After years of obsessing over lenses, I’ve realized that some of them are, simply put, rad. Some take it a step further and are also radioactive. This is because some vintage lenses are made with thoriated glass. The level of radiation doesn’t pose a danger to the user, but it’s why manufacturers can no longer create new glass with Thorium.

The radioactivity itself does not affect the image quality; it’s just a novel feature of Thorium. What makes thoriated glass worth chasing is its distinct color rendering and increased light transmission. The general consensus among lens nerds is that once manufacturers left Thorium behind, it took them the better part of 20 years to recapture the same level of quality achieved with it.

Lenses

Lenses

Filters

The original Super Takumar line-up, with the original coatings. Along with the color rendering and sharpness that nearly put Zeiss out of business in the 70’s, this iteration also includes a few rare variants with optical differences, with the most famous being the 50mm, which originally came in an 8 element optical formula that was later changed to the 7-element iteration found in all subsequent 50mm Takumars. The 28mm f3.5 and 35mm f2.0 lenses also have variants with optical changes.

These optical reformulations in the Super Takumar series of lenses were done for the sake of cost-savings, but also differentiates lenses like the 50mm as Pentax’s adoption of Thoriated glass elements. The original 8 element 50mm f1.4 typically has little to no thorium content, while the later 7 element versions tend to test very hot.

All lenses undergo a thorough CLA as part of the cinemod process, as well as receive a few (reversible) upgrades. To start, the mount is adapted from the original M42 to Canon EF with an adjustable adapter that allows the focus marking to be aligned with the new mount, which non-adjustable adapters often miss. As part of the CLA process, the focus and aperture rings are coated in modern lubricants that ensure a smooth, free rotation, that still has adequate drag. The focus ring is also fitted with a custom nylon follow focus gear, which, unlike cheaper 3D printed gears, will stand up to UV degradation, and most wear and tear you could expect on a shoot. Last, but not least, is the front filter thread. With the exception of the 17mm fish-eye takumar, all lenses have been stepped up to a uniform size, with a new matching lens cap. The standard option is 77mm threads with an 80mm outer diameter, but can optionally be outfitted with an 82mm thread and 85mm outer diameter, or with longer non-threaded fronts of those same outer diameters for easier matte box attachment.

from $285.00

If you want the same classic, inimitable look offered by the Super Takumar line, but need slightly better performance with flaring, or prefer your flares to be blue when they do happen, the Super Multi Coated (often simply marked as SMC for short) Takumar lenses are your match made in heaven. The same look that made the Super Takumar line so iconic, with a few improvements Pentax made along the way, and even a lens design it got from Zeiss, the legendary 15mm f3.5.

While the Super Takumar line saw a few optical revisions to cut costs over the run of those lenses, Pentax revised two of its Super Multi Coated lenses to increase the quality. The first is reverting from the 85mm f1.9 design also found in its Super Takumar line to its older 85mm f1.8 design it retired for cost reasons in its older Auto Takumar line, giving this optical design one of the oldest legacies in the entire Pentax history. The other lens to see an upgrade was the 135mm f2.5, which went from a 5-element to a 6-element design, and from 6 aperture blades to 8 at the same time.

All lenses undergo a thorough CLA as part of the cinemod process, as well as receive a few (reversible) upgrades. To start, the mount is adapted from the original M42 to Canon EF with an adjustable adapter that allows the focus marking to be aligned with the new mount, which non-adjustable adapters often miss. As part of the CLA process, the focus and aperture rings are coated in modern lubricants that ensure a smooth, free rotation, that still has adequate drag. The focus ring is also fitted with a custom nylon follow focus gear, which, unlike cheaper 3D printed gears, will stand up to UV degradation, and most wear and tear you could expect on a shoot. Last, but not least, is the front filter thread. With the exception of the 15mm and 17mm fish-eye takumar, all lenses have been stepped up to a uniform size, with a new matching lens cap. The standard option is 77mm threads with an 80mm outer diameter, but can optionally be outfitted with an 82mm thread and 85mm outer diameter, or with longer non-threaded fronts of those same outer diameters for easier matte box attachment.

from $285.00

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