Here we go with another weird lens test.
This one (see camera pic below) is a Helios-44-2, confusingly it’s a 58mm f2 lens on a Nikon D3x. This is a manual focus lens that was made in Russia from 1958-early 1990’s, mines probably from the later period.
Some of you might be wondering how on earth has he got a lens like this to work on a Nikon F mount camera? Well I’ll tell you, if you cast your mind back to another journal upload about a industar lens which I modified by 1-taking out the rear elements of the lens and repositioning them with plumbers tape (very high tech!) and 2-buying a F mount adaptor with an extra lens element to correct the focus at infinity problem. So which method did I employ with this lens, well it was a bit of modification method 1, I adjusted the rear elements and placed rubberband spacers to keep the elements into the correct position (just have to be aware the rear elements can protrude into the camera body and stop the mirror from working).
It’s not the easiest lens to work with, focusing is tricky, it might be easier on another type of camera maybe a D800 or maybe trying to use the rear camera screen, also the aperture on this lens works backwards, when it’s on F2 the aperture is fully closed? I also created some images on a Hasselblad 2000fc/m with 110mm f2 lens, which are the mono ones you can see below. There’s more images going to be posted soon, from other film camera creations of various formats soon.
Big thanks to my good friend Michael for being my subject putting up with me all these years!
Seeya soon.
