300mm Mirror Lenses

xaprb · Joined: 28 Jan 2021 Posts: 171

woodrim, how would you feel about starting a thread for each of different groups of focal lengths, like...

250-300mm mirrors (this thread)
350-450mm
500-550mm (does this exist already?)
600-680mm (!)
700mm+
1000mm+

Or are there already? Maybe a pinned "table of contents" thread in the sticky sub-forum is a good idea?

woodrim · Joined: 14 Jan 2010 Posts: 4060 Location: Charleston

xaprb · Joined: 28 Jan 2021 Posts: 171

I own a Tokina 300/6.3 mirror lens for Micro Four Thirds. I've seen what appear to be variants of it: a Kenko-branded version (Kenko is Tokina's parent company), a Sony E-Mount version of it, and I've seen something similar to it branded as Albinar, but without the Micro Four Thirds electronic contacts and with a less-premium build. I assume the latter are just a cheaper housing of the same or similar optics, but it's hard to know for sure.

As far as I know, this is the only mirror lens that has electronic contacts for MFT. It's manual-focus, but the contacts communicate a) lens data for EXIF and for calibrating in-body-image-stabilization in my Olympus cameras and b) enable the camera to know when you're turning the focus ring, and activate features like focus magnification. In practice, I have found b) to work not-so-well, but it could be just my camera or my copy of the lens; there's some lag/insensitivity that means it doesn't pick up subtle focus movements, and doesn't pick them up quickly, so the finer adjustments often result in focus aid timing out and leaving me looking at the unmagnified view while trying to adjust focus that last little bit.

It's a nice-looking, nice-feeling lens. It has an attractive silver-colored, all-metal body, and it feels quite solid and heavy, not like an empty shell like some other mirror lenses. Focus action is nice and smooth. It has a reversible hood, BH-552, which is bayonet-mounted and when reversed fits over the body for storage. Tokina's newer 400mm T-mount mirror lens has a reversible hood but it's screw-in, which I like much less. The hood is slightly annoying to get off, however, when it's been reversed for storage. The hood covers the whole lens so there's nothing to grip and keep the lens from turning as you try to turn the hood off! So you have to turn it until the focus hits the end of its range, and then you can slide the tabs out of the bayonet once the lens is held from turning further.

It's very compact, and I like that it's not designed with a T-mount, which has a huge flange-focal-distance that makes some mirror lenses stick way out in front of the camera. This lens matches the Micro Four Thirds design much better in that regard. Here's a crummy photo illustrating its size compared to a soda can.

#1

The lens focus quite close, to 1:2 lifesize, and is labeled a macro. Image quality isn't superb at this range, though it's also not bad at all compared to most macros near their minimum focus distance. This is a frog a little larger than a thumbnail, sitting on the handrail of a swimming pool.

#2

All the other photos I have with this lens at a greater distance are of people, so I can't really share more unless I go take some test shots. My quick review of it is that it's pretty decent for a mirror lens: colors are nice, and it has reasonably good resolution, contrast, and flare control. I think it's a lot better than most of the vintage 300mm mirrors. I would have to do more work to prove any of that; it's just my gut feeling from using it and being pretty happy with the results.

Note that on a MFT camera, 300mm is a pretty narrow field of view indeed. My Olympus PEN-F does stabilize this lens beautifully, and since it's rangefinder-style it's easy for me to keep my left eye open to help me with subject tracking, but it's a challenge to keep subjects in the viewfinder sometimes, and when using with people, it's hard to get far enough away a lot of times. I took a lot of photos of my family in the swimming pool during vacations this summer, and the ring bokeh creates some fabulously memorable shots of water spray all around their faces, looking like fairy dust. In one photo, my brother has a dubious expression on his face, and there's little rainbowy bubbles all over the place, and when I saw it I burst out laughing at how much it looked like a stereotype of a cartoonish rendering of a drunk person.

I think this lens was only produced for a short time around 2012, and I haven't seen very many copies of it. I got one for about $200 on eBay in mint condition, and MPB had one for $125 or so not long ago. Used Photo Pro (Roberts Camera's used division) has had a couple copies of the various brands and mounts I mentioned at the start. If I didn't have a copy and saw one, I'd gladly plunk down $200 for it. It's such a great compact travel lens for long-distance work, as long as the usual conditions are right (enough time to focus, enough light, etc).

Specs: 13 elements, 11 groups, 80cm MFD, Ã¸66x66mm, front element Ã˜51/24mm obstruction, 298g (352g with caps etc)
Tokina's official product page with more/better photos and information: https://tokinalens.com/product/reflex_300mm_f6_3_mf_macro/

xaprb · Joined: 28 Jan 2021 Posts: 171

I've found a copy of a rare Clear View 300mm f5 with a variable aperture which I think is a rebranded Hama. Details in a separate thread, http://forum.mflenses.com/viewtopic,p,1557184.html

PBFACTS · Joined: 24 Dec 2008 Posts: 569

woodrim · Joined: 14 Jan 2010 Posts: 4060 Location: Charleston

xaprb · Joined: 28 Jan 2021 Posts: 171

Thanks PBFACTS, that is good to know. I think it's probably the same lens nonetheless, despite that some third-party made it for both Hama and Clear View. Woodrim, I don't think it's the same as the other "variable aperture" mirror lenses I've seen, with a diaphragm at the front of the lens encased in a thick lump. At first glance you wouldn't know anything's special about it, and the aperture variation is achieved by moving the interior baffle around the hole in the main mirror. It doesn't have any aperture blades, just an extending tube. More details are in that other thread, including sample photos.