Hello -

I am looking for a $150~ish 85mm (or so) manual lens. I'm looking at the usual suspects (Canon FD and Rokinon 85mm), but I can't find much images on them. Anyone have any experience with those lenses? Or, can you suggest another lens within that price limit?

Thanks.

__________________
Olympus PEN -=- Fujifilm X-E1
Flickr

I really like FD lenses and really liked the 85mm f1.8 that was $130 or so. However, I found the detail and color rendering of the Konica Hexanon AR 85mm f1.8 demonstrably better from f1.8 to f5.6. Cheapest I've seen one go for on the ebayz is $200....$275 is average.

The $150 may be an issue - I think you are more likely to see them in the $250 - $400 range. I just picked up a Minolta 85/2 myself in the middle of that price range. It is an incredibly sharp lens. I found some good tests with the whole range of Minolta 85 here: The Rokkor Files - Battle of the 85mm's

The Jupiter 85 might be available in that range - several people here use it and generally give it good marks.

__________________
Pax,
Richard
--------------
I hate cameras. They are so much more sure than I am about everything. ~John Steinbeck

I just bought s Samyang 85mm 1.4 for less than $300 on eBay. I haven't received it yet but very good reviews for it IQ wise. It's more than what you're willing to spend but it is new and regarded to be bang for the buck :)

Thanks everyone. That's what I thought too - I might have to go to about $250-ish.

Please post pics once you get it!

__________________
Olympus PEN -=- Fujifilm X-E1
Flickr

I tried the Samyang(Rokinon) for $220 used. Very good performer. I was pleasantly surprised to find that it didn't feel as large and heavy as I had thought. I did find that the focal length/speed combination was something that presently I would use only rarely.

Here's something that I stumbled upon that might be of interest. The price is definitely right. Smaller than the Samyang.

Portrait Lens CAMDIOX 85mm f/2.0 for Nikon F D7000 D3X | eBay

and a review.
Odd camdiox 85mm f2 ebay lens - PentaxForums.com

__________________
John


Flickr

Will do :)

I'm not sure how far from 85mm you are wanting to stray with that "~ish", but I've recently found a C-mount 75mm f/1.4 that is pretty decent and should fit within your budget. It's not a particularly easy lens to find, but they pop up from time to time. I bought mine a few weeks ago on everyone's favorite auction site for less than $70. If you don't want to wait and search, it's available here for $139 (search on the page for "Computar TV"). I've seen it with either Computar or Navitar branding. It's a bit soft at 1.4 (which might be desirable for portraits), but it sharpens up nicely at f/2 and above.

There are similarly spec'd lenses marketed under the Cosmicar and Pentax brands, but these appear to me to be of a slightly different design. They might be worth a look, but I don't have any experience with them.

What are you looking to use the lens for? Portraits? Macro?

__________________
Sarcasm is my default tone, so please consider that before taking offense to the preceding message.

Criticism (no matter how harsh) is welcomed of ANY and ALL images I post.

Here is the Minolta 85/2 I just got. 49mm filter so it is a small diameter which is why I went for it.

__________________
Pax,
Richard
--------------
I hate cameras. They are so much more sure than I am about everything. ~John Steinbeck

I'll throw another option in here...see if you can find a Pentax SMC-M 85mm f/2. This is a FANTASTIC lens. I used to have one and can kick myself for selling it sometimes. Very sharp, beautiful bokeh and it's also one of the more compact 85mm's you'll see. They're a bit hard to find sometimes but worth a little effort...you can usually find them in the $200 range.

Overall, definitely my favorite 85 I've ever used.