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Zeiss & Yashica 500mm perfection
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PostPosted: Wed May 24, 2023 7:00 pm    Post subject: Zeiss & Yashica 500mm perfection Reply with quote

I just thought you might find it fun to see the two extremes of 500mm mirror lenses - they're both quite hard to find...

Here are my Zeiss 500mm f4.5 Mirotar and Yashica ML 500mm f8 lenses. There could hardly be a greater contrast in size - and ease of use!

The big Zeiss lens is not for the faint-hearted as it is bulky, heavy and focusing is achieved by cranking the camera body using bellows at the rear. The ML version of Yashica's several 500mm reflex lenses has a stellar reputation and is one of the smallest of its type. It enjoyed a complete redesign in the wake of the 500mm f8 Reflex and is smaller, much lighter and even sharper; the original versions of the Yashica mirror lens were pretty good but that ML is in a league of its own. Sadly, its price today reflects this; the less we say about the price of the Zeiss the better.

I love them both but at least you can use the Yashica without a heavy support.


PostPosted: Thu May 25, 2023 1:53 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

It weighs 4.5 kg.
It has a 4.5 f number.
Fun.


PostPosted: Thu May 25, 2023 9:15 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Himself wrote:
It weighs 4.5 kg.
It has a 4.5 f number.
Fun.


Absolutely right. You used to get a free hernia repair kit with every lens...

The main problem with its maximum aperture is the shallowness of its dof which can make focusing quite tricky, especially in low contrast situations. I took it out last week with a 50mm Planar set to about f4.5 and took the attached piccie. It was hazy and I only had a monopod for support which made focusing a real pain but I think you can agree that the lens can really pull in distant objects. And considering that the two big Mirotars don't have the benefit of Zeiss' T* coatings, the haziness and distance involved, the resulting image is a testament to the quality of the optics.
#1


PostPosted: Thu May 25, 2023 10:12 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Does it take a polarizing filter?
It would remove the haze from the equation.


PostPosted: Thu May 25, 2023 11:49 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Himself wrote:
Does it take a polarizing filter?
It would remove the haze from the equation.


I'm not aware that Zeiss ever produced a polarising filter for the two big Mirotars. The lens came with 4 filters: IR, UV, red and yellow. They slide into the side of the barrel towards the rear of the unit, opposite the variable aperture control (you get the option of f4.5 or f11). I suppose back in the day, Zeiss may have been prepared to make a polarising filter to special order but I never thought to enquire about one. A lens hood would have been a nice option too - but I've never seen or heard of one.


PostPosted: Fri May 26, 2023 2:38 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

biggles3 wrote:
Himself wrote:
Does it take a polarizing filter?
It would remove the haze from the equation.



Find one that fits ????


PostPosted: Fri May 26, 2023 8:59 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Interesting to see that the Zeiss has a sight built in to the two attachments for the carry handle. Not many 500mm lenses have that.

My 800mm mirror lens has a similar sight and it is a real help for broadly lining up the lens with the subject as opposed to having to go "hunting" for the subject through the camera finder.


PostPosted: Fri May 26, 2023 11:00 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Himself wrote:
biggles3 wrote:
Himself wrote:
Does it take a polarizing filter?
It would remove the haze from the equation.



Find one that fits ????


I'm not sure that I can. The carriers for the filters are specific to the Mirotar - I looked at the ones from an old Yashica Reflex 500 f8 and they're much smaller. They're not like the ones from a lot of mirror lenses which simply screw into place at the rear. I suppose it might be possible to get a carrier 3D-printed and then add the spring retaining clip and a linear polariser. The only alternative would be to buy a 155mm square filter and place it in front of the front element...


PostPosted: Fri May 26, 2023 11:14 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

RokkorDoctor wrote:
Interesting to see that the Zeiss has a sight built in to the two attachments for the carry handle. Not many 500mm lenses have that.

My 800mm mirror lens has a similar sight and it is a real help for broadly lining up the lens with the subject as opposed to having to go "hunting" for the subject through the camera finder.


It is handy for alignment - both of the big Mirotars have the sight machined into the large aluminium billets which anchor the carrying handle.

I've attached a piccie of the set-up I have for use with my Fuji GFX 50s and its EVF Tilt-Adapter as when it's fitted, you can't quite see the rear sight. This strange hybrid is a mix of Zeiss lens, Fuji camera, Fotodiox Pro adapter and Olympus EE-1 Dot Sight. The only slight negative, apart from the accumulated weight, is the crowd it tends to draw..
#1


PostPosted: Fri May 26, 2023 9:59 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Camera porn Very Happy


PostPosted: Sat May 27, 2023 1:19 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

biggles3 wrote:
A lens hood would have been a nice option too - but I've never seen or heard of one.


That's surprising to me. I guess the Zeiss is a different animal from ordinary mirror lenses, but all my (cheap) mirrors show better contrast when I use a deep hood.


PostPosted: Sat May 27, 2023 8:18 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

55 wrote:
biggles3 wrote:
A lens hood would have been a nice option too - but I've never seen or heard of one.


That's surprising to me. I guess the Zeiss is a different animal from ordinary mirror lenses, but all my (cheap) mirrors show better contrast when I use a deep hood.


The lens clearly has three metal stubs on the inside of the barrel just in front of the front lens retaining ring.

They are likely meant for a matching bayonet-style hood, cap, and/or additional accessories.

EDIT: I just noticed the cap is also shown in the last image, bayonet style. I would hazard a guess that a matching bayonet-style hood would therefore also have been available.


PostPosted: Sat May 27, 2023 9:01 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

RokkorDoctor wrote:
55 wrote:
biggles3 wrote:
A lens hood would have been a nice option too - but I've never seen or heard of one.


That's surprising to me. I guess the Zeiss is a different animal from ordinary mirror lenses, but all my (cheap) mirrors show better contrast when I use a deep hood.


The lens clearly has three metal stubs on the inside of the barrel just in front of the front lens retaining ring.

They are likely meant for a matching bayonet-style hood, cap, and/or additional accessories.

EDIT: I just noticed the cap is also shown in the last image, bayonet style. I would hazard a guess that a matching bayonet-style hood would therefore also have been available.


Curiously enough, no hood was listed for the lens back in the late '70s and '80s; I eventually asked Zeiss about a hood and never even had the courtesy of a reply. When you think how much the lens cost, you might have thought you'd be entitled to at least some level of customer service... Interestingly, when the first 500mm f4.5 Mirotars were introduced in about 1964 for the Contarex, no hood was listed by Zeiss as an accessory. Indeed, you could not even buy a replacement front lens cap; I'd thought about getting one, taking out the bayonet fitting and building a hood around it - no joy again. I suppose if you are only making 200-odd copies of a lens, you're not going to go to the expense of supplying replacement accessories.

I eventually created a basic hood from some foam sheet, black felt and velcro. Picking up on an earlier comment, it did help to improve contrast marginally, specifically under bright directional lighting.