette, whilst the Brightin Star is know for weird field curvature leading to blurry corners, Neither of which should be issues on a crop sensor.

The LC-A 22.5mm filter thread and has a clickless aperture down to F22. The Brightin Star has a 25.5mm filter thread and stops down to F16.

Are these lenses too fiddly to use? Are the tiny filter sizes too inconvenient?

Let me know if you've tried either of these lenses. Any thoughts or other suggestions?

 

[Zuiko-logist]

The I69 works on the APS-C bodies with slight (easy) modification, not rangefinder coupled. This may also be a low cost alternative. Similarly fiddly but probably best used with hyperfocal technique.

 

[aw614]

The brightin star uses the same filter as some of the Pentax 110 lenses from what I read and can confirm. I don't remember which lens off the top of my head.

I've bought one and have used it on my CLE and didn't think the handling was that bad, but I am not a fan of screw on caps.

 

[rfaspen]

I guess I think field curvature is more neat than vignette. But, I have a bunch of 22.5mm filters...not everyone has that problem. A 28 is wider than a 32 (ummm) which I personally find more dynamic. I'm certain I've seen images from the brightn star but can't recall. If it has decent central sharpness at max aperture I know my choice 🙂. But it's your choice and the above may not matter to you......

 

[Godfrey]

I have the Lomo LCA lens. I've done some photos with it ... it's small, light, and fun, and actually makes some decent pictures. I'll see if I can hunt up a couple. 😀

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Ah, I put a bunch of Minitar 32mm photos into an album on Flickr: Lomo LC-A Minitar Art Lens Test 2022

G

 

[hap]

I have the Lomo LCA lens. I've done some photos with it ... it's small, light, and fun, and actually makes some decent pictures. I'll see if I can hunt up a couple. 😀

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Ah, I put a bunch of Minitar 32mm photos into an album on Flickr: Lomo LC-A Minitar Art Lens Test 2022

G

Interesting.....

 

[WoodallP]

These are great!

 

[jc031699]

The brightin star uses the same filter as some of the Pentax 110 lenses from what I read and can confirm. I don't remember which lens off the top of my head.

I've bought one and have used it on my CLE and didn't think the handling was that bad, but I am not a fan of screw on caps.

this is true, the Auto Pentax 110 has 25.5 filter thread

there are comprehensive Brightin Star 28 2.8 threads on Fred Miranda and Leica Users Forum. Just got one...

 

[Tim Gray]

I'm looking at one of these lenses as well. Not really looking for something 'good' but for something 'fun' with a bunch of character. Any thoughts of which fits the bill better?

 

[TenEleven]

That's not really a question anyone here can answer for you - I mean how much character is too much character?
That's a call only you can make. I suggest looking at the examples hap posted and other reviews etc. online.

Generally speaking, the Brightin Star is at least externally a copy of Miyazaki-sans 28mm 'Apoqualia' 28mm f/2 lens (optically they are quite distinct) - and from what I have seen in samples and reviews when looking into the Brightin Star, the performance is more "serious" than the Lomography lens, but it will still come with trade-offs. The lomo lens is a lot more overt about its optical .. I will call them.. defects - for one there is strong pincushion distortion and the focus field curves considerably. (Whether or not these actually constitute a "defect" is up to the tog.)

 

[Godfrey]

I'm looking at one of these lenses as well. Not really looking for something 'good' but for something 'fun' with a bunch of character. Any thoughts of which fits the bill better?

I don't know how to evaluate which of these lenses is "more fun" than the other. I know the Lomo Minitar 32mm has lots of character and produces nice photos, don't have a BrightIn Star 28 to compare it against. I don't know anyone who has both of them to ask either.

G

 

[Tim Gray]

Yeah, 'fun' is definitely a subjective thing. I've looked at a few forum threads on both lenses, but there's not a ton of samples out there for either and no one seems to have tried them both. I'm thinking the Minitar is more what I'm looking for, but maybe I'll end up with both eventually.

 

[jesse1dog]

Probably a complete non-runner because I don't know what you are after but an unconsidered and unrated lens is the Staeble-Choro 38mm f3.5 which collapses to about 15mm and extends to well less than 1cm. I picked up my copy a bit by accident and its one of those lenses which went on the shelf to be investigated on a rainy day - and then something else came up!

 

[Tim Gray]

I'll check it out. Just looking for goofy lenses (with character and/or optical defects) that aren't too expensive.

 

[jc031699]

Brightin Star 28 2.8 M240

 

[hendry86]

I have the Brightin Star 28mm F2.8 and love the compactness. The images are generally quite sharp. I think it's a fantastic pair with the RD1!

And if I am not wrong, Brightin Star should be cheaper to get!

The perk is that you can use it with your full frame Leica which I do.

 

[hendry86]

Forgot to mention, the only issue I have is it's filter size. Haven't found a lens cap that is easy to take out and put on 🙁 gotta screw on and off the cap.

 

[justins7]

I made a lens cap for the Brightin Star by using a black plastic film canister cap. I melted the plastic slightly with a match to make it a little tighter and now it fits perfectly..

 

[hendry86]

That's a brilliant idea! Time for me to shoot a roll and get the canister cap 😀

 

[justins7]

That's a brilliant idea! Time for me to shoot a roll and get the canister cap 😀
Thanks. I've had to improvise a lot over the years with lens caps. I save plastic caps just for this purpose. If you find a plastic cap that's slightly loose you melt one side of it so it gets soft and then press it in a little — it'll be a snug fit!