[scratchpaddy]

SMC Tak 55/1.8

Which I still believe is The Best Takumar. Took mine out again on Sunday afternoon.

[Andrew_Oid]

Which I still believe is The Best Takumar. Took mine out again on Sunday afternoon.

I think the 2.2 might be better.
From today:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/101244128@N07/51831647995/in/datetaken-public/
When the Vice-President Comes to Town II | SONY a850 with Au? | Flickr
When the Vice-President Comes to Town III | SONY a850 with A? | Flickr

The 2.2 has 10 aperture blades and possibly lower contrast.

[paulh]

Which I still believe is The Best Takumar.

You make a great case! Nice shooting.

[Jonathan Mac]

Which I still believe is The Best Takumar. Took mine out again on Sunday afternoon.

I haven't tried any of the 85mm ones, which are supposed to be fantastic. I certainly like the 55mm f/1.8 and f/2 more than the 50/1.4.

[tim60]

Having tried an 85/1.9 and 50/1.4 and 55/2 as well as the 55/1.8 my preference is for the 55/1.8. But I must set out to work to know the 50 and 85.

[scratchpaddy]

I think the 2.2 might be better.
From today:
When the Vice-President Comes to Town I | SONY a850 with Aut? | Flickr
When the Vice-President Comes to Town II | SONY a850 with Au? | Flickr
When the Vice-President Comes to Town III | SONY a850 with A? | Flickr

The 2.2 has 10 aperture blades and possibly lower contrast.

Great captures of an unexpected scene! Really, the best lens is the one you have with you, and the little Takumar 55's make that easy.

The original preset Takumar 55mm f/2.2 was an unusual 5-elements-in-5-groups optical formula. They changed to a 6-element, 5-group formula for the Auto-Takumars, and continued using the same formula for the Super and Super-Multi-Coated models. From all I have read, the f/1.8, f/2, and f/2.2 all had the same glass, with fixed stops to bring down the speed of lower-priced slower versions to take advantage of economy of scale and market segmentation at the same time.

Some great info here: Early Pentax Takumar Lenses

I mostly use my f/1.8 stopped down 1 click, between f/1.8 and f/2.8. I'm not sure if this is f/2.2 or f/2.5, but it seems to be the sweet spot for this lens, at least for the kind of pictures I take. I might like the f/2.2 more: no need to stop down, and that fixed stop is perfectly circular.

You make a great case! Nice shooting.

Thank you!

I haven't tried any of the 85mm ones, which are supposed to be fantastic. I certainly like the 55mm f/1.8 and f/2 more than the 50/1.4.

I admit I have not used many Takumars. I would love to try one of the 85's, and I'm sure I would love them, but their price puts them far away from the "impulse purchase" territory of the 55's.

Like you, I much prefer the 55/1.8 over the 50/1.4. The 55 renders much more smoothly and sharpness and contrast is much better at wide apertures than the 50. I understand why many prefer the 50. It has a lot more character in the rendering compared to the almost-boring 55, but it's just too harsh for my taste, at least for the kind of picture I like to take. Plus the 55's are half the price.

[pepperberry farm]

I love my early Takumars....

55/2.2




58/2

[Andrew_Oid]

Great captures of an unexpected scene! Really, the best lens is the one you have with you, and the little Takumar 55's make that easy.

The original preset Takumar 55mm f/2.2 was an unusual 5-elements-in-5-groups optical formula. They changed to a 6-element, 5-group formula for the Auto-Takumars, and continued using the same formula for the Super and Super-Multi-Coated models. From all I have read, the f/1.8, f/2, and f/2.2 all had the same glass, with fixed stops to bring down the speed of lower-priced slower versions to take advantage of economy of scale and market segmentation at the same time.

Some great info here: Early Pentax Takumar Lenses

I mostly use my f/1.8 stopped down 1 click, between f/1.8 and f/2.8. I'm not sure if this is f/2.2 or f/2.5, but it seems to be the sweet spot for this lens, at least for the kind of pictures I take. I might like the f/2.2 more: no need to stop down, and that fixed stop is perfectly circular.

Thank you!

I admit I have not used many Takumars. I would love to try one of the 85's, and I'm sure I would love them, but their price puts them far away from the "impulse purchase" territory of the 55's.

Like you, I much prefer the 55/1.8 over the 50/1.4. The 55 renders much more smoothly and sharpness and contrast is much better at wide apertures than the 50. I understand why many prefer the 50. It has a lot more character in the rendering compared to the almost-boring 55, but it's just too harsh for my taste, at least for the kind of picture I like to take. Plus the 55's are half the price.

Is there any Tak that is not a great lens? The 55s are all special. I have one of each, the 1.8, the 2 and the 2.2. I haven't tested them extensively, but I've been inclined to favor the 2.2 because it seems to have a lower inherent contrast (because of coatings?) and it has the 10-bladed aperture. My f2 is also an auto-Takumar with a 10 bladed aperture and I suspect little if any difference in image quality.
I just went and found my auto-Takumar 35mm f3.5 which is very similar in appearance to the 55 2.2 with a 46mm filter size and stops down to f22 but only has 5 aperture blades. Another lens I have to test and so I'm going to put it on my camera. The example photos I've seen from this lens seem to have the same color palette as the 55 2.2. I'll post some links if I get some good shots.
One of my earliest photos taken with the 2.2 that made me appreciate it is this one: ILCE 7 with Takumar 55mm f2.2 | Sony A7 with auto-Takumar 55? | Flickr

---------- Post added 01-20-22 at 07:40 PM ----------

I love my early Takumars....

55/2.2




58/2

I think we have pretty much the same lenses. I don't have the 58 f2 though. That's a rare and very desirable one.

[paulh]

December rains brought a bit of green to the canyon - S-M-C Tak 20/4.5 on K10D

[todd]

S-M-C Tak 20/4.5

I've been in a Tak20 mood too... on K1 though...

[Canada_Rockies]

I'm just about to post a wanted: TAK 55/2.2 preset. I have the 55/1.8 but I believe that the preset would actually be much easier to use on my K3. Flick to focus, flick to stop down using Av mode. The 55/1.8 requires me to move the auto/manual switch which results in a lot of camera movement. Having used that same lens for nearly 20 years with my AP, I think I could get back into the mode quickly.

[edom31]

Macro-Tak 50/4 doing non-macro as usual under my tutelage:

[pepperberry farm]

I'm just about to post a wanted: TAK 55/2.2 preset. I have the 55/1.8 but I believe that the preset would actually be much easier to use on my K3. Flick to focus, flick to stop down using Av mode. The 55/1.8 requires me to move the auto/manual switch which results in a lot of camera movement. Having used that same lens for nearly 20 years with my AP, I think I could get back into the mode quickly.

I love my preset Takumars, but I'm curious about the manner in which you described the non-preset lenses....

I never use the A/M switch on my Taks - it is always in the 'M' mode and the camera body in 'M' mode as well...

just as another thought, however, have you considered a mirrorless camera to shoot your Takumars with?

[wkraus]

… have you considered a mirrorless camera to shoot your Takumars with?

Heaven forbid! (Just joking… )

[wkraus]

Lower Austria, April 2020. KX, Super-Takumar 1:3.5/35, 1/30, f/6.7, Rollei RPX 25 film/ID-11 1+1 developer