Starblitz 75-200mm Telephoto (with macro)

David · Expire: 2013-01-25

Starblitz 75-200mm with macro. f4.5 to f32 (auto aperture, too.)

I bought a non-functional Starblitz 75-200 for $20 and in about an hour had it working again (the aperture blades were oilier than a fast food grease trap.) Some aperture disassembly and thorough blade cleaning and the lens works great. Then one internal lens was hazy with oil, so it needed a couple of cleanings. After the work was done, I took some test photos before reselling it. Here are the best of the test photos:

A concrete chunk in some tree detritus in a parking lot. The concrete detail was much sharper than I expected and the darkening around the corners was due to the short distance (about nine feet from lens to subject), aperture setting (f22), and telephoto setting (200mm.) Post processing included contrast adjustment and detail sharpening (very minor.)

I took a series of rose shots, most of which were blurred due to the ridiculous wind over the mountains last night. This one turned out best. 1/250th of a second, 200mm zoom, f4.5. At f32, the garage in the background was almost in focus; however, since it was evening and those shots required about 1/4 second exposure, none of the roses were in focus. Anyway, here is the one whic hturned out best:

This was taken at 75mm zoom, about f32, with a 1/60th exposure, I think. It's some high-tension wires and a hill, just to show the infinity focus. I promise, there is nothing else of interest in this photo.

This was some grass on a hill, taken solely to test the lens' ability to grab color and detail. The detail was surprisingly good since I didn't have it on a tripod, the wind was pretty brutal (a theme near me), and this needed a 1/50th exposure since it was in the shade. f4.5 or 5.6, I forget which.

In general, this lens exhibits very sound focus, especially at f11, f22, and f32. The depth of field at the higher apertures with distant focus is very good, and acceptable for macro shots.

David