Another 85mm f2 - ultra low cost

Inspector 17 · 10-22-2010, 05:50 AM

These are Chinese made copies of Zeiss Tessar design (I believe but could be wrong that 85mm is the long end of any tessar design use from any recent Zeiss lenses)

The brand is Mitakon - a remnant of a Japanese company that was co-opted by their Chinese component. There is a version of this called something like SGYKXG or some such that is identical

I have seen some fairly good performance from it on some Asian forums

It was selling for only $80 before these ebay versions showed up recently - and I would not pay more

mechanics and quality control are likely to be on stamped metal tractor levels

Laurentiu Cristofor · 10-22-2010, 12:38 PM

Originally posted by Inspector 17

These are Chinese made copies of Zeiss Tessar design (I believe but could be wrong that 85mm is the long end of any tessar design use from any recent Zeiss lenses)

This is definitely not a Tessar. It's a 6 element design and a Tessar has 4 elements.

If it's a double Gauss design, like some people mentioned, then it's a Biotar. The other option mentioned was Planar. Both have 6 elements. If the mflenses thread has the right optical schema information, it looks more like a Biotar than a Planar to me.

I asked the seller about it and he confirmed it's a Mitakon assembled in China using glass elements made in Japan.

stevebrot · 10-22-2010, 01:18 PM

Originally posted by Laurentiu Cristofor

This is definitely not a Tessar. It's a 6 element design and a Tessar has 4 elements.

What he said...the other clue is that you never see a Tessar faster than f/2.8 or f/3.5.

Steve

Blue · 10-22-2010, 02:41 PM - **1 Like**

What adds to the confusion is that the name Sonnar is also used as a trade name for lenses that aren't true sonnars which should have a cemented 3-element group.

Edit: Here is a good thread for those that want a crash course or review on lens design & history.

http://forum.mflenses.com/list-of-lens-diagrams-triplets-planars-and-hybrid-lenses-t22934.html

Last edited by Blue; 10-22-2010 at 03:05 PM.

**WJW** · 10-24-2010, 05:05 PM

There is a seller on facebook and his listing calls it a 6 element Planar. Don't know how accurate he is.

photogerald · 10-24-2010, 07:45 PM

Originally posted by Inspector 17

These are Chinese made copies of Zeiss Tessar design (I believe but could be wrong that 85mm is the long end of any tessar design use from any recent Zeiss lenses)

The brand is Mitakon - a remnant of a Japanese company that was co-opted by their Chinese component. There is a version of this called something like SGYKXG or some such that is identical

I have seen some fairly good performance from it on some Asian forums

It was selling for only $80 before these ebay versions showed up recently - and I would not pay more

mechanics and quality control are likely to be on stamped metal tractor levels

Intriguing, I wonder how much I can get one locally for.

subtle_goat · 10-28-2010, 06:12 PM

I got mine yesterday, only had a brief play so won't post any photos just yet.

Initial impressions:
-Build is ... utilitarian. It's inelegant, basically a tube with lenses and a cheap feeling rubber focus ring. It's quite long, but not that heavy, will weigh it later when I get home.
- I can confirm that mine has the A setting and haven't noticed any metering trouble.
- Focus feel is okay, by the standards of mf lenses, certainly no takumar, but certainly a lot better than most modern af lenses.
- Optically: actually pretty good, especially given the price. As expected it's soft wide open, but still maintains decent contrast. Does seem to really sharpen up beyond f/5.6, as some people here expected, which may be a big advantage over the samyang (though I haven't used one so won't comment further.)
Colours seem good, not pentax good, but useable.
Bokeh seems promising so far, but need to test more.
Haven't tested flare yet, will get some more time over the weekend hopefully.

Will update with pictures later.

yusuf · 10-28-2010, 09:40 PM

Would love to see some portraits at f2 & f2.8

subtle_goat · 10-29-2010, 04:13 AM

Some of my initial photos, full size, portraits at f/2, f/4, f/8 and wide open at minimum focus distance. Straight out of the camera jpg from k20d, portrait, with sharpness at +1, everything else at default.

Mitakon 85mm f/2 - Cheap manual focus 85mm - a set on Flickr

There is a bit of chromatic abberation and not particularly sharp wide open, but still very, very usable, really does sharpen up too. The bokeh is very promising, but needs more testing. Only 6 aperture blades might be a little problematic at smaller apertures

Let me know if you want me to try and test anything - will post a more detailed test/ conclusion after I've had more time to use it.

yusuf · 10-29-2010, 04:26 AM

Pretty good pictures for the price, and f2 looks acceptable too. However, one thing noticed is that sharpness seems to be same between f2 & f4 - or the pictures are too small to make out. I will wait for some more tests from you. thanks for trying it out.

subtle_goat · 10-29-2010, 06:07 AM

Originally posted by yusuf

Pretty good pictures for the price, and f2 looks acceptable too. However, one thing noticed is that sharpness seems to be same between f2 & f4 - or the pictures are too small to make out. I will wait for some more tests from you. thanks for trying it out.

Full sized images are there - just forgot that flickr doesn't make it easy to find them any more.

@f/2:
All sizes | Mitakon 85mm @f/2 | Flickr - Photo Sharing!

@f/4:
All sizes | Mitakon 85mm @ f/4 | Flickr - Photo Sharing!

f/4 might seem a less sharp because of a little motion blur - will take more shots later tomorrow, this was just the initial samples in 15 minutes or so of playing around.

Ira · 10-29-2010, 06:18 AM

Hey, those shots are damn nice!

This lens might change the ball game for a lot of people!

yusuf · 10-29-2010, 06:25 AM

Agree, that lens seems like a keeper. Can you share your experience with A mode, are you able to change aperture from camera? or need to use aperture ring?

Yusuf

subtle_goat · 10-29-2010, 06:38 AM

Works like any A series lens - everything controlled from the camera body when the aperture ring is set to 'A'. I haven't tried setting the aperture with the aperture ring (don't have any cameras where that would be necessary).

I'm looking forward to giving it a full test tomorrow. Given how low the price is it should be really attractive for a lot of people - especially with prices for takumar/k/m series 85mm going up.

Ira · 10-29-2010, 08:37 AM

Originally posted by subtle_goat

I'm looking forward to giving it a full test tomorrow. Given how low the price is it should be really attractive for a lot of people - especially with prices for takumar/k/m series 85mm going up.

Going up is an understatement, and seriously--those images looked great.

I guess the only thing to be concerned about, your tests not withstanding, is how it holds up over time.

10-29-2010, 04:13 AM	#24
subtle_goat Junior Member Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: Brisbane Posts: 43	Some of my initial photos, full size, portraits at f/2, f/4, f/8 and wide open at minimum focus distance. Straight out of the camera jpg from k20d, portrait, with sharpness at +1, everything else at default. Mitakon 85mm f/2 - Cheap manual focus 85mm - a set on Flickr There is a bit of chromatic abberation and not particularly sharp wide open, but still very, very usable, really does sharpen up too. The bokeh is very promising, but needs more testing. Only 6 aperture blades might be a little problematic at smaller apertures Let me know if you want me to try and test anything - will post a more detailed test/ conclusion after I've had more time to use it. Last edited by subtle_goat; 10-29-2010 at 04:17 AM. Reason: Forgot to add things!

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10-22-2010, 05:50 AM	#16
Inspector 17 Inactive Account Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Southeastern USA Posts: 75	These are Chinese made copies of Zeiss Tessar design (I believe but could be wrong that 85mm is the long end of any tessar design use from any recent Zeiss lenses) The brand is Mitakon - a remnant of a Japanese company that was co-opted by their Chinese component. There is a version of this called something like SGYKXG or some such that is identical I have seen some fairly good performance from it on some Asian forums It was selling for only $80 before these ebay versions showed up recently - and I would not pay more mechanics and quality control are likely to be on stamped metal tractor levels

10-22-2010, 12:38 PM	#17
Laurentiu Cristofor Banned Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: WA Photos: Albums Posts: 3,055	Originally posted by Inspector 17 These are Chinese made copies of Zeiss Tessar design (I believe but could be wrong that 85mm is the long end of any tessar design use from any recent Zeiss lenses) This is definitely not a Tessar. It's a 6 element design and a Tessar has 4 elements. If it's a double Gauss design, like some people mentioned, then it's a Biotar. The other option mentioned was Planar. Both have 6 elements. If the mflenses thread has the right optical schema information, it looks more like a Biotar than a Planar to me. I asked the seller about it and he confirmed it's a Mitakon assembled in China using glass elements made in Japan.

10-22-2010, 01:18 PM	#18
stevebrot Otis Memorial Pentaxian Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Vancouver (USA) Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 42,007	Originally posted by Laurentiu Cristofor This is definitely not a Tessar. It's a 6 element design and a Tessar has 4 elements. What he said...the other clue is that you never see a Tessar faster than f/2.8 or f/3.5. Steve

10-22-2010, 02:41 PM - 1 Like	#19
Blue Moderator Site Supporter Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: Florida Hill Country Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 17,377	What adds to the confusion is that the name Sonnar is also used as a trade name for lenses that aren't true sonnars which should have a cemented 3-element group. Edit: Here is a good thread for those that want a crash course or review on lens design & history. http://forum.mflenses.com/list-of-lens-diagrams-triplets-planars-and-hybrid-lenses-t22934.html Last edited by Blue; 10-22-2010 at 03:05 PM.

10-24-2010, 05:05 PM	#20
WJW Site Supporter Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: Central Texas Posts: 383	There is a seller on facebook and his listing calls it a 6 element Planar. Don't know how accurate he is.

10-24-2010, 07:45 PM	#21
photogerald Senior Member Join Date: Sep 2009 Posts: 253	Originally posted by Inspector 17 These are Chinese made copies of Zeiss Tessar design (I believe but could be wrong that 85mm is the long end of any tessar design use from any recent Zeiss lenses) The brand is Mitakon - a remnant of a Japanese company that was co-opted by their Chinese component. There is a version of this called something like SGYKXG or some such that is identical I have seen some fairly good performance from it on some Asian forums It was selling for only $80 before these ebay versions showed up recently - and I would not pay more mechanics and quality control are likely to be on stamped metal tractor levels Intriguing, I wonder how much I can get one locally for.

10-28-2010, 06:12 PM	#22
subtle_goat Junior Member Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: Brisbane Posts: 43	I got mine yesterday, only had a brief play so won't post any photos just yet. Initial impressions: -Build is ... utilitarian. It's inelegant, basically a tube with lenses and a cheap feeling rubber focus ring. It's quite long, but not that heavy, will weigh it later when I get home. - I can confirm that mine has the A setting and haven't noticed any metering trouble. - Focus feel is okay, by the standards of mf lenses, certainly no takumar, but certainly a lot better than most modern af lenses. - Optically: actually pretty good, especially given the price. As expected it's soft wide open, but still maintains decent contrast. Does seem to really sharpen up beyond f/5.6, as some people here expected, which may be a big advantage over the samyang (though I haven't used one so won't comment further.) Colours seem good, not pentax good, but useable. Bokeh seems promising so far, but need to test more. Haven't tested flare yet, will get some more time over the weekend hopefully. Will update with pictures later.

10-28-2010, 09:40 PM	#23
yusuf Pentaxian Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: Palo Alto, CA Photos: Gallery Posts: 2,497 Original Poster	Would love to see some portraits at f2 & f2.8

10-29-2010, 04:26 AM	#25
yusuf Pentaxian Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: Palo Alto, CA Photos: Gallery Posts: 2,497 Original Poster	Pretty good pictures for the price, and f2 looks acceptable too. However, one thing noticed is that sharpness seems to be same between f2 & f4 - or the pictures are too small to make out. I will wait for some more tests from you. thanks for trying it out.

10-29-2010, 06:07 AM	#26
subtle_goat Junior Member Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: Brisbane Posts: 43	Originally posted by yusuf Pretty good pictures for the price, and f2 looks acceptable too. However, one thing noticed is that sharpness seems to be same between f2 & f4 - or the pictures are too small to make out. I will wait for some more tests from you. thanks for trying it out. Full sized images are there - just forgot that flickr doesn't make it easy to find them any more. @f/2: All sizes \| Mitakon 85mm @f/2 \| Flickr - Photo Sharing! @f/4: All sizes \| Mitakon 85mm @ f/4 \| Flickr - Photo Sharing! f/4 might seem a less sharp because of a little motion blur - will take more shots later tomorrow, this was just the initial samples in 15 minutes or so of playing around.

10-29-2010, 06:18 AM	#27
Ira Inactive Account Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Coral Springs, FL Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 5,216	Hey, those shots are damn nice! This lens might change the ball game for a lot of people!

10-29-2010, 06:25 AM	#28
yusuf Pentaxian Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: Palo Alto, CA Photos: Gallery Posts: 2,497 Original Poster	Agree, that lens seems like a keeper. Can you share your experience with A mode, are you able to change aperture from camera? or need to use aperture ring? Yusuf

10-29-2010, 06:38 AM	#29
subtle_goat Junior Member Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: Brisbane Posts: 43	Works like any A series lens - everything controlled from the camera body when the aperture ring is set to 'A'. I haven't tried setting the aperture with the aperture ring (don't have any cameras where that would be necessary). I'm looking forward to giving it a full test tomorrow. Given how low the price is it should be really attractive for a lot of people - especially with prices for takumar/k/m series 85mm going up.

10-29-2010, 08:37 AM	#30
Ira Inactive Account Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Coral Springs, FL Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 5,216	Originally posted by subtle_goat I'm looking forward to giving it a full test tomorrow. Given how low the price is it should be really attractive for a lot of people - especially with prices for takumar/k/m series 85mm going up. Going up is an understatement, and seriously--those images looked great. I guess the only thing to be concerned about, your tests not withstanding, is how it holds up over time.