Super Takumar 135mm Field Test

[cmontoya]

Here are my favorites from the Super Takumar 135mm f/3.5 field test held last November 30, 2009. Manual focus only lens noob here so forgive me if these shots are nothing more than snapshots.











I did discover that these single coated Super Taks aren't good in overly bright scenes though (even with the lens hoods and UV filters on).

What I like about these lenses are that photos taken with them in good lighting conditions are contrasty and have natural colors. I only used Canon's Neutral Picture Style and improved the contrast a little by using NoiseNinja and Smart Sharpen (Amount: 10%, Radius 20.0 pixels, Remove: Lens Blur).

[Orio]

The samples are good, and the lens is too.
Well done.

[cmontoya]

@Orio: Thank you. I bought the lenses from e-bay sellers with 100% ratings. I regret not getting the SuperTak 35 f/2 when one of them offered it to me. I declined because I already have the 28mm but I should have bought the 35mm for its low light capability. Anyway, I'll continue my search for a 35mm f/2 in ebay or here.

[poilu]

welcome cmontoya
nice series, my favorites #1#3

[Nesster]

Excellent results.

One story - back a couple of years, at the local camera store there were two 135 screw mount lenses - both were $40. One was a S-M-C 3.5, the other a Yashinon DX 135/2.8. I dithered and debated, finally deciding the Yashinon was the rarer one and 2.8 to boot. I wish I'd bought the Tak instead - the DX at least on digital suffers from a form of hazing, maybe reflection off the sensor.

[Tharos]

The samples are much more than snapshots, well done...

I would suggest a SMC Takumar F1.4 50mm or 50mm F1.8 cheaper lens for low light conditions...

[TBaker]

These are sharp...nice. I have the SMC version of the 3.5 on the way along with an adaptor for my 40D. I can't bloody wait.

[ManualFocus-G]

Superb again! Loving Wall-e even more The cat and the flowers look great too, a very strong mf start!

[patrickh]

Good samples of a very fine lens. Thanks


patrickh

[cmontoya]

@poilu: Thank you. Please call me Carlo. Hmm, I should have numbered the photos. Sorry about that.

@Nesster: Thank you. I researched about manual focus lenses for Canon EOS cameras for around two months and I found out that I liked the following: Asahi Super Takumar, Carl Zeiss Jena Sonnar, and Jupiter-9, 37-A. I decided to go with the SuperTaks because of their builds.

@Tharos: Yes, I'm thinking of getting the SMC Takumar 50 1.4 but I already have Canon's 50 1.8 so I decided to hunt for a 35 2 first. Plus, I'm kind of worried about the radioactive content of the SMC Takumar 50 1.4.

@TBaker: Salamat (thanks). I know the feeling. My lenses came earlier than the adapters and I had to wait a month to do this field test. It turned out that our postal office had them already for a month and 'forgot' to deliver them. I'm living in the Philippines and we have the most efficient postal system in the world (sarcastic tone).

@Shrek: Thank you. WALL-E's my daughter's toy. The cat was a willing model. It wasn't afraid of people. It's the kind of cat that approaches you to ask for food. Pity I didn't have something to give it.

@patrickh. Thank you also.

[shauttra]

yeah! 135mm lenses are my favorites!
Good results!

[Spotmatic]

Nice work indeed, I really like the samples and the bokeh is great.

Now, can you please also tell us whether you have the first version of the Super-Takumar 135mm f/3.5 or the second version? The first version has 5 elements (just like the preset version), the second version (the same version as the S-M-C Takumar) has 4 elements.

[cmontoya]

@shauttra: Thanks. I'd like to get my hands on a Super Tak 105 2.8 too at some point.

@Spotmatic: I wouldn't know the difference The serial number on my lens says 1753452.

Here's a photo of my SuperTak 135 3.5 taken with my P&S (I'm charging the DSLR's battery):

[Spotmatic]

[cmontoya]

@Spotmatic: I don't see any number.

Here's the e-bay page I bought the lens from:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=260491543244&ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT

[cmontoya]

Practising selective focus





Capturing natural bokeh



Perfect exposure me thinks

[Tharos]

Great captures, your like to have sunny weather, it is rainy heavily in my place and I can not go out to test my new 28mm F3.5

[TBaker]

Yes exposure is spot on and sharp.

That's some nasty electrical. No grounds?

[rbelyell]

you have a nice eye.

[cmontoya]

@Tharos: You can shoot from inside the house. I bet the rain would saturate the scenes

@TBaker: Thank you. I read that the SuperTaks indeed overexpose so I was experimenting by compensating by -1 and -2 stops. I couldn't sleep until I found out for sure so I researched and found that SuperTaks indeed have this problem. The explanation and solution can be found here
http://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/pentax-slr-lens-discussion/34265-takumar-50mm-f1-4-low-contrast-narrow-f-stops.html.

It's nasty. This is the Philippines. Safety isn't really a priority. In some countries when there are gunfights, people run for cover. In our country, people run for the best seats (until they get hit by stray bullets).

@rbelyell: I'm trying to be an artistic photographer 75% first, 25% gearhead second.

[Arkku]

I usually dislike the bokeh of the Super Takumar 135mm f/3.5 more than that of any other common lens, but these aren't half bad!

[cmontoya]

(OT) Hi guys. I just found out why my 135mm f/3.5 is 'hazy.' It's not the lens, it's the Pro Tama UV filter. I was cleaning my SuperTaks a few days ago and decided to remove the UV filters and when I held the Pro Tama against the light, voila, the lens was coated with 'fog' (I don't know what it's really called). I tried the Lens Pen on it and the fog went away but today when I was readying the 135 for another round of test in the field, the fog was back. I took a shot and hazy photos. I replaced the filter with the Hoya one that is attached to the 28mm and no more haze.

I discounted moisture as both of my SuperTaks are stored in the same bag.

Dang! I'm ordering another Hoya 49mm UV filter for the 135.

Lesson learned: Don't buy cheap filters.

[TBaker]

You have a hood...save your money and don't use any filtres. Only filtres I use on my glass is POL, ND110 or the IR filtre.

[cmontoya]

@TBaker: Thank you for the advice but sadly I already ordered one from e-bay. He he.

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Some more field test snapshots from the 135mm f/3.5 (this time with the Hoya UV filter) and as you can see no more haze

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[visualopsins]

Like this lens my 5 element version diaphram switch has no number, positions are labelled "A" and "M", serial number begins 1; my 4 element version switch has 43541, positions "Auto" and "Man", and serial begins 2.