[Theme] Pictures taken with vintage lenses

[ARTUROARTISTA]

Testing that macro lens, I discover things that are impossible to see with the naked eye, like the two green individuals that appear on the right.

[Hans_S]

1978 35mm f2 AI on a Z6.

[Birna Rørslett]

Testing that macro lens, I discover things that are impossible to see with the naked eye, like the two green individuals that appear on the right.

Aphids.

[Birna Rørslett]

OK, here are two images taken with a vintage lens -- Kowa 55mm f/0.8 -- probably harking back to the '60s. Camera is Z fc.

As photographers, we need to keep in mind to work *with* not *against* the tools we have at hand. As such, there never is just a single, "correct" image of any subject. I'd say there are infinite numbers. In this case, the two photos were taken a few seconds apart and both depict the exact same subject.

Is sharpness our only acceptale criterion for a "good" photo? Sometimes, sometimes not. We have the liberty to select any rendition imaginable.

[ARTUROARTISTA]

Birna, translucent images with your signature. I continue with the lens above, seeing results.

[ARTUROARTISTA]

More photos with the lens above, they are of my garden, two unknown beings who live here, and I don't charge them rent.

[ARTUROARTISTA]

Some more, with the same vintage macro

[ARTUROARTISTA]

Another, a little spider, jumping and fussy

[Matthew Currie]

Having trouble posting pictures here. Will try again, pix are within size range.  Favorite old lens, a 200/4 Q from 1963 or 4.  This on D7200 at ISO 1000.  First image is whole shot, downsized, and second is unprocessed crop, just converted to JPG and run through RIOT for compactness.

Now since it's loaded this time I'll add that I have two of those old lenses, both butchered for AI compatibility without undoing the screwed-on flanges, but otherwise working OK.  Not the sharpest tool in the box, but I like the pictures they make, and use one with long extensions for bug hunting.  I was out looking for bees and things when I noticed that tree swallow in the house, so took off the extensions and fired. Using a monopod, sharper results than expected.

[Birna Rørslett]

The 200 Nikkor was a good for for its time. I still use the first "Q" version on occasion for landscape UV.

By the way, you don't need to do such hard jpg compression in order to post... File size around 100Kb is ten to twenty times smaller than required.

[ARTUROARTISTA]

Rosa, photo with Russian cinema lens, year 1971, PO-109-1A 50 mm F1.2

[Matthew Currie]

Not sure whether this would go better in the birds thread or the objets trouvé thread, but since I took it with my nearly favorite lens, the converted pre-AI 35/2.8  PC, I'll put it here.  Clearly this is a mother bird, protecting her clutch of eggs.  Given her former participation in a Japanese microscope, and that she has taken up residence on the wood stove, I must assume she is a chimney Swift!

[Thomas Stellwag]

Not sure whether this would go better in the birds thread or the objets trouvé thread, but since I took it with my nearly favorite lens, the converted pre-AI 35/2.8  PC, I'll put it here.  Clearly this is a mother bird, protecting her clutch of eggs.  Given her former participation in a Japanese microscope, and that she has taken up residence on the wood stove, I must assume she is a chimney Swift!

 

[Bruno Schroder]

You're a keen ornithologist, Matthew!