The Great Cheapo Lens Challenge - 2 (Super Travenar 2.8/28)

Lloydy · Expire: 2022-01-01

This is the home for pictures taken with the Super Travenar 2.8/28.

The lens has M42 mount and an A-M switch. No caps. If you need an adapter for M42 lenses please let peterqd know and we'll try to sort one out for you.

The idea is to try to get the best possible images we can from a cheap, low-IQ lens. It's not a competition, nobody is judging and there are no prizes. Everyone has to submit their best picture in each of these categories:

1 A building
2 A close up
3 A landscape
4 A portrait type picture ( could be a person or a statue or some object that will be isolated by narrow depth of field )
5 A street shot (or country lane if you like)

Any kind of post-processing is allowed, including a touch of sharpening, but no crops please. Remember the idea is to see what the lens can achieve. Please resize all pics to max 1024 px wide.

Please aim to get all your pictures taken and the lens posted on within a week, weather permitting, so we don't keep people waiting too long. Peter will be keeping in touch so he can track where the lens is at any time.

22 members have signed up so far, still room for more.
This is the order the lens will follow.
The lens is currently with the name in red.

kukhuvud [28 December 2011]
mmelvis [31 December 2011]
David [22 January 2012]
cooltouch [15 March 2012]
visualopsins
mo
ManualFocus-G
DigiChromeEd
stingOM
Farside
GrahamNR17
NewStuff
Lloydy
William
Xpres
peterqd
LucisPictor
pst
dragom
Jesito
hoanpham
iangreenhalgh1
Lloydy

Peter has everybody's postal address and he'll be sending PMs to everyone to tell them the name and address to send the lens on to.

Anybody who wants to join in is still welcome, especially if you live in a nice sunny place! Just PM peterqd with your real name and postal address please.

Looking forward to some great pics to come!

Lloydy · Expire: 2022-01-01

I've just got back from my walk with the Super Travenar 28, not as glamorous sounding as the Prinz Galaxy I admit, but at least this lens looks like a proper lens and isn't so embarrassing as you walk past some smug git with the latest Canikon wonderzoom! Smile

I said it was a lens that I had very mixed results with in the past, and it still is. I haven't used it for maybe a year, so an hours shooting was like the lens being new all over again.
I didn't use a tripod, or filters, and I took every picture with a Pentax K10 at ISO 200, and haven't cropped or processed any picture in any way at all. These are RAW in every sense of the word!

This is the wide open DoF shot, not a great success. The centre is sharp but the fall off at the edges ( top and bottom of the carved seat ) is bad. And I don't like the bokeh very much. 1/000 f2.8

This is usable, the centre is sharp(ish) but not razor sharp. This was shot at 1/500 and f4 ot 5.6 with my hands resting on a sturdy part of the machine. It should be very sharp. The bokeh along the edge of the light coloured board is bad, the blur is very wide.

The focus was on 'Piccadilly' but by the time you get to the K of Hiscock and the G of Grocer it's getting blurred. I stood square to the shop front and shot at 1/180 and about f5.6, I didn't want it wide open to give it a chance. It failed, the corners are very bad when it's blown up to 100%

I could sense this was going to be bad, just by chimping I could see it was crap. I did cheat a bit and rested the camera on a fence so I could stop it down to f22 and 1/15. Actually, I went through every f stop, the others are worse. In my pocket I had a Pentacon 30 f3.5 and a Takumar 28 f3.5 which I did exactly the same thing with. The Pentacon is good, the Takumar is very good. The Travenar isn't close to either.

I'll add this one in place of the 'street scene' as I haven't got a street scene picture taken with this lens anywhere. But it's got a lot of the same principles, just imagine the gravestones are very stationary people and the church is a line of shops. Wink

That was an interesting experiment. It forced me to be critical of the lens instead of just thinking "it's not very good". I now know why it's not very good.
Perhaps as other people read my comments and look at these pictures they will find a way to get more out of it? Let's see.[img][/img]

peterqd · Expire: 2014-01-04

I'm reposting the pics that Ian took with this lens before I received it:

Lloydy · Expire: 2022-01-01

I've just added another pic to my post to make 5. It should be the 'street scene' but a churchyard scene will have to do. Rolling Eyes

peterqd · Expire: 2014-01-04

Please keep an eye on the list and the maps at the top of the thread. I'm updating them regularly.

The Travenar is now on its way across the Atlantic! Smile

Orio · Expire: 2012-12-04

peterqd · Expire: 2014-01-04

mo · Expire: 2016-07-30

Thanks Peter for clearing that up.

David · Expire: 2013-01-25

Mo, I'll be sending it to you in a box. It's about $15 U.S., which likely won't break the bank. As for time, I've had stuff get to and from Australia in as little as nine days and as long as month, depending on customs and how many kangaroos the delivery person has to box.

kukhuvud · Posted: Thu Dec 01, 2011 11:34 pm Post subject:

I'm keeping a keen eye open for this lens! I'll post again here once it arrives Smile

mo · Expire: 2016-07-30

The camera is back so I can use the lens... Very Happy

Thanks David,I look forward to receiving it.

kukhuvud · Posted: Thu Dec 08, 2011 10:17 pm Post subject:

I received the Super Travenar today!

With a tiny bit of luck maybe I can score some cool holiday photos with it Smile

Attila · Expire: 2025-11-18

kukhuvud · Posted: Mon Dec 12, 2011 11:51 pm Post subject:

This is killing me! I did go out shooting in the Friday darkness, but since then it's been raining here .... and I doubt this lens is weather sealed Wink

mo · Expire: 2016-07-30

Don't stress we all have rubbish weather. Very Happy

Any chance it can handle indoor shots?

peterqd · Expire: 2014-01-04

I must confess I was hoping this was going to be a little snappier (pardon the pun) Smile

At this rate the lens will take over a year to get round to everybody, so I've decided it's not fair to keep pushing people down the list as others join and, from now on, anyone else joining will be at the bottom of the list.

kukhuvud · Posted: Sat Dec 24, 2011 6:18 pm Post subject:

I think I finally got the landscape shot I wanted today, so I'm ready to post the lens to the next victim! Smile

Lloydy · Expire: 2022-01-01

We need pictures, not works of great art, real world pictures. So just get out there and blast away, pick the best and let's see them. Wink

kukhuvud · Posted: Tue Dec 27, 2011 6:57 pm Post subject: The landscape shot

This photo was taken somewhere in the Arizona desert. I think I shot this wide open as it was shortly after sunrise. I swear that I focused on the cactus.... This lens is really difficult to get sharp shots out of! Wink

kukhuvud · Posted: Wed Dec 28, 2011 2:39 am Post subject: The close up

I found this when I walked a bit further down my street than I normally walk.

kukhuvud · Posted: Wed Dec 28, 2011 2:46 am Post subject: The building

Got rid of the blurry building photo in favor of something better (and not blurry) .... This house also lives in my neighborhood Smile

kukhuvud · Posted: Wed Dec 28, 2011 2:55 am Post subject: The street scene

Holiday lights in Westwood Village!

kukhuvud · Posted: Wed Dec 28, 2011 3:01 am Post subject: Lastly, a portrait :)

There just weren't a lot of portrait opportunities for me over the holidays. Therefore, this is one of the executive assistants at work. This was shot wide open and I swear once again that the thing was properly focused, although evidence points to the contrary! This would have been a lot easier of my wife would simply let me take her photo Wink

mmelvis · Expire: 2015-05-09

The lens looks to be a real challenge

kukhuvud · Posted: Wed Dec 28, 2011 4:05 am Post subject: