Legacy Lens: a Blast from the Past!

253

Vintage lenses


1957

Oldest lens


2014

Project started


32

Lens brands


Reviews

We explore the history of vintage lenses and put them to the test. Check our reviews to find out what makes vintage lenses so special.


3, September, 2019

Lens Review: Jupiter 200mm f2.8

The 200m f4 Jupiter-21M is a Soviet medium telephoto lens mostly used for landscape, wildlife or portrait photography. Within the Jupiter class, this lens has the […]
1, July, 2017

Lens Review: Flektogon 35mm f2.8

The Flektogon 35mm f2.8 is a middle version of the well known 35mm Flektogon family. Chronologically, the zebra Flektogon stands between the first all-chrome version and the […]
1, June, 2017

Vintage Mounts Reviewed and Tested

We are reviewing a few vintage mounts in order to better understand how lens manufacturers positioned and upgraded their lens line ups. Also, we’ll see which […]
1, June, 2017

Lens Review: Helios 44 Series

History and Design Helios 44 58mm f2 is one of the best known Soviet vintage lenses. Production started after World War II and continued for half […]
1, June, 2017

Lens Review: Takumar 135mm f3.5

The 135mm f3.5 Takumar is a medium telephoto lens made by the Asahi Optical Company. One of the best telephoto vintage lenses, the 135mm Takumar has […]
1, June, 2017

Lens Review: Pancolar 50mm f1.8

This 50mm f1.8 Pancolar was the standard fast lens of the Carl Zeiss Jena company from the 1950s until the late 1980s. At that moment Pentacon […]

Portfolio

We use vintage lenses on film and digital cameras. Check our straight from the camera photos to experience a blast from the past!

About our project

We started this project in order to explore the potential of vintage lenses. Unlike many modern lenses, vintage lenses generally have distinctive optical features – we like to think of them as flavors or spices, so in the end it's all about choosing the right aroma in terms of creative expression. Most legacy lenses are well built and some of them are beautifully crafted, so if used and kept well, they will continue to work for a very long time. We hope that our quest will inspire you to find more creative ways of expression than the established alternatives. We encourage you to share your own experiences with vintage lenses, both in film and photography.