Helios 44-2 on Sony a850

[iangreenhalgh1]

A good copy of the Helios remains probably the best bargain you can find in 'normal' lenses.


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[eddieitman]

Ian that looks a lovely copy,
I do like russian lenses, and the sensor on the 850 is still a great sensor, with film quality

[iangreenhalgh1]

It's the best copy I've had, and I must have had a dozen. Might be down to condition as this one looked unused, like it was brand new.

I love the a850, no electronic viewfinder I have seen is a substitute for a big, clear optical one, so if my a850 ever dies, I shall get another one, or an a900.

[wolan]

[poilu]

[iangreenhalgh1]

Cheers guys. Here's some stitched shots I took at the same time, this is the estuary at the end of Duddon Valley, the view is wonderful on a clear day, you can see several of the Cumbrian mountains - Coniston Old Man, Helvellyn, I forget the others. Shot handheld and stitched using Hugin. The first two are a bit soft as I set focus using the dof scale on the lens, and clearly it's not accurate.


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#8 Shot wide open, note the stitching error on the side of the boat that makes it look blurry.


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#10 The mountain in the center half covered in cloud is Coniston Old Man,


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[uddhava]

[bwfcnottingham]

The 44-2 is indeed a beautiful lens

I have several Helios 44 lenses and they all take amazing photos.

Thanks for sharing Ian

[Lloydy]

I haven't used a 44-2 in a long time, that has to change, it's a wonderful lens. Great images Ian, your pano's are always good.

[iangreenhalgh1]

Cheers guys. I myself haven't used a Helios 44 for a a few years, so many lenses, it gets overlooked, but I found it while tidying up the other day and it was like meeting an old friend. It's not my favourite 'normal' lens, but it's one of my favourites, if that makes sense.

[sergtum]

[Smoli4]

number 5 is great

[kansalliskala]

I really like the boat pictures.

[kryss]

Superb shots Ian...I have 6 all different and with an Helicoid become superb macro.

[iangreenhalgh1]

Cheers. I only kept this one and a much later 44M-7, I'll have to try it for macro, I have a suitable helicoid sat on my desk, thanks for the tip.

[Gerald]

[iangreenhalgh1]

The Tessar type has been far more widely used for macro designs than double gauss and many of the finest macro lenses ever made are Tessars - the Nikkor 3.5/55, the Zeiss Luminar 4/40 and the Leitz Photar 4/50 spring to mind.

CZJ did indeed make a dedicated macro lens - the Prakticar 2.8/55, which I think is a Tessar type.

The common CZJ Tessar 2.8/50 makes a better macro lens on bellows or tubes than the CZJ Pancolar 1.8/50.

I think it's because the Tessar design works well over a wide range of distances and magnifications, whereas a double gauss type needs to be optimised for macro work.

[D1N0]

My Panagor 90mm 2.8 Macro is double gauss (made by Komine).

Screenshot from booklet
Panagor 90mm 1:2.8 schematics by The lens profile, on Flickr

[Gerald]

You are right, there was indeed a CZJ Macro-Prakticar 55 mm F2.8 for Prakita B, but I believe it was a lens launched when the East German photography industry was in its final days. A kind of "swan song" by Carl Zeiss Jena ...

Without a doubt, many macro and enlarger lenses from the past used a Tessar design, especially if the maximum aperture was limited to F3.5 or F4. However, most modern high-performance macro lenses use a 5- or 6-element are Double-Gauss. This is the case of the aforementioned CZJ-Prakticar 55mm F2.8, both Micro-Nikkor 55mm F3.5 and F2.8, the Zeiss Makro-Planar 60mm F2.8 for Contax-Yashica, etc.

CZJ Macro-Prakticar 55mm F2.8:

from: https://allphotolenses.com/public/files/optical/2ff9cb7028c4d0ea22d925e2da548b0d.jpg


Micro Nikkor 55mm F3.5 and F2.8:

from: https://i.ytimg.com/vi/xTgNthRnGpo/hqdefault.jpg



Zeiss Makro-Planar 60mm F2.8:

from: https://www.contaxcameras.co.uk/_html/assets/slr/slrmanlenses/a-makroplanar60mmf2.8.gif

[kryss]

a7ii Helios 44-2 short Helicoid WO.

/Users/chrisshaw/Desktop/_DSC5021 copy-Edit-studio.jpeg

[DigiChromeEd]

Hope you are well Chris.

[iangreenhalgh1]

Nice shot, I still haven't tried the Helios for macro, I've got several other photo projects on the go at the moment, soon to be revealed, hopefully. Spoiler: one includes lasers, exotic lenses modified & repurposed and some fancy electronics.

[kryss]

Thanks Ed,turned 80 in Feb and feel very fortunate I have no health problems.