Difference between revisions of "Takumar"
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'''Takumar''' refers to a line of high quality photographic lenses produced by [[Pentax|Asahi Optical Co]] beginning in the 1940s. | '''Takumar''' refers to a line of high quality photographic lenses produced by [[Pentax|Asahi Optical Co]] beginning in the 1940s. | ||
| − | The name was derived from Takuma Kajiwara (Kajiwara ''Takuma'')<ref>https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Takuma_Kajiwara</ref>, a well known Japanese-American photographer, whose brother Kumao Kajiwara founded Asahi Optical. | + | The name was derived from Takuma Kajiwara (Kajiwara ''Takuma'')<ref>https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Takuma_Kajiwara</ref>, a well known Japanese-American photographer, whose brother Kumao Kajiwara founded Asahi Kōgaku Kōgyō G.K. (Asahi Optical Corp). |
The name '''Takumar''' was used in lenses for SLRs until 1975, when K-mount replaced M42 and '''Pentax''' replaced '''Asahi''', from then on lenses were badged mostly '''SMC Pentax''', even though a few still had the name '''Takumar'''. Late in the 1980s '''Takumar''' was used for budget lenses for ''Pentax mount''. | The name '''Takumar''' was used in lenses for SLRs until 1975, when K-mount replaced M42 and '''Pentax''' replaced '''Asahi''', from then on lenses were badged mostly '''SMC Pentax''', even though a few still had the name '''Takumar'''. Late in the 1980s '''Takumar''' was used for budget lenses for ''Pentax mount''. | ||
Revision as of 16:39, 24 June 2021
Takumar refers to a line of high quality photographic lenses produced by Asahi Optical Co beginning in the 1940s. The name was derived from Takuma Kajiwara (Kajiwara Takuma)[1], a well known Japanese-American photographer, whose brother Kumao Kajiwara founded Asahi Kōgaku Kōgyō G.K. (Asahi Optical Corp). The name Takumar was used in lenses for SLRs until 1975, when K-mount replaced M42 and Pentax replaced Asahi, from then on lenses were badged mostly SMC Pentax, even though a few still had the name Takumar. Late in the 1980s Takumar was used for budget lenses for Pentax mount.
The first appearance of the Takumar name was in lenses used in the Asahiflex camera, which used the 37mm screw mount (1952). Takumar was carried over to the M42 cameras and went through a series of iterations as build quality and coatings were developed with names such as Super-Takumar, Super-Multi-Coated Takumar, and SMC Takumar. These lenses are highly regarded among photographers, with some achieving cult-like status such as the Takumar 50mm f/1.4 and 35mm f/2.0. The build and image quality are superb and the easiness to adapt M42 mount to new camera mounts has transcended the use in new digital SLRs and mirrorless cameras.
Contents
Asahiflex Lenses
This lenses had a preset aperture and some had irises with up to 20 blades.
M42 Lenses
Asahi adopted the M42x1 lens mount which was originally developed by Contax for their SLR cameras in the 1950s, with the H and S series.
Auto Takumar
Super-Takumar Lenses
Super Multi Coated (SMC) Lenses
List of known M42 Lenses
- type 0: Takumar preset: Succeeds the older 37mm version of the Takumar
- type I: Auto-Takumar: A lever is added to allow for full aperture focusing
- type II: Super-Takumar: Fully-automatic diaphragm that does not needs to be cocked manually, single layer of coating, however some later versions are multi coated as Asahi's coating technology was improving
- type III: Super-Multi-Coated Takumar: A 7 layer coating was applied for these lenses, the best available at the time, with improvements in contrast and color rendition. Extra pin for open aperture metering with the Spotmatic-F/ES/ES-II
- type IV: SMC Takumar: newer version that uses a rubberized instead of the metal focusing ring
The lenses are listed, with the types known to exist for sure:
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Legacy and notes
A note on Radioactive lenses
The Super Takumar 50/1.4
References
- Gerjan van Oosten, 2021, "The Definitive ASAHI PENTAX Collector's Guide 1952-1977". 2nd Edition
