Friday 27 January 2017

Maybe not so expert.. the exPert MC Auto 1:3.8 75-150mm

Cost: $17 (average market price unknown)


Very little to be find on this lens or lens brand. But does the lens brand hint to the quality of the lens?

In my honest and humble opinion, no, regrettable that is not the case. Although it is a decent looking lens with a built in hood, made from sturdy, mostly metal, materials, it does not feel that well made. The focus ring is smooth, but a little to loose. The aperture ring works well, but feels cheap. I prefer an aperture ring that also has some smoothness or resistance to it.

The lens is a push and pull type, but has no zoom creep (that's a good thing), but if you pull the lens to hard, it clicks into macro mode, being an annoyance while using it. The macro mode is also very limited, making it mostly useless as macro.

It was probably sharp enough for older film camera's, but on the Sony a6000, you can see that the lens is not able to equal the resolution of the sensor. This also made the lens hard to use with peak focusing, forcing the use of focus magnification. Due to vibration caused by the weight of the lens, that was difficult to do on a tripod.

The results are not that bad, just not as crispy as I would like. Might have to try again during daylight to see if that gives a different experience.

Not a good find, but maybe still useful for someone else with less demands.

 
Lens Specification:
Focal Length: 75-150mm
Maximum Aperture: F3.8
Minimum Aperture: F22
Image Format: 35mm
Lens Mount: PK
Optics: unkown
Blades: 8 blades
Focussing: Manual
Minimum Focus: 150cm (unknown in macro mode)
Maximum Magnification: ?x
Filter Size: 49mm
Weight: 479g
Length: 112mm
Production: unkown
Serial Number: 800955

MC or Multi Coating
Multi Coating of the lens to combat partial reflection,

Auto
Capable of manually passing on Aperture information (when used on the right camera, not possible on digital camera's).


Samples:
30 sec - ISO100 - Tripod

5 sec - ISO100 - Tripod

25 sec - ISO100 - Tripod


25 sec - ISO100 - Tripod

30 sec - ISO100 - Tripod
Sources:
None

Monday 23 January 2017

The worst lens in the world? MC Hanimex Automatic 1:2.8 28mm

Cost: $9 (average market price $33)


If you google this lens, you will get very limited hits (aside from for-sale postings), and the first few hits are about how bad this lens really is (http://forum.mflenses.com/maybe-the-worst-lens-of-the-world-hanimex-hanimar-28mm-12-8-t67179.html). So is this lens really that bad?

You can find also a few rare reviews talking more positively, and so is my review. Hanimex is a re-brander for imported lenses from low-cost manufacturers, so most lenses are likely to be of low quality, but the 1:2.8 28mm might be the exception, or maybe I just got a good one.

Is it perfect? Nope, but it seems to be sharp enough (it's not a Zeiss for sure) and was very easy to use. Butter smooth focus and great focus peaking on my Sony a6000. Focus just seems to snap in place. Nice for a manual lens. Take a look at the pictures below... I would never expect to take a bird picture with a 28mm lens, even with a significant crop. On top, the lens can focus on a very small distance, making this a very versatile lens as it can be used for Macro and Landscape (28mm becomes 42mm on an APS-C sensor).

Looks are also nice. A compact lens, with a solid metal feel. The green lines seems to be typical for Hanimex lenses.

Not a bad find, again in a Thrifty's Store.

Lens Specification:
Focal Length: 28mm
Maximum Aperture: F2.8
Minimum Aperture: F22
Image Format: 35mm
Lens Mount: C/Y
Optics: 7 elements, 7 groups
Blades: 5 blades
Focussing: Manual
Minimum Focus: 25cm
Maximum Magnification: ?x
Filter Size: 49mm
Weight: 160g
Length: 49mm
Production: likely in the 70's
Serial Number: 147845

More information on Hanimex

Samples:
1/60 sec - ISO125 - Handheld - Cropped

1/125 sec - ISO100 - Handheld

1/125 sec - ISO100 - Handheld

1/1000 sec - ISO100 - Handheld

1/250 sec - ISO100 - Handheld

1/400 sec - ISO100 - Handheld
Sources:
Camerapedia - Hanimex
Wikipedia PK lenses
MFLenses.com