Tag: Takumar

Isolation Photo Project, Day 66

I exposed a roll of FPP RetroChrome 400 using a Pentax Spotmatic II with SMC Takumar 55mm f/2 lens with unexpected results.

NOTE: I'll begin this experience report with a brief disclaimer. It's been less than two years since I returned to shooting 35mm film after switching to digital photography over 20 years ago. I've inundated myself with as much 35mm film education as possible between web articles and advice from experienced film shooters. But, with my former experience way in the past and limited recent experience, this review is coming from a relative novice point of view.

A few weeks ago, I shot 35 frames of Film Photography Project RetroChrome 400 35mm Colour Reversal Film with my Asahi Optical Co. Pentax Spotmatic II and SMC Takumar 55mm f/2 lens. I was anxious to see how the film performed and impatiently captured all the frames on a single day.

I focused my efforts on the Delaware & Raritan Canal State Park Trail near the Kingston Lock and Kingston Grist Mill. I have photographed this area many times. I wanted someplace familiar to test my 35mm film photography skills.

The description from the Darkroom website:

RetroChrome is government surplus High Speed Eastman Ektachrome color positive film. Made for industrial and governmental applications, Kodak adds “it is color reversal camera film that is intended for photography under daylight illumination. Among its many applications are news photography, sporting events and industrial photography.” The film is cold-stored 2004 expired. The film performs excellent at it’s intended box speed of 400 iso which leads us to believe that this film has been stored in the “deep freeze” for the past decade. Please read all about RetroChrome history in our RetroChrome blog!

I received an email from the Darkroom and mistakenly thought I had developed a blank roll. But today, I received notification from Darkroom that the FPP RetroChrome 400 Colour Slide Film cartridge was successfully developed using the E-6 process and the negatives were scanned and ready for download. I had chosen the Super Scans, which produces JPEG images at 4492×6774 pixels. Darkroom scanned the negatives on a NORITSU KOKI EZ Controller.

I added EXIF data to the images using Exif Editor.

From the samples on the Film Photography Project website and Flickr, I had some idea of how the scanned negatives would look. However, I knew I struggled to get proper exposure to the Spotmatic II. I was challenged to find the appropriate shutter speed and aperture that centred the metering needle. This is one reason I purchased a Pentax ES II.

Most of the frames were captured on the Delaware & Raritan Canal State Park near the Kingston Mill House, which I have frequently photographed. I uploaded the ten best images as is.

I think the grain and colour cast is what one can expect from FPP RetroChrome 400. Many of these frames are slightly overexposed. Tweaking them in Adobe Lightroom improved contrast, but the grain is noticeable. I’m not too fond of the quality of the grain, and I could have picked better subject matter. I love the look of the photographs of the Kingston Mill House and Lochtender’s house, but I think the images of the greenery are boring. I believe that scenes of old diners and 1970’s cars parked in front of downtown scenes would make good subject matter.

Would I shoot another roll of FPP RetroChrome 400? Yes, but I will either use my Pentax ES II or Pentax P3 so that I can use automatic metering and aperture priority.

Have you used PP RetroChrome 400 Colour Slide Film? What do you think of the grain and colours produced by this film?

Kingston Lock Tender House
8 May 2020 * Asahi Pentax Spotmatic II * SMC Takumar 55mm f/2
Kingston Lock Tender House
8 May 2020 * Asahi Pentax Spotmatic II * SMC Takumar 55mm f/2
Kingston Grist Mill House
8 May 2020 * Asahi Pentax Spotmatic II * SMC Takumar 55mm f/2
Kingston Grist Mill House
8 May 2020 * Asahi Pentax Spotmatic II * SMC Takumar 55mm f/2
Kingston Grist Mill House
8 May 2020 * Asahi Pentax Spotmatic II * SMC Takumar 55mm f/2
Kingston Lock
8 May 2020 * Asahi Pentax Spotmatic II * SMC Takumar 55mm f/2
Kingston Lock
8 May 2020 * Asahi Pentax Spotmatic II * SMC Takumar 55mm f/2

Submitted as part of the 100DaysToOffload project.

Ilford HP5 Plus 400 | Pentax Spotmatic II | SMC Takumar 55mm F:2

This roll of film is the second roll of Ilford HP5 Plus 400 that I developed with The Darkroom. This roll was shot on my Asahi Optical Co. Pentax Spotmatic II and Asahi Optical Co. SMC Takumar 55mm f/2 lens.

NOTE: I'll begin this experience report with a brief disclaimer. It's been less than two years since I returned to shooting 35mm film after switching to digital photography over 20 years ago. I've inundated myself with as much film education as possible between web articles and advice from experienced film shooters. But, with my former experience way in past and limited recent experience, this review is coming from a relatively novice point of view.

UPDATE 13 April 2020: Hamish Gill of 35mmc suggested I may have a faulty shutter. In March, I had the camera CLA'd (Clean, Lube and Adjust) by Eric Hendrickson. Soon, I'll shoot another roll of film to see the difference.

This film is the second roll of Ilford HP5 Plus 400 that I developed and scanned at The Darkroom Lab. This Ilford HP5 Plus 400 roll was shot on my Asahi Optical Co. Pentax Spotmatic II and Asahi Optical Co. SMC Takumar 55mm f/2 lens.

Using the Asahi Optical Co. Pentax Spotmatic II camera was more challenging than using the Pentax P3. The Pentax P3 has a shutter priority mode, and my unit has a working light meter. When I shot using the Pentax P3 camera, I set the shutter speed to 1/250s, and the camera adjusted the aperture as needed. However, while the Asahi Optical Co. Pentax Spotmatic II has a working light meter, the plastic to move the lever broke, and the rest of the camera settings must be set manually. I used the Sunny 16 technique to estimate the shutter speed on the Spotmatic II to expose each Ilford HP5 Plus 400 frame properly. The Sunny 16 technique is something I only learned about relatively recently. I practised a little at home, but this was my first time using it in the field.

I took the Spotmatic II and a cartridge of Ilford HP5 Plus 400 to the client’s office building at Old Slip, about a block from Wall Street in Manhattan, and exposed some frames during my lunch hour. I walked around Front Street, Gouverneur Lane, and South Street. The rain was light which made for a challenging walk. I was concerned about the camera getting wet, so I walked across South Street and under FDR Drive along the East River Esplanade. It's an area I explored with my Fujifilm X-T2 last year using an Ilford HP5 Plus 400 film recipe.

Photography is the simultaneous recognition, in a fraction of a second, of the significance of an event as well as of a precise organisation of forms which give that event its proper expression.Henri Cartier-Bresson

I expected all my frames to be severely under or overexposed. The shutter speed of the Asahi Optical Co. Pentax Spotmatic II is limited to 1/1000s, but fortunately, it was a rainy, overcast (and cold) day in Manhattan. The images are slightly over or underexposed, but I'm pleased with the results. I feel proud I had the skills to use this old camera, but I want a small, handheld light meter to make metering easier. Given the shutter speed limitation, I have purchased a roll of ADOX Scala 100 for use in brighter conditions.

The images were developed and scanned by The Darkroom.

South Street, Manhattan, New York City
11 February, 2020 · Gouverneur Lane, Manhattan, New York City · Asahi Optical Co. Pentax Spotmatic II · Asahi Optical Co. SMC Takumar 55mm f/2
South Street, Manhattan, New York City
11 February, 2020 · South Street, Manhattan, New York City · Asahi Optical Co. Pentax Spotmatic II · Asahi Optical Co. SMC Takumar 55mm f/2
South Street, Manhattan, New York City
11 February 2020 · East River Esplanade, South Street, Manhattan, New York City · Asahi Optical Co. Pentax Spotmatic II · Asahi Optical Co. SMC Takumar 55mm f/2
South Street, Manhattan, New York City
11 February 2020 · East River Esplanade, South Street, Manhattan, New York City · Asahi Optical Co. Pentax Spotmatic II · Asahi Optical Co. SMC Takumar 55mm f/2
South Street, Manhattan, New York City
11 February 2020 · East River Esplanade, South Street, Manhattan, New York City · Asahi Optical Co. Pentax Spotmatic II · Asahi Optical Co. SMC Takumar 55mm f/2
South Street, Manhattan, New York City
11 February, 2020 · Wall Street Ferry and Pier 11. South Street, Manhattan, New York City · Asahi Optical Co. Pentax Spotmatic II · Asahi Optical Co. SMC Takumar 55mm f/2
South Street, Manhattan, New York City
11 February 2020 · CitiBike and Slip B at Pier 11, South Street, Manhattan, New York City · Asahi Optical Co. Pentax Spotmatic II · Asahi Optical Co. SMC Takumar 55mm f/2
South Street, Manhattan, New York City
11 February 2020 · Bumper, East River Esplanade, South Street, Manhattan, New York City · Asahi Optical Co. Pentax Spotmatic II · Asahi Optical Co. SMC Takumar 55mm f/2
South Street, Manhattan, New York City
11 February, 2020 · NY Waterway Ferry, East River, New York City · Asahi Optical Co. Pentax Spotmatic II · Asahi Optical Co. SMC Takumar 55mm f/2
South Street, Manhattan, New York City
11 February 2020 · East River Esplanade, South Street, Manhattan, New York City · Asahi Optical Co. Pentax Spotmatic II · Asahi Optical Co. SMC Takumar 55mm f/2
South Street, Manhattan, New York City
11 February, 2020 · Looking up at FDR Drive. East River Esplanade, South Street, Manhattan, New York City · Asahi Optical Co. Pentax Spotmatic II · Asahi Optical Co. SMC Takumar 55mm f/2
South Street, Manhattan, New York City
11 February, 2020 · Have a wet seat. East River Esplanade, South Street, Manhattan, New York City · Asahi Optical Co. Pentax Spotmatic II · Asahi Optical Co. SMC Takumar 55mm f/2
South Street, Manhattan, New York City
11 February, 2020 · Strutting pigeon. East River Esplanade, South Street, Manhattan, New York City · Asahi Optical Co. Pentax Spotmatic II · Asahi Optical Co. SMC Takumar 55mm f/2
South Street, Manhattan, New York City
11 February, 2020 · Pigeon in flight. East River Esplanade, South Street, Manhattan, New York City · Asahi Optical Co. Pentax Spotmatic II · Asahi Optical Co. SMC Takumar 55mm f/2
South Street, Manhattan, New York City
11 February 2020 · East River Esplanade, South Street, Manhattan, New York City · Asahi Optical Co. Pentax Spotmatic II · Asahi Optical Co. SMC Takumar 55mm f/2
South Street, Manhattan, New York City
11 February, 2020 · Seagulls but not the seashore. East River Esplanade, South Street, Manhattan, New York City · Asahi Optical Co. Pentax Spotmatic II · Asahi Optical Co. SMC Takumar 55mm f/2

SMC Takumar 28mm F3.5

I'm experimenting with some vintage Asahi lenses and Fotodiox adapters.

I'm experimenting with some vintage Asahi lenses and Fotodiox adapters. I have my father’s non-working Asahi Optical Co. Pentax Spotmatic II which, after he passed earlier this year, became even more precious to me. My first film camera was a Pentax P3 which I still own. Earlier this year (2019), as a tribute to my dad, I bought my own Asahi Optical Co. Pentax Spotmatic II on eBay with an Asahi Optical Co. Super-Multi-Coated Takumar 55mm f/2, and I have slowly started to re-learn film photography.

I also bought up a Fotodiox Lens Mount Adapter Compatible with M42 Screw Mount SLR Lens on Fujifilm X-Mount cameras lens adapter that I can use on my Fujifilm X-T2.

Many websites keep propagating the “story” that a 50mm focal length on a 35mm full-frame camera is roughly equivalent to the field-of-view (FOV) of the human eye. The statement always seemed odd to me, given that when I look straight ahead, keeping my eyes from moving side-to-side, I see “wider” than 50mm FOV. The “50mm is standard” mantra also seemed strange, given what I had learned about FOV in graduate school during my “vision” classes. We were being taught about the human eye because designing displays and image processing algorithms requires understanding human vision.

The focal length of the eye is 17 or 24mm. However, only part of the retina processes the main image we see. This part of the retina is called the cone of visual attention, which is about 55º wide. On a 35mm full-frame camera, a 43mm focal length provides an angle of view of approximately 55º. The 43mm focal length closely approximates the angle of view of the human eye.

43 is not roughly 50. That’s a round-up of nearly 14%. And then saying 52mm, when using a 35mm focal length on a crop factor camera, is close enough to 50 mm compounds the error (20%).

Maybe it’s the engineer in me, but these sort of “errors” get passed around and become “truth”, and then we get stuck with them1.

With the 43mm focal length in mind, I purchased an Asahi Optical Co. Super-Multi-Coated Takumar 28mm f/3.5 lens. This 28mm lens, when mounted to a Fujifilm X camera, provides a 42.56mm (28*1.52) full-frame equivalent field of view, which is near enough to the actual visible focal length of the human eye.

📷 Asahi Optical Co. SMC Takumar 28mm f/3.5 | Canon EOS 5D Mark IV | EF24-105mm f/4L IS USM | f/4.0

My purchase came directly from Japan with the lens in a leather pouch and the lens hood in another leather pouch.

On my Fujifilm X-T2, this lens has a 42.6mm full-frame equivalent field of view within the range of the visible focal length of the human eye, making this an excellent lens for travel street photography. Between 1962 and 1975, Asahi Optical Co., which eventually become Pentax, manufactured various version of the Takumar 28mm f/3.5 for its range of Spotmatic cameras. Asahi Optical produced this version of the lens with a multi-coated layer designed to reduce lens flare. The lens was sold from 1971 to 1975 and was given the Super-Multi-Coated label.

The first time I used this lens was during my trips into Philadelphia for daily radiation treatments for my Graves Eye Disease. After each treatment, while I waited for the valet to bring the car around, I would stand on the street and take photos. I have used the lens mostly for street photography ever since. Street photography was something I hadn’t done much with other cameras and lenses, but learning how to use this lens was a big help. Instead of pointing the lens at people, I practised by looking down at the flip screen to use focus-peaking, which made me seem less threatening as perhaps some people thought I was using a film camera.

Like most Asahi Optical Co. lenses from the era, the [Asahi Optical Co. Super-Multi-Coated Takumar 28mm f/3.5 is all-metal and glass construction, it feels solid in hand and compliments the look and feel of the Fujifilm X-T2, the focus ring is silky smooth, and the aperture ring gives noticeable clicks as it moves through the half-stops, the lens has a 49mm filter ring and comes with a plastic lens hood, the lens has a maximum aperture of f/3.5, and the minimum aperture is f/16, with intermediate stops at ½ increments. This lens is not a lens for bokehlicious photography. The Asahi Optical Co. Super-Multi-Coated Takumar 55mm f/2 is a better choice for that. I shot most of my images at f/5.6, which works well for street photography and seems to be one of the sweet spots for sharpness in this lens. Because the lens cannot communicate with the electronics in the Fujifilm X-T2, when I attach vintage lenses, I tend to shoot the glass at one aperture setting to make it easier for me to add that metadata to the image later.

I know not everyone will be as into vintage lenses, and losing access to auto-focus is a deal-breaker for some. Still, if you are interested in trying out old manual focus lenses, the Asahi Optical Co. Super-Multi-Coated Takumar 28mm f/3.5 is highly recommended. The lens is inexpensive, and both the build quality and image quality are great. The Super-Multi-Coated Takumar 28mm f/3.5 is my second Asahi prime lens after the Asahi Optical Co. Super-Multi-Coated Takumar 55mm f/2 and probably won't be my last.

  • Name: Asahi Optical Co. Super-Multi-Coated Takumar 28mm f/3.5
  • Mount: M42
  • Tested on: Fujifilm X-T2 with FotodioX M42-FX adapter
  • Zoom/Prime: Prime
  • Focal Length: 28mm
  • Maximum Aperture: f/3.5
  • Minimum aperture: f/16
  • Diaphragm Blades: 8
  • Price Paid: US$94.95
  • Product Ratings (1=miserable, 5=excellent):
  • Construction Quality: 4
  • Image Quality: 4.5
  • Overall Value For Price: 4.5
  • Recommended: Yes

Other Reviews:

Lens Photos

Holly Hedge Estate | Sunday 28 April, 2019 | FujiFilm X-T2 | SMC Takumar 28mm f/3.5 | 1⁄250 sec at f/5.6 | ISO 2000
Sansom Street, Philadelphia | Fujifilm X-T2 | Asahi Optical Co. SMC Takumar 28mm f/3.5 | f/5.6 | ISO 320
26 August 2019 | FujiFilm X-T2 | Asahi Optical Co. SMC Takumar 28mm f/3.5 | f/5.6 | ISO 400
Fujifilm X-T2 | Asahi Optical Co. SMC Takumar 28mm f/3.5 | f/5.6 | ISO 400
shaan williams
Wednesday 15 May, 2019 | FujiFilm X-T2 | SMC Takumar 28mm f/3.5 | 1⁄125 sec at f/5.6 | ISO 5000
Kiran | FujiFilm X-T2 | Asahi Optical Co. SMC Takumar 28mm f/3.5
New Hope, Pennsylvania. | 5 October 2019 | FujiFilm X-T2 | Asahi Optical Co. SMC Takumar 28mm f/3.5
West College Street, Oberlin College, Oberlin, Ohio | FujiFilm X-T2 | Asahi Optical Co. SMC Takumar 28mm f/3.5
Aug 26, 2019, West College Street | FujiFilm X-T2 | Asahi Optical Co. SMC Takumar 28mm f/3.5
  1. For example, the also erroneous statements that we all, regardless of size or physical activity, need to drink eight glasses of water a day. ↩