using older lenses - 10 years plus

lexie

lexie

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i was browsing on flickr earlier tonight and came across a couple of minolta groups which were of interest to me, mainly because i use a couple of minolta lenses - the 50mm f1.7 and 70-210mm f4 'beercan'.

now, these lenses are probably from the 80's but still seem to produce consistantly good results and have something of a cult following amongst sony dslr users because of the low price and pictures they produce. of particular note seems to be the contast and 'minolta colours' the produce in the pictures taken with them.

this got me wondering, are there any older lenses within other dslr systems that people still rave about or is this simply a case of the sony range being rather limited and people making the best of it by looking to the older minolta glass available?

i know of the older m42 etc mf glass available and of the high regard some of those lenses are held in, but what system specific lenses are people still using?

also which lenses do people wish they could still use on their modern equipment that they had in the past?
 
I've used my old Nikkor 105mm AIS manual lens a couple of times with an adapter on my Canon Eos gear and the results have been stunning. This lens was old when I bought it second hand about 15 years ago.
 
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LOADS!!

Carl Zeiss, Leica, Takumar, Olympus OM to name just a few!! M42 is a popular mount and there are many cheap but good lenses with this mount and there are cheap adapters readily available.
 
I've a couple of short zooms that were originally on film Eos cameras, they were mid-range on price but slightly higher on quality and are far superior to most non L lenses of today. A nice balance between cost and performance that sadly I dont see in todays line-up from Canon (excluding the EF-S range, but they are of no use on my FF and 1.3 crop bodies).

The only thing a modern (D)SLR needs that differs from a film SLR is a bit more anti-reflect coating internally on the lens barrel as far as I can tell, so if the lens was a good-un, it still will be. Focussing speeds seem to have gone up a bit as well.

Some of Canon's existing line-up are still based on old film lenses (primes mainly I've read).

Matt
 
I have an old Helios M42 58mm f/2 which gives gorgeous results, as does my Nikon 28mm f/2.8. I also have a Zeiss 28-70mm f/2.8-4 in Nikon mount which is pin sharp and wonderfully balanced (you can almost flick the focus ring round, it's so well dampened). I tend to wander around charity and junk shops in search of old lenses to add to my collection (I have a fair few more, but they haven't stood the test of time quite so well and don't perform as well on my 50D).
 
Nearly all the Nikkors, back to the 1960s, work perfectly on their DSLRs but you can only get full metering with the D200 upwards. I use my old Nikkors on a 30D with an adapter. No complaints at all. The IQ is excellent, and the build quality/feel is dreamlike.
 
I used to use a Canon 80-200 F 2.8 took some of the most vibrant sharp pic i have ever taken.

Regards Rob
 
MartynK said:
Nearly all the Nikkors, back to the 1960s, work perfectly on their DSLRs but you can only get full metering with the D200 upwards. I use my old Nikkors on a 30D with an adapter. No complaints at all. The IQ is excellent, and the build quality/feel is dreamlike.
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Martyn, what adapter do you use for Nikkor to EOS?
________
Liver
 
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killwilly said:
Martyn, what adapter do you use for Nikkor to EOS?
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To tell you the truth, I'm not sure, but they're just ordinary mount adapters - no chip for focus confirmation - that I bought a couple of years ago on eBay. I think the seller was Roxen in Hong Kong. They're easy to find. MF can be a bit of a pain with the small DSLR VFs, and my ageing eyes, but I manage. Better on the F2 of course!
 
I was using a lens from the 70s happily, till I dropped it. Got a couple from the 80s or 90s still in use.
 
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