View previous topic :: View next topic |
Author |
Message |
luisalegria
Joined: 07 Mar 2008 Posts: 6627 Location: San Francisco, USA
Expire: 2018-01-18
|
Posted: Mon Sep 16, 2013 7:41 pm Post subject: Astranar (Kawanon) 400/6.3 "Girl Watcher" |
|
|
luisalegria wrote:
Among the popular 400/6.3 preset lenses of the last century, the Astranar has a special place.
This was the lens actually advertised via mail order as the "girl watcher". Some of the other
similar lenses picked up the same creepy epithet, but this is indeed the very item sold through those ads.
Spiratone never called theirs a "girl watcher" !
It is very different in construction from the lens thats well known as the Spiratone "Sharpshooter" or "Pluracoat",
though the specifications are very similar.
The Spiratone and Astranar are definitely not variants of each other, they have different parantage.
These "girl watchers" were made by Kawakami Seiki Seisakusho Ltd (Kawanon) and imported by Sterling Howard
of Yonkers, NY, and mainly sold by mail order through the ubiquitous magazine ads. These were generally cheaper
than the Spiratones.
Its a very common lens in the US market, as one may imagine, and can be picked up at anytime for a low price.
There was a rather extensive line of lenses made by Kawakami, and I have spotted a non-US example of this lens
under the Kawanon brand, along with very similar (rare) 300mm and 350mm models.
Sterling Howard sold other Kawakami lenses under the Astranar brand, and of course Kawakami lenses are common
under all sorts of brands, such as Soligor.
Oddly though, for this 400/6.3 I am drawing a blank finding this lens under any merchants brands other than Astranar.
I have never seen this one as a Soligor for instance.
I suspect there may have been some sort of exclusive agreement with Sterling Howard.
The lens itself is a very simple, light and compact item, shorter and lighter than the Spiratone lens.
I believe the optical formula is a cemented pair in front and another in the rear, or 4 elements in two groups.
I may be wrong here as I haven't fully disassembled the rear cell.
The finish is certainly not as nice as I have seen on other Kawakami lenses such as the 600 and 800mm,
so I suspect that these were intentionally made rather cheaply to suit Sterling Howards business model.
Otherwise it seems to be a very standard design of a long preset telephoto.
The focus mechanism is in front of the aperture, requiring the front barrel to rotate.
This is typical of this type of lens as it simplifies construction.
My copy is in excellent condition, as most of these are. I suspect that they were rarely used, for the most part,
as its much easier to buy a cheap long tele than it is to use one. In film days one was likely to use up a lot of
film learning how.
Performance is fairly good I think. It lacks total sharpness wide open, its much better at f/8.
It shows considerable CA and red fringing under the right conditions.
It requires a deep hood as its prone to low contrast otherwise.
I find the Spiratone, Tamron and Komura 400mm's are marginally better.
Its advantages are very light weight, decent close focus for what it is, and of course very low price.
If one wants to learn long tele work this is a good one to start with - most problems will be
because of mistakes in technique, and the lens will show its limitations only when all the other reasons to screw up
are dealt with.
Samples -
The bird -
crop -
_________________ I like Pentax DSLR's, Exaktas, M42 bodies of all kinds, strange and cheap Japanese lenses, and am dabbling in medium format/Speed Graphic work. |
|
Back to top |
|
|
Farside
Joined: 01 Sep 2007 Posts: 6549 Location: Ireland
Expire: 2013-12-27
|
Posted: Mon Sep 16, 2013 7:47 pm Post subject: |
|
|
Farside wrote:
Ah, you've made that lens sing.
Again. _________________ Dave - Moderator
Camera Fiend and Biograph Operator
If I wanted soot and whitewash I'd be a chimney sweep and house painter.
The Lenses of Farside (click)
BUY FRESH FOMAPAN TO HELP KEEP THE FACTORY ALIVE ---
Foma Campaign topic -
http://forum.mflenses.com/foma-campaign-t55443.html
FOMAPAN on forum -
http://www.mflenses.com/fs.php?sw=Fomapan
Webshop EU
http://www.fomafoto.com/ |
|
Back to top |
|
|
asterinex
Joined: 04 Nov 2012 Posts: 311
|
Posted: Mon Sep 16, 2013 7:59 pm Post subject: |
|
|
asterinex wrote:
Where are the girl pictures? I only see monkeys
Just kidding. Pictures look great ! Awesome find. |
|
Back to top |
|
|
luisalegria
Joined: 07 Mar 2008 Posts: 6627 Location: San Francisco, USA
Expire: 2018-01-18
|
Posted: Mon Sep 16, 2013 8:03 pm Post subject: |
|
|
luisalegria wrote:
#1 is a female chimp (rather elderly)
#4 and 5 are young female gorilla ! So thats a "girl". _________________ I like Pentax DSLR's, Exaktas, M42 bodies of all kinds, strange and cheap Japanese lenses, and am dabbling in medium format/Speed Graphic work. |
|
Back to top |
|
|
David
Joined: 13 Apr 2011 Posts: 1869 Location: Denver, Colorado
Expire: 2013-01-25
|
Posted: Mon Sep 16, 2013 8:06 pm Post subject: |
|
|
David wrote:
The first five -- your self and family portraits -- are great! _________________ http://www.youtube.com/user/hancockDavidM |
|
Back to top |
|
|
Misha_M
Joined: 08 Oct 2012 Posts: 178
|
Posted: Wed Sep 18, 2013 1:51 pm Post subject: |
|
|
Misha_M wrote:
Oh, so that's the type of girls it was built to watch _________________ Tair 11 133 f/2.8 1958
Jupiter 9 85 f/2 1959
Helios 44M 58 f/2 1978
Helios 44-2 58 f/2 1977
Helios 44 (13 blades) 1959
Helios 77M4 50 f/1.8
Zenitar-M 50 f/1.7 1986
Industar-61 L\Z 50 f/2.8
Helios 40-2, 85 f/1.5 1974 |
|
Back to top |
|
|
ManualFocus-G
Joined: 29 Dec 2008 Posts: 6624 Location: United Kingdom
Expire: 2014-11-24
|
Posted: Wed Sep 18, 2013 10:17 pm Post subject: |
|
|
ManualFocus-G wrote:
Nice looking lens! Photo 4 for me, that could hang on the wall _________________ Graham - Moderator
Shooter of choice: Fujifilm X-T20 with M42, PB and C/Y lenses
See my Flickr photos at http://www.flickr.com/photos/manualfocus-g |
|
Back to top |
|
|
iangreenhalgh1
Joined: 18 Mar 2011 Posts: 15685
Expire: 2014-01-07
|
Posted: Wed Sep 18, 2013 10:33 pm Post subject: |
|
|
iangreenhalgh1 wrote:
Excellent shots Luis.
I get the impression it's a crap lens made to look decent by a master. _________________ I don't care who designed it, who made it or what country it comes from - I just enjoy using it! |
|
Back to top |
|
|
frenched
Joined: 16 Feb 2013 Posts: 394 Location: MD USA
Expire: 2014-06-17
|
Posted: Wed Sep 18, 2013 10:46 pm Post subject: |
|
|
frenched wrote:
iangreenhalgh1 wrote: |
I get the impression it's a crap lens made to look decent by a master. |
I tend to agree.
Gorillas might be a safer subject The last time I leveled one of these at a girl she grabbed it and leveled me. |
|
Back to top |
|
|
wuxiekeji
Joined: 15 Aug 2012 Posts: 213
|
Posted: Fri Sep 20, 2013 5:01 am Post subject: |
|
|
wuxiekeji wrote:
Interesting. I grabbed one of these lenses last weekend for a grand total of $5. It's so incredibly well-built, the focus action is as good as any Zeiss lens. Pity the optics kind of sucks :-/ but it's not so bad stopped down if you have a tripod and shooting still subjects. _________________ Canon EOS 6D | Canon EOS 60D | Canon EOS-M | Voigtlander Nokton 1.4/35 | Zeiss Distagon C-Y 4/18 | Zeiss Distagon ZF 2/28 | Samyang 1.4/35 | Zeiss Planar C-Y 1.4/50 | Zeiss Planar C-Y 1.4/85 | Zeiss Makro-Planar C-Y 2.8/100 | Zeiss Sonnar C-Y 2.8/135 | Nikkor ED Ai-S 2.8/180 | Canon FD SSC Fluorite 2.8/300 | Tair-3S 4.5/300 |
|
Back to top |
|
|
luisalegria
Joined: 07 Mar 2008 Posts: 6627 Location: San Francisco, USA
Expire: 2018-01-18
|
Posted: Fri Sep 20, 2013 6:48 am Post subject: |
|
|
luisalegria wrote:
Ah, but I think the strong point of this lens (and similar ones) is hand-held snap shooting.
Even in questionable light its perfect for targets of opportunity, if one is narrow minded like me.
With an SLR body with in camera IS its perfect for street-style photography.
I imagine that a modern AF lens of this focal length would offer similar advantages, but that's much more money and bulk/inconvenience.
Sticking this on a tripod is a waste. Put a big awkward lens on a tripod, not this. _________________ I like Pentax DSLR's, Exaktas, M42 bodies of all kinds, strange and cheap Japanese lenses, and am dabbling in medium format/Speed Graphic work. |
|
Back to top |
|
|
Nordentro
Joined: 24 Jun 2010 Posts: 4710 Location: Lillehammer, Norway
Expire: 2015-01-29
|
Posted: Fri Sep 20, 2013 7:10 am Post subject: |
|
|
Nordentro wrote:
Taht's a cool ad! Thx for sharing _________________ Lars | Lens collection | Manuellfokus.no |
|
Back to top |
|
|
wuxiekeji
Joined: 15 Aug 2012 Posts: 213
|
Posted: Fri Sep 20, 2013 2:34 pm Post subject: |
|
|
wuxiekeji wrote:
luisalegria wrote: |
Ah, but I think the strong point of this lens (and similar ones) is hand-held snap shooting.
Even in questionable light its perfect for targets of opportunity, if one is narrow minded like me.
With an SLR body with in camera IS its perfect for street-style photography.
I imagine that a modern AF lens of this focal length would offer similar advantages, but that's much more money and bulk/inconvenience.
Sticking this on a tripod is a waste. Put a big awkward lens on a tripod, not this. |
Monopods are where it's at. Even for big awkward lenses I use monopods. 4-stop IS for $30 in a small package. _________________ Canon EOS 6D | Canon EOS 60D | Canon EOS-M | Voigtlander Nokton 1.4/35 | Zeiss Distagon C-Y 4/18 | Zeiss Distagon ZF 2/28 | Samyang 1.4/35 | Zeiss Planar C-Y 1.4/50 | Zeiss Planar C-Y 1.4/85 | Zeiss Makro-Planar C-Y 2.8/100 | Zeiss Sonnar C-Y 2.8/135 | Nikkor ED Ai-S 2.8/180 | Canon FD SSC Fluorite 2.8/300 | Tair-3S 4.5/300 |
|
Back to top |
|
|
Orio
Joined: 24 Feb 2007 Posts: 29545 Location: West Emilia
Expire: 2012-12-04
|
Posted: Fri Sep 20, 2013 3:06 pm Post subject: |
|
|
Orio wrote:
I guess marketing it in Saudi Arabia would be a problem: burqa watcher?... _________________ Orio, Administrator
T*
NE CEDE MALIS AUDENTIOR ITO
Ferrania film is reborn! http://www.filmferrania.it/
Support the Ornano film chemicals company and help them survive!
http://forum.mflenses.com/ornano-chemical-products-t55525.html |
|
Back to top |
|
|
Lloydy
Joined: 02 Sep 2009 Posts: 7775 Location: Ironbridge. UK.
Expire: 2022-01-01
|
Posted: Sat Sep 21, 2013 12:22 am Post subject: |
|
|
Lloydy wrote:
It does have some strong resemblence to the Soligor 400 / 6.3
The tripod mount is the same, and a lot of the style is common, the 'boxed' focusing mark is also the same. The main difference is the trade mark chrome ear style of the Soligor aperture ring. I would suspect they are the same, although the best information regarding the serial numbers indicate the Soligor is Kino / Kiron
I've had some good results from the Soligor as well. ( and this is one of two I've got, it's for sale ) _________________ LENSES & CAMERAS FOR SALE.....
I have loads of stuff that I have to get rid of, if you see me commenting about something I have got and you want one, ask me.
My Flickr https://www.flickr.com/photos/mudplugga/
My ipernity -
http://www.ipernity.com/home/294337 |
|
Back to top |
|
|
Attila
Joined: 24 Feb 2007 Posts: 57839 Location: Hungary
Expire: 2021-11-18
|
Posted: Sat Sep 21, 2013 1:26 am Post subject: |
|
|
Attila wrote:
Great review and pictures, you handle masterly all kind of strange things ! _________________ -------------------------------
Items on sale on Ebay
Sony NEX-7 Carl Zeiss Planar 85mm f1.4, Minolta MD 35mm f1.8, Konica 135mm f2.5, Minolta MD 50mm f1.2, Minolta MD 250mm f5.6, Carl Zeiss Sonnar 180mm f2.8
|
|
Back to top |
|
|
woodrim
Joined: 14 Jan 2010 Posts: 4060 Location: Charleston
|
Posted: Tue Oct 28, 2014 8:15 pm Post subject: |
|
|
woodrim wrote:
Attila wrote: |
...you handle masterly all kind of strange things ! |
I love that comment _________________ Regards,
Woodrim |
|
Back to top |
|
|
CuriousOne
Joined: 31 Dec 2013 Posts: 669 Location: Home
|
Posted: Tue Oct 28, 2014 8:51 pm Post subject: |
|
|
CuriousOne wrote:
I had it. Sharpness and CA incomparable with TOU 500/8. Sold it for low price. The optical formula is really different from other 400/6.3, 500/8 lens.
If these other lenses look like this from side: [] -means lens, ---- means tube, | means aperture
[]----|----[]--------
This lens has the following formula:
[]----|----[]-----[]- _________________ I have nothing to compensate with lens |
|
Back to top |
|
|
|
|
You cannot post new topics in this forum You cannot reply to topics in this forum You cannot edit your posts in this forum You cannot delete your posts in this forum You cannot vote in polls in this forum
|