General use of M42 lenses. Who uses them?

Soocom1

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I have to admit a certain affinity to the misc. underdog theme lenses, especially certain off the wall brand M42 mount lenses.
I don't have many, but the glass is surprisingly cheap, (like the Russian stuff) and given the myriad of adapters for the M42, how many folks use them on modern cameras?
I love plopping one on my 1Ds and seeing what it does as well as puts me into a position of having some good performers on a low budget.

Thoughts?
 
I don't have any M42 glass, but I have a couple oddball mounts that I've adapted. Like the Tair 135/2.8.

It's incredible what some of this 'vintage' glass is capable of. Anyone who stick with 'modern' lenses is short-changing themselves.
 
Handy? No? Inexpensive? Yes. Plentiful? Yeah. A/M switch? On many, yes. Good optics? On some models, yes. On Canon EF or mirrorles cameras that can use a glass-free adapter for full Infinity focus? Alright! On Nikon F-mount d-SLRs needing a glass in the adapter? That cuts quality a lot.

There are some VERY good, even excellent, M42 lenses out there. As well as some poor performers. I think normals,and short- and medium-teles are the best bets, overall,generally speaking. Above 200mm, I am not so sold on older lenses, due to CA in some cases. My experience with the Asahi Super-Takumar series an 55/1.8.135/3.5, 200/4 was good. The 135/3.5 is a wonderful lens. Good bokeh. The 55 1.8 is difficult to focus.

Vivitar 55/2.8 Macro..pretty sharp. Albinar 28mm/2.8--not very good.
 
When I switched to Fuji I knew one advantage of mirrorless was a shorter flange distance and so the ability to mount nearly anything on the camera. To take close-up photos I decided to use my old enlarging lenses (60mm Rodagon) and that required adapters -- 39mm to M42 step ring for the lens and then M42 to Fuji X for the camera.

Some time later and knowing I already had a Fuji X to M42 adapter I came across an insane deal on a really clean Pentax SMC Takumar 150mm f/4 and bought it. Just one hitch; I have never had an interest in long lenses so in the past 5 years I've used it like 3 times. Very good lens -- here's the Rusty Zeller pushing up river past Devil's Tower.

Joe

rusty_zeller.jpg
 
I still use a few M42 lenses, but tend to go for the LTM mount industars instead these days - just as full of character but smaller :)
If I do use M42 it's usually with an adapter that adds extra features (a built in helicoid for closer focusing or focal reducer are the most common)
 
I had a 500mm mirror reflector on m42 mount.... never did get used to it, trained it in on a sigma 150 /600 tele photo. Would I go back to using old glass, prob not,
 
There are MILLIONS upon MILLIONS of m42 lenses out there, especially if one is willing to go back to 1950s-1960s-1970s "preset" lenses.
 
I bought a Mamiya/Sekor 1000DTL, similar to the one I had in High School. M42/Pentax screw mount.
So I will be collecting a few Pentax mount lenses, probably a few Takumars.

The M42/Pentax screw mount was/is OK for infrequently changed lenses, but if you change lenses more than just a little, the screw thread becomes a PiA. I was always paranoid that I would drop the lens either installing or removing it from the camera.
I switched to Vivitar T4 lenses, and used the T4 breach lock mount to change lenses with other T4 lenses.
 
I have actually found forums on use of the Manual Lenses and a whole cultural following of the old glass on digitals.


I received last night a Vivitar 135MM that is shooting tack sharp but needed the aperture worked. I also got last night a Arsat 30mm Fish eye for a Kievv 88.

I had one before (not an M42) but an adapter to mount on my Minolta 7D. I took many a lustrous shots with that lens.

Wound up selling that one for bills about 11 years ago.

The glass is uber cheap and still viable and usable.
 
Keep planning to do so, havent done yet.

Once I have a mirrorless camera it will be much easier to do.

On my Nikon DSLR ... well I've been told one can change some M42 lenses, such as the Pentax Takumar 50mm f1.4, to Nikon F mount, but thats a lot of demanding and specialize work to do.
 
Keep planning to do so, havent done yet.

Once I have a mirrorless camera it will be much easier to do.

Much easier, but not always practical.
When you loose the auto aperture function, you have to stop down for each shot, then open up to focus. Then repeat for each shot. And you don't even have the pre-set function of the pre-set lenses. So aperture control goes back to the 1940s. That is a real PiA.
 
I have three M42 lenses (1x Zeiss, 2x Pentacon) which I use via an adapter with a Canon DSLR. The results are pleasing but focusing is not very precise and a little trial and error combined with some chimping is usually required.
 
Keep planning to do so, havent done yet.

Once I have a mirrorless camera it will be much easier to do.

Much easier, but not always practical.
When you loose the auto aperture function, you have to stop down for each shot, then open up to focus. Then repeat for each shot. And you don't even have the pre-set function of the pre-set lenses. So aperture control goes back to the 1940s. That is a real PiA.

Actually you don't need to open up to focus. Mirrorless viewfinders will compensate for the darkening & magnified view allows you to make up the precision needed to focus when shut down. I leave the A/M switch on my auto M42 lenses on manual. If you have one of the later lens that are auto only there are adapters that hold the pin in.
 

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