[Colorado CJ]

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Well I'm sitting here cruising ebay for newly added M42 lenses and what do I find? A new style Tair 33 300mm F4.5 lens for $75.00.

Now, I already have a Tair 3 300mm F4.5 lens, the Tair 33 is an older version, but it is made more for camera use than the sniper stock use of the 3 version, so it has normal Preset aperture rings and a normal focusing ring. It looks a little larger than the already HUGE Tair 3, because it was made for 6x6 medium format cameras.

I just couldn't pass up on the deal. I HOPE it is as outstanding as my Tair 3 (photosniper) lens, but if it isn't I'm sure I could resell it for near the same price or a little more (all the other Tair 33's I see listed are for around $150).

I'll probably do a little comparison shoot once I receive the lens. I'd REALLY like it to be as good as my Tair 3, since it will be a little easier in use as a normal lens for my wildlife photography.

Here's the Ebay listing if you are interested in how it looks. http://www.ebay.com/itm/TAIR-300MM-f4-5-LENS-M42-/290752378933?pt=Camera_Len...#ht_500wt_1287

Pretty "mint" looking except for the missing tripod mount. I can fabricate one up easily on my mill though.

Man, I'm going to have to put a stop to cruising Ebay for a while. Two lenses in two days is too much for me

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Last edited by Colorado CJ; 07-30-2012 at 07:30 PM.

[Arjay Bee]

Congratulations on your find. It is always fun playing with new finds...

Man, I'm going to have to put a stop with cruising Ebay for a while.

I have a new rule now -no ebay cruising while I have money in my PayPal account which is empty atm- to get money in there I have to sell something but there is nothing I wish to sell right now so therefore I don't cruise.

LBA is not so much managed as suspended!

[Colorado CJ]

Congratulations on your find. It is always fun playing with new finds...



I have a new rule now -no ebay cruising while I have money in my PayPal account which is empty atm- to get money in there I have to sell something but there is nothing I wish to sell right now so therefore I don't cruise.

LBA is not so much managed as suspended!

Thanks It should be fun comparing the two. The Tair 33 has a LOT larger front objective compared to the Tair 3 though, 88mm filter size compared to 67mm (I think). If anything it should make for a great astrophotography scope paired with my Kx.

Yeah, LBA isn't fun and can get you in a lot of trouble if you don't have much willpower

[vonBaloney]

What's the fringing/aberration situation with the Tair 300 you've already got? Can you shoot wide-open?

[Colorado CJ]

What's the fringing/aberration situation with the Tair 300 you've already got? Can you shoot wide-open?

Yes, it is VERY sharp even wide open. There is a little bit of CA on very contrasty conditions such as snow and tree branches.

Here is a shot with the Tair 3 300mm F4.5 wide open. As you can see, it is an excellent lens that really renders 3D like images.

[vonBaloney]

Yeah, looks good -- some fringing on the branches that looks like any other lens pretty much. But you don't get those thick purple edges ever (or much)? Hate that. I've been looking for an affordable 300 option -- most of the vintage lenses over 200mm don't look so great (except for a few really expensive ones). It would be nice to find something I can use at wider than f/8 and still have it look good. I do prefer the preset type for longer focal lengths.

[littledrawe]

Well I'm sitting here cruising ebay for newly added M42 lenses and what do I find? A new style Tair 33 300mm F4.5 lens for $75.00.

Looks like this one would have been for the pentacon medium format system with the m42 mount being an aftermarket adapter? That may explain the difference in size compared to your other one. The diameter of that adapter may come in handy, looks like its wide enough to come out and cover the contacts on the camera body which may allow you to use catch in focus and focus confirmation(can't remember if the last one doesn't work with non flanged m42 adapters) but I think you need to get it to bare metal. Also, you could drill into the adapter a couple mm to accept the lens locking/release pin so the lens will stay on like a k mount lens if you have an adapter you want to dedicate to that lens.

That extra metal and glass may account for the 24 dollar shipping fee as well!

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Last edited by littledrawe; 07-31-2012 at 05:33 PM.

[Colorado CJ]

Looks like this one would have been for the pentacon medium format system with the m42 mount being an aftermarket adapter? That may explain the difference in size compared to your other one. The diameter of that adapter may come in handy, looks like its wide enough to come out and cover the contacts on the camera body which may allow you to use catch in focus and focus confirmation(can't remember if the last one doesn't work with non flanged m42 adapters) but I think you need to get it to bare metal. Also, you could drill into the adapter a couple mm to accept the lens locking/release pin so the lens will stay on like a k mount lens if you have an adapter you want to dedicate to that lens.

That extra metal and glass may account for the 24 dollar shipping fee as well!

Yeah, it comes with the adapter. I might try using the Catch-In-Focus, but I'm not too sure my focus confirm works very well with my K20D since it has a Cats Eye split prism screen installed.

It is one HEAVY lens at 4 lb. 6 oz.

[Colorado CJ]

I went up to the mountains to try out the Tair 33 yesturday. It doesn't have the contrast of the Tair 3, I think because it isn't multicoated like the Tair 3, but I can bump up the black levels to get the right contrast. Overall I really like the lens, but I'm not sure I like it as much as the Tair 3 yet. I'll have to shoot more with it to see.

Here are a few photos of some bull elk gathering up a harem.

[calculator01]

The photo samples look awesome for m42, better than some photos from newer lenses

[paulusje]

Agreed they look fantastic! thumbs up
I also have the tair 3 and love it. But my Medium Format 300mm lens (Pentax A* 645 300mm ED [IF]) is better due to ED glass but more importantly, the larger diameter means that our crop sensors use only the sweet spot of the lens. This means less PF and other aberrations plus better sharpness in the corners.

If it's just the lack of contrast that's bothering you I'd definitely have another close look at corner performance, CA and sharpness throughout the frame

[Eljay]

Talk about reviving an old thread..

So I have a k-3 - love it.. but I hate the 300mm I have.. its just never sharp in lower light.. I have been trolling through ebay for a month now obsessing over my next piece of long glass - and pretty much made the decision on the tair 3 - but now im thinking a 645 lens might be ok too? I was concerned about a couple things - with a 300mm medium format lens on a crop sensor (with an adapter) - will it resolve? seems like it would make it similar to a 700mm or something? I appreciate your help! Thanks

[vonBaloney]

Talk about reviving an old thread..

So I have a k-3 - love it.. but I hate the 300mm I have.. its just never sharp in lower light.. I have been trolling through ebay for a month now obsessing over my next piece of long glass - and pretty much made the decision on the tair 3 - but now im thinking a 645 lens might be ok too? I was concerned about a couple things - with a 300mm medium format lens on a crop sensor (with an adapter) - will it resolve? seems like it would make it similar to a 700mm or something? I appreciate your help! Thanks

300 is 300. It will be the same as your current 300 (unless they are cheating with internal focusing on your current zoom and it isn't really 300). But medium format are designed for bigger -- I have heard they don't have as high a resolution, but a high-quality lens should be fine. No particular reason to get a medium format lens if you aren't shooting medium format also. (It will mean the lens will be bigger and heavier, all else being equal.)

[Eljay]

if its cropping the center of the image out, it will act like a bigger lens, if I understand it correctly - I could totally be wrong however.. just curious.. The resolution is something im worried about..

---------- Post added 01-27-15 at 01:24 PM ----------

Also - 645 lenses are pretty inexpensive when compared to their modern counterparts. One would think the quality of these lenses would be way beyond 35mm considering their intended purpose, but again, I could be off base again..

if the crop does play a factor, it also seems like it would be neat to use this instead of a 600mm for a 35mm camera due to the low light possibilities.. but again.. I could be way way off base.. especially if it doesn't have the resolution for a cropped digi sensor..

[vonBaloney]

if its cropping the center of the image out, it will act like a bigger lens, if I understand it correctly - I could totally be wrong however.. just curious.. The resolution is something im worried about..

---------- Post added 01-27-15 at 01:24 PM ----------

Also - 645 lenses are pretty inexpensive when compared to their modern counterparts. One would think the quality of these lenses would be way beyond 35mm considering their intended purpose, but again, I could be off base again..

if the crop does play a factor, it also seems like it would be neat to use this instead of a 600mm for a 35mm camera due to the low light possibilities.. but again.. I could be way way off base.. especially if it doesn't have the resolution for a cropped digi sensor..

Yes, it is cropping the center out of a bigger circle -- your current 300 just has a smaller circle (because it doesn't need a bigger one). 300 is 300 is 300. So a 300 on a medium format camera will look different than a 300 on your Pentax DSLR with its APS-C sensor, but any 300 on the same body/format will give the same view as any other 300. 300mm is a property of the lens and is completely independent of the format it is used on. So if you already have a 300mm, you already know the view you are going to get with any other 300mm lens. (And of course the same is true of any other focal length. 50mm is 50mm is 50mm.)