In search of old 35mm SLR lenses

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AmBraCol
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In search of old 35mm SLR lenses

Post by AmBraCol »

Hey guys, I'm looking to see if I can locate old SLR lenses from 35mm cameras from back in the 20th Century. It's come to my attention that there are adapters that allow many of these lenses to be adapted to modern DSLR (and mirrorless too, but that's moot as I've no such camera) cameras. Aperture and focus must, of course, be done manually in such cases, but my interest is in landscape and nature images which give plenty of time to adjust settings prior to the shot.

Anyway, I thought I'd put it out there and see if any of you have old SLR gear you'd be interested in letting go. I'm particularly interested in wide angle, macro and telephoto lenses, preferably with fixed low F/stop value should it be a zoom. (Such as f/2.8 vs f/3.5-6) The bankroll isn't that great so am looking for rummage sale level pricing, especially since I'll have to round up the appropriate adapters. As I'll be adapting for my Canon cameras, adapters are available for all the major SLR brands, including Konica, Pentax, Zeis, Nikon, etc, etc so brand of the lens isn't near as critical as condition (it's hard to justify bringing back a lens full of fungus and/or dust, for example)

It's a long shot, I know, but figured I'd put it out there just in case. I'll be up in the US for a few weeks next month and June and hope to locate a couple lenses or so to bring back with me for my continued photographic experimentation and learning endeavors.

Thanks!
Paul - in Pereira


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jeepnik
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Re: In search of old 35mm SLR lenses

Post by jeepnik »

After digital took over you ccould get SLR lenses for a song. And I'm talking top of the line $1000 + lenses for about $100. Folks were trading them in for new digital cameras like crazy. I figured it was time to get some really good lenses for my Cannon A1E. I spent less than $300 and got 5 top of the line lenses. And, the shop I deal with was happy to get rid of them.

Fast forward to today and folks have figured out that digital is a bit to sterile for what they want to achieve. I was back in the shop a month or so ago and the prices on the same lenses I bought were more than what the original owners paid for them.
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Bill in Oregon
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Re: In search of old 35mm SLR lenses

Post by Bill in Oregon »

"From back in the 20th century," he says. :cry: :cry: :cry:
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AmBraCol
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Re: In search of old 35mm SLR lenses

Post by AmBraCol »

jeepnik wrote: Mon Apr 17, 2023 8:46 pm After digital took over you ccould get SLR lenses for a song. And I'm talking top of the line $1000 + lenses for about $100. Folks were trading them in for new digital cameras like crazy. I figured it was time to get some really good lenses for my Cannon A1E. I spent less than $300 and got 5 top of the line lenses. And, the shop I deal with was happy to get rid of them.

Fast forward to today and folks have figured out that digital is a bit to sterile for what they want to achieve. I was back in the shop a month or so ago and the prices on the same lenses I bought were more than what the original owners paid for them.

As usual, I'm late to the show. It turns out a lot of folks are playing with vintage lenses. The top of the line stuff is still pricey, but there are some relative bargains still floating around. I hope to pick up an F/1.8 50mm Konica lens which is what I started using back then on a Konica TC Autoreflex, which I picked up because Dad liked his so much. I think Dad went with Canon later, but there was no photography stuff in the house when I helped Mom pack up so don't really know how that ended up. Still, picking up one of those lenses and putting it on my old DSLR will give me a bit of a connection back to Dad.
Paul - in Pereira


"He is the best friend of American liberty who is most sincere and active in promoting true and undefiled religion." -- John Witherspoon

http://www.paulmoreland.com
http://www.pistolpackingpreachers.us
http://www.precisionandina.com
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AmBraCol
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Re: In search of old 35mm SLR lenses

Post by AmBraCol »

Bill in Oregon wrote: Tue Apr 18, 2023 7:34 am "From back in the 20th century," he says. :cry: :cry: :cry:
Yeah, I like to tell my wife that we're closer to 80 than to 30. :D It really is weird to think that "20 years ago" doesn't mean "1980" anymore. :o
Paul - in Pereira


"He is the best friend of American liberty who is most sincere and active in promoting true and undefiled religion." -- John Witherspoon

http://www.paulmoreland.com
http://www.pistolpackingpreachers.us
http://www.precisionandina.com
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