Super Takumar 55mm f1.8

Have you ever stumbled upon a vintage lens and wondered what it might be like to shoot with it? As a photographer / videographer, I'm always on the lookout for interesting gear to experiment with, and recently I picked up a Super Takumar 55mm 1.8 lens for ¥6,000. This classic lens has a reputation among vintage camera enthusiasts for its solid build quality and impressive optical performance, and I was excited to put it to the test.

Brief History

The Super Takumar 55mm 1.8 is a standard prime lens that was originally produced by the Japanese camera manufacturer Asahi Optical Co. (now Pentax) in the late 1950s. It was designed for use with the company's line of Pentax SLR cameras and quickly became a popular lens among photographers due to its excellent optical quality and solid build construction. The Super Takumar 55mm 1.8 was one of the first lenses to feature a multi-coating process to reduce reflections and flare, which was a major innovation at the time, but really doesn't do a lot to today standards which gives it a unique playful element which I adore.

The lens was produced in various versions over the years, with changes to its optical design and coatings. The Super Takumar 55mm 1.8 is still highly regarded by vintage camera enthusiasts today, and many photographers and videographers continue to use it with modern digital cameras thanks to its adaptable mount options.

Appeal

The lens I purchased has a M42 mount, which makes adapting it to EF very simple with just a small adapter and no extra optics needed. In my experience, the lens is pretty sharp throughout the range, but it does have a slightly softer wide-open aperture, which adds to its appeal for me. Even with its multi-coating, the lens can be a bit of a flare monster, but I love that about it as it allows for creative shots in both photo and video.

I'm looking forward to collecting more vintage lenses in the near future, and being in Japan is an added bonus as there are plenty of old lenses available and many vintage camera shops that sell them at very affordable prices.

If you are thinking about trying any vintage lens, I highly recommend you do so. The Super Takumar 55mm 1.8, along with other vintage lenses, are all full manual with the aperture adjusted via a ring on the lens itself and no auto focus. Personally, I think using this lens has made me a better photographer.

Sample shots and Video

Below shots was taken on a canon 5D Mark 4 around f2.8 ISO was around 3200 (the low noise surprised me and the colour is amazing

This Lens really shines when it comes to video, the vintage look is dreamy, I will be using this in the near future to hopefully shoot with someone