Auto Exaktar 200mm f3.5 M42 Sample Pictures , wierd BOKEH !

[anthonycronin]

A 570g hunk of steel and glass I came across and only recently took for a test spin using my standard unscientific lens testing methods.. with my yellow assistant BOB.

It is surprisingly sharp and has nice colour rendition and wide open the bokeh is not bad. A surprise all around. Take a 62mm screw filter says lens was made in Korea... There seem to be no information on these on the net...

Tested on A Fujica ST705 without a UV filter or Hood. Fuji Superia 200 Film, Straight neg scans as recieved back from Pharmacy/developer



Test ONE: Using lensMin Focus Distance of 3 Metres ... Subject BOB in the Birdbath approx 500mm diameter ( which puts either either edge at +/- .250 from BOB) (BOb is 2.5 inches tall when standing..for reference.) Equivalent to a headshot portrait.

#1 @ f3.5 1/500


#2 @f/8


TEST TWO: focus point is flowers at 5metres.. Window edge ( brown) is 6.5 metres and infinity behind ( Equivalent to head, shoulders and upper torso portrait approx)

#1 @f3.5


#2 @f4 :


#3 @f8:


Test THREE: Subject is light green flowerpot in bottom left at 15Metres distance

#1 @f3.5


#2 @ 5.6 look at brown basket hanging from tree in background about 27metres away.. and compare to f8


#3 @f/8 Shot handheld at 1/60 so might be some shake


Overall, a pleasant lens... nothing alarming but would like other's opinions... certainly worth putting on a tripod and seeing how it looks all the way down to f22...

[Lloydy]

Show us a side shot of the lens Anthony, I've got a couple of 200 5.6's - a Photax which I love and a Prinzflex which is truly hateful. I think that most of these lenses were rebadged and sold through the big camera stores - remember them ? Some were good, even 'very good'. I think your's shows a lot of goodness. It would interesting to try and see who actually made it.

[anthonycronin]

Ok I just dug out the lens from it's box... It says made in Korea on it and this is a side view ... any clues as to who made it, ... to be honest I thought it would be a pig of a lens so only did a quick test. think if I get a nice day I will break out the tripod so I can see how it performs at all apetures and remove shake from the equation.

It seems to have only 6 blades in it's iris...

here she is


View on rear..






Anthony