…marking was removed. What are “Chrome Noses”? The very first generation of Canon FD lenses were made with chrome filter ring/hood mounts. These early breech-lock lenses have become known as “chrome noses”. The lenses have weaker coatings than the later SSC lenses (similar to the late generation FLs), but have many optical designs in common with the SSC range. They offer interesting looks, but for a lower price than the later SSCs. Very much worth… Continue Reading
…on’t think that there are many better choices for mirror-less cameras than Canon FD Lenses. I personally use them on daily basis and find them to be the best value for money lenses for both Sony E and M4/3 mount cameras. Their character is not too clinical (unlike that of many modern lenses) and also not too crazy (I love Helios 44-2 but it can be too much for some stuff), so they are perfect for all kinds of projects from general corporate to sho… Continue Reading
…anon FD lenses and it’a finally time to review one of the widest lenses in Canon FD line-up, the 17mm F4! WHY: Many people will ask: Why bother with such slow and fairly expensive 17mm prime, when every cheap modern kit lens more or less matches such specs at the wide end (e.g. Sony E 16-50mm F3.5-5.6, Canon 18-55mm F3.5-5.6, Nikon 18-55mm F3.5-5.6) with more flexibility and even optical image stabilisation. What many people forget is that these z… Continue Reading
…for some of us makes them some of the best value for money vintage lenses. CANON FD 50mm F1.4 is a perfect example of great value for money. This is a fast F1.4 prime lens that can be bought on ebay for as little as $50. In comparison to not particularly impressive, modern Canon EF 50mm F1.4 (see this test) which will set you back $400, the FD version is an absolute bargain. For me it’s also better than Canon EF version in almost every way, expect… Continue Reading
…meras, but unfortunately not with Canon EOS. The very nice value for money Canon FD lenses are not compatible with Canon EOS cameras. I think this is partially the reason why Nikkor lenses gained some much popularity with the Video DSLR revolution. It all started with Canon 5D MKII, which ruled out Canon FD straight away, leaving the great competitor Nikkor to pick up the title of most popular & affordable vintage lens of choice. So the lenses tha… Continue Reading
…oftness) nothing beats vintage manual lenses. Same as Khairil I been using Canon FD lenses on my E-mount and M4/3 cameras a lot lately. My personal favorites at the moment are 50mm F1.4, 85mm F1.8 and 35-105mm F3.5. I still need to add some wider ones to make a whole set, while Khairil pretty much has everything he needs to shoot in any situation. Canon FD lenses are designed for 35mm film, so they are not limited to crop sensor cameras and will a… Continue Reading
…nses would do a better job when used in conjunction with modern glass. The Canon FD 50mm F1.4 is another lens I’ve been using occasionally and I’ve been getting so impressed with it that I decided to put it up against Olympus for a title of my 50mm F1.4 lens of choice. Before I say anything else about these 2 lenses, I just wanted to say that if you are using a Canon EF mount camera, then Olympus is an instant winner in this test. Ironically you c… Continue Reading
…Canon EF mount cameras. So many of us use such cameras and funnily enough Canon FD/FL lenses are not quite compatible with Canon EF cameras. Generally there is only one option and that is to use an adapter with an optical correctional element inside, which is a pretty bad idea, because it’s quite frankly not very good optically, making the whole thing a bit pointless, but about a month ago I found out that EDMIKA makes a custom conversion mount f… Continue Reading
…w this is possible, take a look at this white paper produced by Metabones. Canon FD F1.4 + Lens Turbo ll is now my standard low light setup on every shoot I’ve been doing in last few mounts. I decided to shoot a test with Canon wide open at F1.4 to show you how these 2 perform together in challenging lighting conditions. I generally don’t use Canon FD 50mm F1.4 wide open, at least I didn’t until I started using it with Lens Turbo. I always felt th… Continue Reading
…Softish wide open (at-least my copy, more about it later) No filter thread Canon FD 20mm F2.8 – Very different lens when compared to MIR, but costs pretty much the same (prices on ebay always vary). While the previous 2 lenses barely have any coating, this one has a beautiful S.S.C (Super Spectra Coating) both on the front and back elements, which means it holds the contrast and vibrant colours much better than the previous 2. Now this is where it… Continue Reading
