#RUSSIAN HELIOS LENS SERIAL#
#RUSSIAN HELIOS LENS MANUAL#

They also have hard stops, which are important if you use a follow focus and focusing marks.

#RUSSIAN HELIOS LENS MANUAL#

The focus ring on my copy is really smooth and has long through, which meant I was able make really smooth, subtle focusing adjustments, which is what you would usually want from a lens used for video.Ī lot of modern auto-focusing lenses have a very short through, which helps the autofocus motors achieve the focus quicker for photography needs, however for video this is actually a big downside, so good old manual lenses are so much better for manual focusing. This a feature that is usually reserved to Cine lenses, so it is so nice to see it in this budget lens. I was able to adjust the aperture very easily and smoothly without it being obvious in the shot. This feature was very handy when I was filming the BMX riders coming into the bright daylight and back under the roof where it was much darker. It lets you adjust the aperture in a smooth way, so you can easily fine-tune your aperture while recording without a sudden change of brightness. This not something that is usually found in photo lenses. One of the nicest things about this lens though is the fluid aperture adjustment. The colors are really good too and the maximum aperture of f/2 is great for low light shots. The lens is really sharp and close focusing ability makes it a really good lens for close-ups (see 0:49 of the video). I personally really like the result I was able to achieve with this lens and it’s not just about the flares. It’s not suitable for every scenario, but I think it definitely adds a very cool old-school film look the footage shot with it. It has a very nice look to it and when shooting into the sun it creates very interesting flares that add a lot of character to the footage. In my opinion this vintage Russian lens is very special. Its immediate ancestor, the Zorki 5, is nearly as good but it has bottom loading.Above you can see some test footage which I shot with a Helios 44-2 58mm f/2 lens. To my mind, the most useful FSU M39 rangefinder is the Zorki 6 with its wide-base rangefinder (about 68mm), a conventional opening back door instead of bottom loading, and lever advance. They are all good if you can get a good example, just like all FSU gear. There is the common Helios-44 58/2, the Industar-61L/Z macro lens which is falsely claimed by some to be radio-active, the Mir-1 37/2.8, the Jupiter-9 85/2, the almost legendary Helios-40 85/1.5 which is said to be based on a Zeiss Biotar design and weighs 950 grams on its own, the Jupiter-11 135/4, and many other lesser known lenses. And of course they don't have the same focus issues as their rangefinder brothers. Early Zenits actually had an M39x1 thread but still the same register, and it is not difficult to get an M39 to M42 adapter. Yes, people tend to forget that there is a whole range of FSU (not necessarily Russian) lenses which were made primarily for Zenit SLRs, which comply to the Praktica/Pentax standard 45.46mm register and M42x1 screw thread, so they can be used on any 35mm (or digital) SLR which has, or can be adapted to, the M42 thread. Kiev lenses are typically a bit less expensive than M39 lenses. It has indexed aperture ring which makes it easier to use.Ĭannot comment on Helios lenses but I've heard they are very good. My personal favorite is the early Industar-26. Industar lenses are optically more or less Tessars. J-12 is not considered as a top contender among 35mm M39 lenses but it's a good everyday lens.

It's a marvelous short tele for portraits with nice OOF rendition. Later black J-8 version is not considered as good but it's no slough either.

Jupiter-8 is another Zeiss copy and a very good lens if you can find a chrome version from the -50's.

#RUSSIAN HELIOS LENS SERIAL#

The older version you can find the better it is optically (2 first digits of serial gives the year of manufacturing). Its sharp when stopped down and very usable opened up. Very nice lens when clean and in good condition.

Jupiter-3 is a Zeiss Sonnar copy from the -40's.

Russian helios lens