Your underrated lenses

[boojum]

Jupiter 8's cannot be counted on to always be good. You know the old FSU joke, "We pretend to work, they pretend to pay us." QC on lenses and cameras was not too good. KMZ made the best Jupiters but even those were uneven. I have a '51 that is alright and a '57 that is just super. It is nearly the best Sonnar I have and I am blessed with some good ones. This is not the best photograph in the world but it does show how well this '57 KMZ Jupiter 8 handles light and color and how sharp it is. Luck of the draw, bought from a seller in Ukraine.

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Night scene in the Astoria Harbor, West Mooring Basin by Bornstein's Sea Food. M9 - '57 KMZ J8 by West Phalia, on Flickr

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[dexdog]

Luck of the draw, bought from a seller in Ukraine.

Yeah, sometimes you get lucky! I have a 1953 version that is very, very good, perfect outta the box.

 

[kxl]

If you think they're great, and you also think they don't get the attention they deserve, then yes! 😄

I don't know if there's bias in general against "upstart" Chinese lens manufacturers versus German (or Japanese) manufacturers, which admittedly have long histories in manufacturing lenses, but the sub-$1000 Thypoch Simera and LLL lenses punch above their weight in terms of build quality, as well as optical performance--within context.

Beyond the incredible value, the LLL lenses, designed to be replicas, give me an opportunity to shoot lenses that are close in performance (at least from what I've read) to the originals, which are now either hard to find and/or very pricey. In terms of corner to corner sharpness, contrast, etc..., do they compare favorably with the latest Cron ASPH lenses? No, of course not--but they weren't meant to.

 

[ddutchison2]

In the LTM world, the Ver.1 50/2.8 Elmar and the Canon 50/1.8 - if you have a clear one

 

[splitimageview]

Sleeper lenses are a good topic.

I'll start with zooms as primes seem to get the most attention therefore are rarely actually under rated.

Nikkor 28-50/3.5, 50-135/3.5.

Nikkor 28-105 AFD.

 

[titrisol]

In the early 2000s I bought a sears brand 135/2.8 for less than $20 and it is one of the best lenses I owned.

If you had asked this question 15-20 years ago, when adapting vintage lenses to digital was not a thing, I would very easily answer that Takumars and Zuikos are sold at prices that was a criminal offence. Same also for Rokkors. Twenty years fast forward and everyone is aware of their merits.

If I had to name a few today I would say:

a) K-mount Ricoh lenses. I don't own any anymore but every single one I ever used was an excellent lens. From 28mm to 50mm, they were all brilliant.

b) for me, the M-line lenses from Pentax (K-mount) are outstanding. Very well built, excellent performance and compact. The most I paid was £50 for the 35f/2.8 (although this one is more expensive nowadays). The rest varied from £2 to £20 for the 50f/1.4. I also owned the 40f/2.8 but I was never impressed. Maybe a bad copy, maybe poor ergonomics or its just that the 35f/2.8 is a much better lens.

View attachment 4875741

and the SMC-A pentax as well, great lenses

 

[38Deardorff]

My favourite under rated lens is this Canon 28mm f2.8 LTM. The front is wobbly so i took it to my friendly repair guy LensMedicYYC. Someone had previously taken it apart and one of the three screwholes was stripped. No way to repair it. At first i was disappointed, but I continued to shoot with it and the results are always great even wide open. So i live with it. It's got character and unlike the couple of expensive Voigtlander 28mm f3.5....it has no haze.

 

[chuckroast]

Jupiter 8's cannot be counted on to always be good. You know the old FSU joke, "We pretend to work, they pretend to pay us." QC on lenses and cameras was not too good. KMZ made the best Jupiters but even those were uneven. I have a '51 that is alright and a '57 that is just super. It is nearly the best Sonnar I have and I am blessed with some good ones. This is not the best photograph in the world but it does show how well this '57 KMZ Jupiter 8 handles light and color and how sharp it is. Luck of the draw, bought from a seller in Ukraine.

​

Night scene in the Astoria Harbor, West Mooring Basin by Bornstein's Sea Food. M9 - '57 KMZ J8 by West Phalia, on Flickr

​

I can smell the kelp, the fishy remains, the salt air. and hear the skipper in the wheelhouse cussin' because it's taking so long ...

 

[chuckroast]

My favourite under rated lens is this Canon 28mm f2.8 LTM. The front is wobbly so i took it to my friendly repair guy LensMedicYYC. It had previously been taken apart and one of the three screwholes was stripped. No way to repair it. At first i was disappointed, but I continued to shoot with it and the results are always great even wide open. So i live with it. It's got character and unlike the couple of expensive Voigtlander 28mm f3.5....it has no haze.
View attachment 4875818

Drool

 

[boojum]

My favourite under rated lens is this Canon 28mm f2.8 LTM. The front is wobbly so i took it to my friendly repair guy LensMedicYYC. Someone had previously taken it apart and one of the three screwholes was stripped. No way to repair it. At first i was disappointed, but I continued to shoot with it and the results are always great even wide open. So i live with it. It's got character and unlike the couple of expensive Voigtlander 28mm f3.5....it has no haze.
View attachment 4875818

I am with you 100%. I have one and love it. I dropped it about two inches onto my keyboard and now it binds as turn the barrel to get to infinity. I will get it fixed. It has always been a stellar performer, just great.

 

[Rob-F]

In the LTM world, the Ver.1 50/2.8 Elmar and the Canon 50/1.8 - if you have a clear one

Speaking of the 50/2.8 Elmar, I concur! Sharp, with just the right amount of contrast. And may I mention the Collapsible Summicron for its soft-sharp look when used wide-open?

 

[Archiver]

An underrated modern lens is the Panasonic 20-60mm f3.5-5.6. It came as a kit lens with the S5, S5 II and S9. A lot of people overlook it in favour of lenses with constant and wider aperture like the 24-105mm f4 or 24-70mm f2.8. But the 20-60 is surprisingly versatile, with the 20mm wide end capturing seemingly endless context, and the 60mm end being enough for get a semi-tele look.

S5 - Drums of Red by Archiver, on Flickr

The slowish aperture is a problem for some, citing longer depth of field and slower shutter speeds / need for higher ISO's. But for micro four thirds shooters, f3.5-5.6 is the depth of field equivalent of f1.7 - 2.8. There are a number of micro four thirds lenses with f2.8 and people generally don't complain about the deeper depth of field. I should know, I have an extensive collection of m43 lenses and often compare them with their full frame counterparts.

The only problems I've found with this lens are the distortion at 20mm and the relative not-sharpness. Lots of people say that this lens is sharp, but I guess I have higher standards coming from much more expensive lenses. Distortion is corrected in camera with the Panasonic S1 and Leica SL2S, but weirdly is not corrected in the Panasonic S5. It's a very light and compact lens, and is definitely useful as a daytime walkaround and travel lens. Pair the 20-60 with a fast prime for low light and shallow depth of field, and you've got a two-lens travel kit which covers 80-100% of everyday and travel needs.

 

[Leon C]

Nikon AFS 18-70 3.5/4.5 G ED [DX]

Came with the D70/s as a kit lens but don't let that put you off. [It sits on the D100 for now and is a very quiet setup.]

Olympus 14-42 3.5/5.6 ED 4/3

Another superb kit lens and many pics on here from this lovely glass to show how nice it can be.

 

[Dogman]

Nikon made some killer zooms. Today, those old manual focus zooms are not so innovative in comparison to super glass, super coatings and super plastic housings. But the old stuff are still great performers. My favorites are the Zoom-Nikkors 25-50 ƒ/4 AIS, 35-70 ƒ/3.5 AI, 28-45 ƒ/4.5.

You don't hear much about these old zooms but they are still pretty great at making images. Plus they are built like hockey pucks. Most I've seen are pretty beat up but still perform well.



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[Leon C]

Nikon made some killer zooms. Today, those old manual focus zooms are not so innovative in comparison to super glass, super coatings and super plastic housings. But the old stuff are still great performers. My favorites are the Zoom-Nikkors 25-50 ƒ/4 AIS, 35-70 ƒ/3.5 AI, 28-45 ƒ/4.5.

You don't hear much about these old zooms but they are still pretty great at making images. Plus they are built like hockey pucks. Most I've seen are pretty beat up but still perform well.



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Picked up a 28-45 4.5 earlier in the year and definately a self defence weapon and the other 2 are on my hit list when the price is right, I do have a 35-105 3.5/4.5 which is also very nice.

 

[Imakebadphotos]

For me its the Voigtlander prominet 50mm f2 Ultron. I was able to get the prominet-Nikon adapter for my rangefinder and I absolutely love using it. I also really dig the original Nokton for the prominet but I was really surprised I don't hear much said about the ultron. This picture was shot at f4 while the coating is not the best for its time, I feel like it adds to the charm.

 

[raydm6]

Argus 50mm Coated Cintar f/3.5

Renders quite nicely.

 

[Sonnar Brian]

TTartisans 50mm F0.95. Yet another addition to my need for speed.

Popflash had the Titanium Version of the TTArtisans 50mm F0.95 under $550 on Ebay. The filter size for the Titanium version is 62mm, less than the standard edition 67mm. Viewfinder blockage is less. As it is- a Hood on the lens will block the RF window at close focus. A vented hood helps. I had...

rangefinderforum.com

TTArtisans 50mm F1.4 in Leica Mount

Another lens made by DJ Optical. This is an original Optical Design, 10 element in 8 groups with 1 aspherical element. No floating elements. It is not a copy of a Leica lens. Looking at the Thypoch Simera 50/1.4: closely based on the Asph Summilux 50/1.4. So why did I pick this lens? It was...

rangefinderforum.com

7Artisans 75mm F1.25 M-Mount lens. The Need For Speed Satisfied.

You got a great price on that M10. Rasha gave you sound advice. I would have to rewrite all my code for the M10. I did download the source code for decompressing the image stored in the DNG file. That's a backup plan. I've worked with CCD's for a long time, and go back with Kodak sensors over...

rangefinderforum.com

7Artisans and TTArtisans are the most under-rated lenses currently in production, Chinese companies.
The 50/0.95 was $550, and the 75/1.25 was $450. The TTart 50/1.4- 1/3rd the cost of the Thypoch 50/1.4.

 

[splitimageview]

Nikon made some killer zooms. Today, those old manual focus zooms are not so innovative in comparison to super glass, super coatings and super plastic housings. But the old stuff are still great performers. My favorites are the Zoom-Nikkors 25-50 ƒ/4 AIS, 35-70 ƒ/3.5 AI, 28-45 ƒ/4.5.

Unfortunately with 72mm filter size, two of these I won't bother to try. Those are BIG! *Maybe* the 35-70 but I'd rather go with the 35-70/2.8 AF which was my first AF Nikkor back in about 1990.

 

[agentlossing]

It made a nice compact set but I don't think it worth the price. The 50f/1.7 or the 35f/2.8 are easier to operate and better optically at open apertures.

View attachment 4875752

The M-40mm 2.8 was an early pancake lens for a telecentric SLR system, so it's quite compromised optically. Today, the better bet is the FA 43mm f1.9 Limited, which is also somewhat underrated (of the "Limited" series of lenses Pentax makes, it's one of the least talked-about, and is the oldest). The 43mm is a terrific lens (as many here know, including those who own the LTM version, the 43mm "Special").