Pentacon 50mm f1.8 - Lens review

 The Pentacon 50mm was mass produced and it was sold as a standard lens on Praktica and Pentacon cameras, usually with an m42 mount; they are usually pretty easy to come around and cheap to buy. Yet, this is the only one I’ve found so far, here in Italy.

 As we saw with the Petri 55mm, just because a lens came as a standard kit, it doesn't mean it is bad. In fact, the Pentacon is really, really good and for me it was love at first shot.

 Let's be honest, I haven't done much research this time, I more or less know the brand, I like the lens and it was fine for me, so I didn't need to dive deep into researching. Plus the good old Mark Holtze has already published a very in-depth, and as always very well done, video so check it out.

 What I did found is that the one that I got, the version with the double chrome rings and the stripes all around, should be the earliest version, the one closer to the original Meyer Gorlitz Optics design.

 Now, the lens itself is made of metal and glass, no plastic that I can see, but at around 240 grams it is not heavy. When focused to infinity it is 40mm long and 53mm when extended, with a 49mm front thread.

 The iris has six straight blades, the aperture is clicked and it gores from f1.8 to f16. The focusing ring turns 330 degrees and minimum focusing distance is impressive at 33cm.

 So what is it that makes this lens so good for me? Well it is compact, focusing it's really precise, it's easy to use and reliable, being able to focus up to 33cm and, obviously, image quality.

 Something that impressed me right away is how sharp the Pentacon is. From 2.8 it gets really, really sharp, I would say sharper than some modern lenses and, yes, wide open it is softer and glowy and kind of dreamy but we all love that look, let's just admit it. Colors are neutral, not punchy or too vibrant, contrast is actually on the lower side but I don't mind it, it adds to that vintage-y look.

 Boke is subject of discussions because at f1.8 it's creamy and soft and round, but stopping it down it becomes more geometrical, hexagonal to be precise, and it's really obvious and distinct. Personally, I love it, especially when shooting in the nature it gives a nice contrast between the bold geometrical hex shapes in the background and the more delicate, natural shapes of flowers, leaves and such. Many people despite it, really hate it and, as always, it's a matter of your personal taste, but I find it interesting, different, one of those quirks that I look for in a vintage lens.

 Talking about personal taste, this lens does produce a little bit of swirl in the background; it's not there all the time and it's not too present, not “too much”, enough for me to like it. I don't really enjoy when most of the picture is swirly background than subject, but this lens produces just that much and with just a little bit of character that I still like it and enjoy it and it's not there all the time.

 To conclude this little excursion on the characteristic of this lens, chromatic aberration doesn't seem to be a problem, it didn't show up in my testing, but it did show some purple flaring that can be interesting at times.

 By now it's probably clear that I really like this lens, I enjoy shooting with it, I like how it handles, the images it produces, its quirks and it's fair to say that it has earned its place in my collection.

 What about you? What do you think about this lens? Do you own one, have you ever used one, do you want to own one? Let me know in the comments as always if you have any questions feel free to ask and don’t forget to check the full video for all the samples.