Lens Reviews

Minolta AF Macro 100mm F/2.8 A Mount Lens Review – Spoiler : It’s Perfect
2000 1125 James Tocchio

Photography is a fluid craft. The light, our subjects, and even our interests are always in flux. So it helps when our gear can keep up. And it’s this uncommon versatility (combined with amazing image…

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Nikon Nikkor O 35mm F/2 Pre-AI Lens Review
1999 1333 James Tocchio

Not long ago, I reviewed the fastest 35mm Nikkor that Nikon has ever made, the 35mm F/1,4. While incredibly luxurious in the hands and a stellar performer in low-light situations, this lens let down in…

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Five Reasons Vintage Zoom Lenses Aren’t Terrible
2000 1125 James Tocchio

Few things in the vintage camera world are as universally reviled as old zoom lenses. They carry a reputation for being bulky, useless in low light, and criminally soft, especially when compared to legacy prime…

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Carl Zeiss Planar 50mm F/1.4 C/Y Mount – Lens Review
2000 1125 James Tocchio

Today’s lens review isn’t going to change the way you take photos, and if you’re already shooting a fast fifty don’t expect to be surprised. Today’s lens review, while certainly worth reading (don’t you dare),…

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Zeiss 35mm F/2.8 C Biogon ZM – Lens Review
1280 720 Dustin Vaughn-Luma

In the early days of Instagram I had the opportunity to work with some amazing brands using my telephone camera as a primary shooter. During these projects I felt a deep sense of pride knowing…

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SMC Pentax M 40mm F/2.8 Pancake Lens Review
1280 720 James Tocchio

Lilliputian. Svelte. Teensy and weensy, and of course, teensy-weensy. All words I’d never expect to write in a lens review, yet here we all are and I might as well get these silly synonyms for…

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Nikon Nikkor N 35mm F/1.4 – the Fastest 35mm Nikon Lens Ever
995 560 James Tocchio

Today we’re looking at a super-fast Nikon lens that no one really needs, yet many shooters covet. The Nikkor-N Auto 35mm F/1.4 from 1971 (along with its newer AI and AIs versions) is the fastest…

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How to Buy a Used Lens Without Getting Burned
1280 720 James Tocchio

Lenses are expensive. But used lenses are cheap. And thanks to their adaptability to today’s amazing mirror-less cameras, legacy lenses are becoming an ever more popular option for photo geeks looking for top quality at…

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Voigtlander Super Wide Heliar 15mm F/4.5 Aspherical III – M and E Mount Lens Review
1280 720 James Tocchio

Super wide-angle lenses are unique. By their very nature, they’re specialized, uncommon, and expensive. So to go searching for a capable, versatile, and inexpensive super-wide seems like a fool’s errand indeed. But what if I…

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Minolta M-Rokkor 40mm F/2 – Lens Review
1212 682 James Tocchio

I shoot a lot of old cameras, archaic machines that in some cases recall a time when the United States was comprised of only forty-eight such distinct territories, and it’s not unusual to find a…

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Minolta M Rokkor 28mm F/2.8 – Lens Review
2200 1238 James Tocchio

The end of a tiresome week found me weary, disheartened, and worn out. It also found me stuffed into a small, German sedan with my wife, our one-year-old daughter, and enough bags, totes, and rucksacks…

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Minolta MD W. Rokkor-X 24mm F/2.8 Ultra Wide Lens Review
1600 900 James Tocchio

The Minolta MD W Rokkor X 25mm F/2.8 is a classic film-era wide angle lens that performs beautifully on today’s mirror-less digital cameras.

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Canon FD 24mm F/2.8 S.S.C. – Lens Review
1600 900 James Tocchio

Not long ago, I penned an opinion that every photo geek should own a wide-angle lens. In case you missed it, I talked about the incredible ability of wide-angle lenses to present a vision of the world that just…

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Why Everyone Should Shoot a Wide Angle Lens
2200 1467 James Tocchio

One of the simplest ways to increase the dynamism and visual interest of our images is by using a wide-angle lens. By widening our angle of view, we’re able to capture shots of the world around us…

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