On a recent outing, to Salem, I had the chance to run two of my favorite older lenses from the super takumar series. It is always a treat to add them to my kit, for their light weight (compared to the 24-70L) of my standard shooting setup is a welcome break from “zooms”, giving me a chance to focus on the images themselves.
I have a soft spot for these lenses, since acquiring a cheap metal adapter (from M42 to EOS) ~ and this has resulted in some very fun work with these solidly built entirely manual lenses on the 1D mark IV. I will add that the colors expressed are definitely unique, and the sharpness delivered is second to none (especially with the 35 f3.5). Focusing is made easier with an installed EG-S screen, or super precision matte ~ which allows for much easier critical focus using the viewfinder (even in limited light).
I must admit, to my eyes, the super takumar 35 f3.5 is sharper across the frame than the 50 f1.4, yet this is likely due to the design constraints of the 50mm lens with such a large aperture. Indeed the way the 50 1.4 renders its “Bokeh” is described by some as “painterly” ~ of which I tend to agree. The ability to shoot interiors of such places as the dark exhibit halls with relatively low ISO’s (400-1200) allow for all manner of creative possibilities. I can fully recommend that all canon users who have access to these stellar works of craftsmanship purchase an adapter, and enjoy these truly remarkable tools.
Below is a gallery with various sample images, as stated above, the architectural shots in the early part of the gallery were taken with the extremely high resolving 35 f3.5, all others with the 50 f1.4.
