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luisalegria
Joined: 07 Mar 2008 Posts: 6602 Location: San Francisco, USA
Expire: 2018-01-18
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Posted: Wed Jun 25, 2008 4:23 am Post subject: Soligor (Tokina) 55-135/3.5 T4 version |
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luisalegria wrote:
This is my latest item in the Tokina collection, in this case the short zoom in the series. This is the Soligor version in T4 interchangable mount. I now need the 105, 135/3.5 and 250/4 to complete the series, the last apparently being very rare.
This must be one of the first short zooms sold to the public by a cheap third party lens maker. I think it dates from about 1968, but versions were certainly being sold by Sears as late as 1977. Its predecessors were expensive Kilfitts, Nikons and Voigtlanders, so this was probably considered a good buy at the time.
This is the usual Tokina heavy-duty manufacture, and in fact this is a rather heavy and solid piece. It does have one curious feature, the tiny and useless built-in hood. It is of course a two-touch lens, which I much prefer. My copy is in perfect operating condition, if a bit worn.
As to performance, here we have some problems. It is pretty much unusable at f/3.5, unless for "pictorial" purposes, as the flare and aberrations are extreme, and its very soft. It becomes much more reasonable at f/5.6. Short zooms must have improved more than any category of lens after this one came out, because my Tokina two-touch 28-80 of 1979 beats the pants off this.
If I were to get into "artistic" portraits though, I would give this thing a try.
At f/3.5
At f/5.6
Various -
The bird, at f/3.5 -
cropped -
_________________ 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. |
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Abbazz
Joined: 23 Jun 2007 Posts: 1098 Location: Jakarta
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Posted: Wed Jun 25, 2008 8:42 am Post subject: |
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Abbazz wrote:
Nice find, Luis. I must say I kinda like the rendering at f/3.5, maybe you should try some portraiture with it.
By the way, I have a Ricoh TLS which looks just like your Sears camera, but in chrome finish. That's one of my favorite M42 cameras, it's quite bulky and heavy but it feels just right in the hand. It also seems incredibly sturdy, a kind of indestructible shooting machine.
Cheers!
Abbazz _________________ Il n'y a rien dans le monde qui n'ait son moment decisif, et le chef-d'oeuvre de la bonne conduite est de connaitre et de prendre ce moment. - Cardinal de Retz
The 6x9 Photography Online Resource:
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Orio
Joined: 24 Feb 2007 Posts: 29545 Location: West Emilia
Expire: 2012-12-04
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Posted: Wed Jun 25, 2008 10:13 am Post subject: |
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Orio wrote:
This bird seems like an old one, poor guy.
THe lens is surely on the soft side but does not seem so bad after all, I can not see CA for instance in the bird 100% crop. Only a little flare which is on the acceptable side I think.
If I had to choose a long tele, I would take a little soft one, but without CA, over a sharper one but with bad CA. I know that you can correct CA with the software, but to my eye, this seems to influence the rest of the image when the CA does not happen uniformly all over the frame (which is most of the times because typically CA is worse at the edges) _________________ Orio, Administrator
T*
NE CEDE MALIS AUDENTIOR ITO
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Lloydy
Joined: 02 Sep 2009 Posts: 7793 Location: Ironbridge. UK.
Expire: 2022-01-01
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Posted: Thu Sep 26, 2013 8:58 pm Post subject: |
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Lloydy wrote:
Old thread resurrection, I've now got one of these Soligor / Vivitar / Tokina zooms. My brother said I could have all his camera stuff, and an unmarked copy of this lens is in the box of good stuff. I've given it a quick try and there is some sharpness to be found - but you have to work at it, and it certainly isn't a lens to shoot with wide open.
I'll give it a good workout and post some pictures soon. _________________ 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 |
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casualcollector
Joined: 01 Aug 2008 Posts: 749 Location: Spaced out on Florida's Space Coast
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Posted: Thu Sep 26, 2013 11:51 pm Post subject: |
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casualcollector wrote:
Eager to see, Lloyd. I should give mine a day in the sun. _________________ In Search Of "R" Serial Soligors
Found: 135/2.8 #R407660, 200/4 #R405526, 300/5.5 #R411127 |
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Andrew G.
Joined: 18 Jul 2010 Posts: 159 Location: Pennsylvania, USA
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Posted: Fri Sep 27, 2013 12:01 am Post subject: |
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Andrew G. wrote:
Lloydy wrote: |
I've given it a quick try and there is some sharpness to be found - but you have to work at it, and it certainly isn't a lens to shoot with wide open. |
A bit abstract, but not exactly unusable. Shot at 135mm and f/3.5:
_________________
DSLR: Nikon D40x
SLR: Nikon N2000, Nikomat FTn
Glass:
Nikon:28mm f/2.8 Ai, 28mm f/2.8 Ai-S, 2.8cm f/3.5 F, 28mm f/3.5 Ai-S, 50mm f/1.8 Ai, (2) 50mm f/1.8 Series E, 55mm f/3.5 Micro K, 55mm f/3.5 Micro Ai, 100mm f/2.8 Series E, 105mm f/2.5 F, 105mm f/2.5 Ai, 105mm f/2.5 Ai-S, 200mm f/4 Ai-S, Process-Nikkor 260mm f/10, TC-200
Third-Party: Vivitar 28mm f/2.5 preset, Vivitar 28mm f/2.5 TX, Tamron 28mm f/2.8 Adapt-A-Matic (v. 1), Vivitar 35mm f/1.9 (Canon FD), Vivitar 35mm f/2.8 T4, Tamron 135mm f/2.8 Adapt-A-Matic, Vivitar 135mm f/3.5 preset, Vivitar 200mm f/3.5, Soligor 200mm f/3.5 T4, Star-D 500mm f/8 Mirror, Sigma 15-30mm f/3.5-4.5 AF, Tamron 28-70mm f/3.5-4.5 Adaptall-2 (44A), Hanimex 35-70mm f/2.8-3.8, [x2] Tamron SP 35-80mm f/2.8-3.8 Adaptall-2 (01A), Tokina AT-X 50-250mm f/4-5.6, Soligor 55-135mm f/3.5 T4, Vivitar 70-150mm f/3.8 (one-touch), Vivitar 75-205mm f/3.8 (one-touch), Soligor C/D 78-210mm f/3.5, Soligor C/D 100-300mm f/5
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Lloydy
Joined: 02 Sep 2009 Posts: 7793 Location: Ironbridge. UK.
Expire: 2022-01-01
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Posted: Fri Sep 27, 2013 12:56 am Post subject: |
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Lloydy wrote:
Here's a few shots I took earlier, all at ISO 400, no PP at all other than re-size, and probably f4.5 or 5.6, except for the power pole which was wide open.
There is sharpness in this lens, nice colour rendition - nothing special but perfectly good, but the thing that does impress me is the lack of CA / fringing. The shot of the power pole and the industrial plant would have so much fringing on a poor lens that it could be unusable, but this Soligor is very good indeed.
my brother is a good photographer, and he bought this lens new possibly 30 years ago to use on his Spotmatic ( part of his generous donation to my collection ) and couldn't get on with it at all, he couldn't get a sharp image out of it so it went into a draw for about 29 years. I can understand why, even with the great screen of the Spotmatic and the great build quality of the lens, focusing has to be absolutely on the nail, it's as though the slightest mis focus becomes a huge mis focus.
I shall persevere with it. _________________ 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 |
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