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Canon E 50 mm f/3.5 (enlarging lens) - bad or just rare?
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PostPosted: Sun Jul 31, 2022 11:55 pm    Post subject: Canon E 50 mm f/3.5 (enlarging lens) - bad or just rare? Reply with quote
While doing some research I was recently reminded of Canon's almost complete absence in the world of enlarging lenses... the key word being 'almost' because, in fact they did produce (at least) one single enlarging lens, the

Canon Lens E 50mm 1:3.5





which surely is one of the most uniquely looking enlarging lenses ever. So when I got it out again I also decided to take a couple of test shots with it, because I recalled being very pleasently surprised when I initially tried it with somewhat tempered expectations, going by the (very few) reports about it online. And in spite of its less than stellar reputation, I feel like it really holds up.

Rain supreme by simple.joy, on Flickr

Ensnared by words by simple.joy, on Flickr

... Mama? by simple.joy, on Flickr

Lace than ideal… by simple.joy, on Flickr

I'm sure under close scrutiny it shows some weaknesses compared to the best 6/4 ELs, but given that this is a Tessar, according to the Canon Museum (https://global.canon/en/c-museum/product/sp1.html), I find the performance to be more than okay. And it might even improve slightly, if something is done about the transparent piece of plastic on the front of the lens.

It seems like a real pity that Canon didn't enter the development and manufacturing of enlarging lenses in any serious capacity and one might wonder what they might have been able to come up with there, given the unorthodox approach they showed with their only model.

Do you have any experience with this lens or a good source which might explain some deficiencies in its intended use? Or do you think it's more a case of being a rare lens which probably was neither produced for a long amount of time, nor marketed in a way Canon taking lenses were?


PostPosted: Mon Aug 01, 2022 12:40 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
I didn't know Canon ever made enlarger lenses. And have scanned a lot of ebay listings for random enlarger listings. It seems quite capable as an objective.


PostPosted: Mon Aug 01, 2022 1:56 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
Like Dog

I like the plastic aperture ring!


PostPosted: Mon Aug 01, 2022 8:47 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
Given the huge number of quality enlarger lenses already available with the standard M39 mount, perhaps Canon decided it wasn't worth the effort competing in that market. Proprietary camera lens mounts create a different ball-game.

calvin83 wrote:
Like Dog

I like the plastic aperture ring!


There must be a rationale behind that transparent plastic aperture ring, but I struggle to see what. Minolta's later C.E. enlarger lenses had their f/stop scale internally illuminated by the enlarger head, but I don't see how something similar could work well with Canon's construction. If Canon made a compatible enlarger head perhaps that would explain the use of the transparent aperture ring.


PostPosted: Mon Aug 01, 2022 3:59 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
jamaeolus wrote:
I didn't know Canon ever made enlarger lenses. And have scanned a lot of ebay listings for random enlarger listings. It seems quite capable as an objective.


Yes, I also didn't know for a long time... and was quite dissapointed when I found out it was such a simple lens and not well regarded. Turns out, it's not as bad as I thought, at least as a taking lens.

calvin83 wrote:
Like Dog

I like the plastic aperture ring!


Yes, it certainly makes it kind of unique.


RokkorDoctor wrote:
Given the huge number of quality enlarger lenses already available with the standard M39 mount, perhaps Canon decided it wasn't worth the effort competing in that market. Proprietary camera lens mounts create a different ball-game.


Indeed - that's an interesting observation and might really be the reason for it!

RokkorDoctor wrote:
There must be a rationale behind that transparent plastic aperture ring, but I struggle to see what. Minolta's later C.E. enlarger lenses had their f/stop scale internally illuminated by the enlarger head, but I don't see how something similar could work well with Canon's construction. If Canon made a compatible enlarger head perhaps that would explain the use of the transparent aperture ring.


I seemed to recall there was a thread on another forum and indeed, there's some really interesting information there: https://www.photrio.com/forum/threads/did-canon-ever-make-a-50mm-enlarging-lens.140935/

Here's a quote from a book (Peter Kitchingman - Canon rangefinder lens book) on the significance of the transparent plastic ring photrio-member "Mackinaw" mentioned:

Quote:
The aperture markings are on a clear plastic front section, which also has a set of opposing aperture stops with two large black dots on an internal fixed plastic ring. The outer plastic ring adjusts the aperture settings, while the black dots indicate which F-stop is being used.
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