Minolta MD Rokkor 50 mm 1:1.4 with Focal Reducer [MD]

Since I've got my Focal Reducer, I used all my lenses with it. Recently I've found a bargain Minolta MD Rokkor 50 mm 1:1.4 with a little bit of fungus. It doesn't affect photos at all and the price was good. So I decided to buy it, when realised there are no MD adapters allowing focusing infinity. As I like to use my lens in any given condition, I designed and printed my own adapter.

I use Chinese $99 version of Focal Reducer with no brands or logos, this one exactly.

Minolta MD Rokkor 50/1.4 on Lumix G2 (MFT camera) with Focal Reducer.

Canon TV Zoom Lens V6x17 17-102 mm 1:2.0 [C-mount]

Canon TV Zoom Lens V6x17 17-102/2.0 was the first C-mount zoom I've ever got. First of all, it was smaller than I suspected. It makes the lens perfect for multi-purpose use. It's 16x zoom with very fast aperture of 2.0.

Secondary, I've read somewhere that it's supposed to be parfocal, that is - focused on the narrower length (102 mm) will stay in focus throughout the whole zoom range. It was really pity, that mine wasn't. What's more - it didn't focus at 17-20 mm at all! Luckily - there was a simple trick and now everything's superb!

All in all, it became my favourite lens for shooting squares and filming.

Canon V6x17 17-102/2.0 mounted on Lumix G2 Micro Four Thirds camera.

Samyang 10 mm 1:2.8 with Focal Reducer x0.7 [EF > m4/3] - first impressions

In my search for perfect ultra-wide angle lens I came across Samyang 10/2.8. It's relatively new on the market, but already astonishing. It's supposed to be very wide even without Focal Reducer and very fast at the same time. But hey, if you're using M4/3 camera with tiny sensor, you should demand the widest and the brightest you can get. So let's push the lens to it's limits and mount it on Focal Reducer 0.72x!

Samyang 10/2.8 (Canon EF mount) with Focal Reducer 0.72x on Micro Four Thirds full sensor (aspect ratio 4:3).

Tokina 11-16 mm 1:2.8 with Focal Reducer x0.7 [EF > m4/3]

It's been a while. It's been a really busy while. Luckily, my friend Michał got back from England and I had my opportunity to test Tokina 11-16/2.8 [EF mount], which I was writing about before.

Tokina 11-16/2.8 with focal reducer x0.7 [FF eq. 16mm/2.0] @11 mm

It's the fastest wide angle lens (with Focal Reducer of course) available in the market (not second-handed) for Micro Four Thirds camera.

As I suspected it works perfectly with Focal Reducer 0.7x [the one I use]. Well... by perfectly I mean you get really wide lens (about 8/2.0, eq. of 16 mm for full frame) and manual focus. I wasn't able to change aperture values due to lack of A-ring or electronic connection with Lumix G2 body. But... all in all - it's a really wide angle fast lens. You can always use ND filters or hand-made rings before front glass (or even iris if you're crafty!).

Olympus Zuiko MC Auto-S 50 mm 1:1.8 with Focal Reducer 0.7x [OM > EF > m4/3]

Olympus Zuiko 50/1.8 is my favourite manual focus lens. It's really sharp, provides good contrast and is really comfortable to use. Not to mention its creamy bokeh.
That's why I was wondering how it'd work with my

Focal Reducer 0.7x

(more elaborate description, packaging, FR photos and first impressions here).

I was waiting for over a month, but it finally came - EF > OM adapter. A really solid piece of metal I must say - a trustworthy one. It fits my EF Focal Reducer even better than EF > M42 used before.

Olympus Zuiko 50/1.8 without Focal Reducer EF - aperture unknown.

Previously I presented you first impressions with Micro Four Thirds Focal Reducer 0.7x with EF mount. Unfortunately, I didn't used best possible lenses. Both Beroflex 85/1.7 and MIR-1B 37/2.8 weren't the sharpest tools in my box. Also it was the middle of winter, it was snowing, so the conditions were far from perfect. Recently it got much warmer and sunnier, so today I'd like to present you razor-sharp Olympus Zuiko 50/1.8 with OM mount.

Meopta Openar 80/2.8 [C-mount]

Meopta Openar 80 mm 1:2.8 came to me with another Openar 20/1.8 lens as a set with Meopta Admira 16 A1 Electric film camera. Unfortunately it's condition wasn't best. I don't mind slight scratches on the case (well, it's a 50 year old lens!), but front lens is really bad looking. A lot of soft scratches and as I suppose, when someone tried to clean it, they removed it with coating. As a result front coating layer was removed...

You know that feeling when you expect best and all you can get is not barely good. That's how I felt when I held Openar 80/2.8 for the first time. I was very disappointed about the front lens condition. However, I decided not to look for good photographs, but to push the lens hard. I've photographed directed into the sun, in various conditions.
Skimming through photos on my computer wasn't the best feeling at all. All of them were lacking colour and contrast. That's why today you won't see a lot of colourful pictures. But in the end lens is mesmerising!

 Meopta Openar 80 mm 1:2.8 - without (left) and with (right) original lens hood.

Meopta Openar 20 mm 1:1.8 [C-mount]

I've introduced you to a Meopta Openar 40 mm 1:1.8 already. It is a really good lens with nice sharpness, contrast and colour rendering. It covers full M4/3 sensor, so you don't have to worry about heavy vignetting.

Here comes the sibling: Meopta Openar 20 mm 1:1.8. It's a c-mount lens I got with Meopta Admira 16 A1 Electric film camera, which was (according to Wikipedia) manufactured in '60s. It makes it ca. 50 years old lens! Unfortunately the camera itself wasn't in it's best and I plan to revitalize it.

Lens is a bit shorter than Openar 40/1.8 and about the same in diameter. Glass elements inside are mounted deeply, which gives lens a built-in hood. That's a very good solution according to what you're about to see.

A set of Meopta c-mount lenses:

Meopta Openar 20/1.8

Meopta Openar 40/1.8

Meopta Openar 80/2.8