Non-OEM Brand Lens Image Thread

Okay, so it seems that many forum members suffer from various forms of GAS (Gear Acquisition Syndrome), some worse than others. The onset of GAS can be gradual in some cases or almost instantaneous in others, but the most common form of GAS is brand-name GAS - in particular brand-name lens GAS. In the process of collecting lenses from OEMs (Original Equipment Manufacturers) like Nikon, Canon, Leica, Olympus, Pentax, etc there appears to be a side effect of acquiring (whether by design or accident - henceforth to be known as accidental GAS or unintentional GAS) lenses from more obscure sources. While it is generally accurate to say that the lenses from the OEMs are superior, there are more than a few lenses from third-party sources that have become legendary themselves and some that may never get a mention but sometimes just plain surprise you by actually being pretty good.

So before I waffle on too much, this is an image thread for the lens brands that have been forgotten, or perhaps never known in the first place - the less fortunate, the mongrels, the lenses from the other side of the tracks, the lenses-of-which-we-do-not-speak. Please feel free to add your Vivitar, Sigma, Tamron, Tokina, Soligor, Panagor, Kenlock, Sirius, Spiratone, Cobra, Zykkor, etc photos and give these lenses a voice!

 

This first lens is a Cobra MC Auto 28mm f2.8 in an Olmpus OM mount. I have an identical lens in a Sirius brand but I don't know much about their origin. This lens is solid, mostly metal bodied, and has great build quality that makes a Canon nFD lens feel cheap. It also close focuses down to 0.2m (8") which gives a macro ratio of 1:4, pretty good for this focal length.

What the lens looks like

<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/[email protected]/5311129231/" title="IMG_6027 by Lucky.penguin, on Flickr"> "640" height="427" alt="IMG_6027" /></a>


Sample photos

<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/[email protected]/5409727667/" title="P1221641-PPR Olympus Pen E-P1 Micro 4/3 by Lucky.penguin, on Flickr"> "640" height="480" alt="P1221641-PPR Olympus Pen E-P1 Micro 4/3" /></a>


<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/[email protected]/5410339156/" title="P1221643-PPR Olympus Pen E-P1 Micro 4/3 by Lucky.penguin, on Flickr"> "480" height="640" alt="P1221643-PPR Olympus Pen E-P1 Micro 4/3" /></a>


<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/[email protected]/5323060199/" title="PC311267-PPR Olympus Pen E-P1 Micro 4/3 by Lucky.penguin, on Flickr"> "480" height="640" alt="PC311267-PPR Olympus Pen E-P1 Micro 4/3" /></a>


<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/[email protected]/5323666136/" title="PC311243-PPR Olympus Pen E-P1 Micro 4/3 by Lucky.penguin, on Flickr"> View attachment 157251 "640" height="640" alt="PC311243-PPR Olympus Pen E-P1 Micro 4/3" /></a>

 

Sirius MC Automatic 28mm f2.8

This is the sister lens to the Cobra above. It looks and operates indentically to the Cobra except for the badging and the texture of the focus ring, although this one is made in Korea whereas the Cobra is made in Japan.

What the lens looks like

<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/[email protected]/5447470447/" title="IMG_3252-PP Sirius OM 28mm f2.8 Legacy Lens by Lucky.penguin, on Flickr"> "500" height="333" alt="IMG_3252-PP Sirius OM 28mm f2.8 Legacy Lens" /></a>


Sample photos

<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/[email protected]/5441038527/" title="P2121897-PPR Olympus Pen E-P1 Micro 4/3 by Lucky.penguin, on Flickr"> "480" height="640" alt="P2121897-PPR Olympus Pen E-P1 Micro 4/3" /></a>


<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/[email protected]/5441037593/" title="P2121902-PPR Olympus Pen E-P1 Micro 4/3 by Lucky.penguin, on Flickr"> "480" height="640" alt="P2121902-PPR Olympus Pen E-P1 Micro 4/3" /></a>


<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/[email protected]/5441641830/" title="P2121904-PPR3 Olympus Pen E-P1 Micro 4/3 by Lucky.penguin, on Flickr"> "426" height="640" alt="P2121904-PPR3 Olympus Pen E-P1 Micro 4/3" /></a>


<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/[email protected]/5441643044/" title="P2121894-PPR Olympus Pen E-P1 Micro 4/3 by Lucky.penguin, on Flickr"> "480" height="640" alt="P2121894-PPR Olympus Pen E-P1 Micro 4/3" /></a>

 

Great, thanks Jdumas for showing us some shots from your Soligor. Hopefully we can see what this beastie looks like when you get the chance. There certainly are a lot of lenses out there that very few people have even heard of, let alone seen or used themselves.

 

To give an idea of the relative size of the Sirius and the Cobra the following picture shows the Sirius mounted and fully pimped with lens hood on an E-P1.


<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/[email protected]/5447470317/" title="IMG_3250-PP Olympus Pen E-P1 Micro 4/3 by Lucky.penguin, on Flickr"> "640" height="426" alt="IMG_3250-PP Olympus Pen E-P1 Micro 4/3" /></a>

 

For a 28mm f2.8 lens that's a monster! Looks like there's a lot of glass in there.

 

Vivitar 24mm f2.8 Auto Wide-Angle

This lens already has its own thread here but it also belongs amongst unknowns in this thread. This particular copy has an OM mount and is probably my favourite legacy lens at this time. I don't think that it is quite as sharp as the Canon nFD 24/2.8 but like the unloved Oly 17/2.8 it just takes nice photos.

What the lens looks like

<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/[email protected]/5282448137/" title="IMG_5981 Vivitar OM 24mm f2.8 by Lucky.penguin, on Flickr"> "640" height="427" alt="IMG_5981 Vivitar OM 24mm f2.8" /></a>


Sample photos

<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/[email protected]/5455321293/" title="P1221486-PPR Olympus Pen E-P1 Micro 4/3 by Lucky.penguin, on Flickr"> "480" height="640" alt="P1221486-PPR Olympus Pen E-P1 Micro 4/3" /></a>


<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/[email protected]/5396419337/" title="P1221596-PPR Olympus Pen E-P1 Micro 4/3 by Lucky.penguin, on Flickr"> "640" height="480" alt="P1221596-PPR Olympus Pen E-P1 Micro 4/3" /></a>


<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/[email protected]/5455932634/" title="P1221489-PPR Olympus Pen E-P1 Micro 4/3 by Lucky.penguin, on Flickr"> "480" height="640" alt="P1221489-PPR Olympus Pen E-P1 Micro 4/3" /></a>


<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/[email protected]/5397398613/" title="P1221554-PPR Olympus Pen E-P1 Micro 4/3 by Lucky.penguin, on Flickr"> "640" height="640" alt="P1221554-PPR Olympus Pen E-P1 Micro 4/3" /></a>


<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/[email protected]/5455321675/" title="P1221571-PPR Olympus Pen E-P1 Micro 4/3 by Lucky.penguin, on Flickr"> "640" height="480" alt="P1221571-PPR Olympus Pen E-P1 Micro 4/3" /></a>


<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/[email protected]/5455933900/" title="P1221602-PPR Olympus Pen E-P1 Micro 4/3 by Lucky.penguin, on Flickr"> "640" height="480" alt="P1221602-PPR Olympus Pen E-P1 Micro 4/3" /></a>

 

Miranda 24mm f2.8 MC Macro

Not quite my favourite legacy lens to use but it does nothing particularly wrong and the 24mm focal length is spot on for Micro 4/3. It's very small and light for a 24mm but feels a bit plasticky because of that. Image quality is good and it's fairly sharp, but the colours aren't quite as nice as the Vivitar 24/2.8. The minimum focusing distance is only 20cm which is about 5-10cm shorter than your average 24mm lens. This particular example has an Olympus OM mount.


<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/[email protected]/5311713662/" title="IMG_6023 Miranda OM 24mm f2.8 by Lucky.penguin, on Flickr"> "640" height="427" alt="IMG_6023 Miranda OM 24mm f2.8" /></a>


Sample photos

"640" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a>


<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/[email protected]/5493608587/" title="P2121876-PPR Olympus Pen E-P1 Micro 4/3 by Lucky.penguin, on Flickr"> "640" height="480" alt="P2121876-PPR Olympus Pen E-P1 Micro 4/3" /></a>


<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/[email protected]/5493608365/" title="P2121870-PPR2 Olympus Pen E-P1 Micro 4/3 by Lucky.penguin, on Flickr"> "480" height="640" alt="P2121870-PPR2 Olympus Pen E-P1 Micro 4/3" /></a>