Hello! Hey, I have to say that I really enjoy the alternative forums! Great advice all around!

Here is my question:

As a Canon shooter (5D2) what are the most "fun" alternative lenses?

I ask because I recently bought the Contax 35-70, 85 1.4 and 28 2.8 and LOVE them! I also have an Oly 50 1.5 and a Contax 50 1.7 coming in the mail (fedex and weather permitting!).

Just now, I bought a cheap Nikkor 50 1.8 pancake and adapter on Ebay!

Oh, and I have an old Leica 50 cron that I use as well.

So, are there any lenses out there (that I do not own or will own) that give a unique "look". I mean, that is why we all crave the alt lenses, right? The different "looks" that they deliver to our pics!

I am trying to keep the budgeting to a dull roar -- the most expensive lens I purchased was the Contax 85 1.4 and the results are just spectacular. I know that the Contax 21 is a very sought after lens -- but for that $$, I would be better served with the new Nikkor wide zoom, which has been getting rave reviews, I think.

Thanks in advance for the advice -- Rob

when it comes to that "unique look" there is what you see on the web and go OMG!!!!! and those that are more subtle and that you make prints from and after looking at for a while think quietly, "wow." For the former you want something super fast, super long or super wide, for the latter, maybe look at the Summicron-R 90 or Elmarit-R 135 (what do you think of your Summicron 50?).

I like my $32 SMC Takumar 55/1.8. It gives a less contrasty image with great bokeh.

Rob Chisholm wrote:
As a Canon shooter (5D2) what are the most "fun" alternative lenses?

I ask because I recently bought the Contax 35-70, 85 1.4 and 28 2.8 and LOVE them!

Nice lenses! The D28, in particular, has a lovely rendition and qualifies as an all-time great. However, the fun lies elsewhere. For myself, the choice is a lens that tilts, and my specimen happens to be a CZ S-Planar 100/4 with its dedicated bellows. The tired cliché is a landscape reduced to "toy" dimensions. The technically-correct application is a flat subject where tilting preserves DOF while you select an off-axis perspective. Aperture was wide open, so the thicker chips are out-of-focus on top!

The Rokkor 58/1.2 has a cult following here, and it's not hard to see why.
That would be my first recommendation for a "fun" lens. Someday maybe I'll
have one. In the mean time, the Sigma 50/1.4 is not a bad alternative.

Your Contax/Zeiss 35-70/3.4 and 28/2.8 should give plenty of fun too.
Mine are excellent.

I do think you are going to like the Contax/Zeiss 50/1.7, which has very nice
microcontrast.

The Zeiss 16mm fisheye would probably deliver a few giggles.

-And a few ghasps of wonder as well.

I'm happy enough with my Canon 15mm, but I'd love to have the Zeiss.

I love my lensbaby composer Now if only my 5D Mark II would ship so I had something to use it on

Boy, "unique look?" Seems like so many choices out there. Isn't that what makes Alt. interesting? Angenieux, Cooke, Kinoptik, etc. etc. Just got a 83mm Wray but haven't had a chance to use it yet.

Cableaddict wrote:
The Zeiss 16mm fisheye would probably deliver a few giggles.


And if you don't have the cash for one of those, a Zenitar 16mm fisheye would probably be just as much fun.

For me, the CV 40/2 Ultron and Tamron 17/3.5 win for 'Fun' at a reasonable cost.

OM 16mm f3.5 Fisheye --> Fun little lens

Tamron 17mm f3.5 --> Possibly the best wide angle alternative for the $$$'s

CY Zeiss 25mm f2.8 --> ungodly sharpness in a small package

OM 40mm f2.0 --> compact powerhouse at f2.0

OM 50mm f1.8 --> probably the cheapest and sharpest alternative lens that works on the 5D

Rokkor 58mm f1.2 --> Sharp wide open and creamy bookeh

OM 90mm f2.0 --> Wicked bleeding sharpness with macro capability

Nikon 105mm f1.8 --> Bookeh, bookeh, and more bookeh for around $275

Zeiss Jena 135mm f3.5 --> Nice cheap alternative which can be used for macro work as well

OM 250mm f2.0 --> Fastest 250mm lens there is

Tamron 300mm f2.8 --> Sharp tele for the $$$'s

Tamron 500mm f8.0 --> 500mm in 5 inches and the doughnuts are included for free



And the really fun stuff

OM 21mm f3.5 macro with bellows - 13x magnification - just be sure you have stands for macro work or are in a semi-comatozed condition so you avoid motion blur due to breathing on the camera/lens combo while shooting

Lotusm50 wrote:
Cableaddict wrote:
The Zeiss 16mm fisheye would probably deliver a few giggles.

And if you don't have the cash for one of those, a Zenitar 16mm fisheye would probably be just as much fun.



Agreed, but look at his list of current lenses!

He has the cash.

My most used alternatives are the Rokkor 58/1.2 (I have two...), the Oly 38/2.8 macro and the Vivitar 90/2.5 macro. I also love the Zeiss 85/2.8. I tend to use my 85L more though.

The minolta auto bellows III with tilt and shift is another great alternative piece of gear.

A

Well, I have a shoot a bunch of different alternative lenses. If you like macro and bokeh let me suggest the Vivitar Series One 90/2.5 macro. The bokeh is out of this world.

You want to have FUN taking a photograph, step into this little cockpit:

1. Gitzo 1258 CF tripod.
2. Bogen 410 geared head (separate knobs for each axis).
3. Olympus auto bellows (separate knobs for rear of bellows, front of bellows, and focusing rail).
4. Canon 1DsII/20D to add spice to focal length.
5. Zuiko 135 f4.5 macro lens (135mm tele or as macro all the way down to about 6" focusing with googobs of magnification) - requires cable release on auto bellows for stopping down.
6. Canon 550EX flsh with Joe Demb Flip-It! bouncer/diffuser.

Tilt forward, tilt backward, tilt right, tilt left, swivel right, swivel left, set magnification through bellows extension, use focusing rail to achieve fine focus, polish fine focus with lens helicoid if desired. Determine flash power and direction through tilt of flash head and Flip-It!. Manual focus and full "seat of the pants" stop down metering. All compositional elements 100% user-controlled. Trot out those skills, dust 'em off, have a ball.

I do.

Almost forgot the Wimberley Plamp, also added a shot of the bellows extended -

T/S lenses are really a blast... and even the Canon TS-E's feel "alternative" both in handling and in rendering properties (very un-Canon).

David: That looks alot like my macro rig.

Thanks for sharing

A