Marco Aries

Back in 2019 I bought an Asahi Pentax-M 50mm f1.7 and right away I was surprised by how good it was and by the pleasant warm tones it produced. Since then I’ve been slowly putting together a kit, even branching out in the A series and the reissued Takumars, but I always find myself coming back to the M series. The lens is made out of metal, it weights 400g, it is 111 to 136mm long and it has an external diameter of 63mm, with a 52mm front thread. It also has a built in sunhood. The iris has 8 blades, the aperture is clicked and it goes from f4 to f32 with half steps. The focusing ring is rubberized, it turns 230 degrees and minimum focusing distance is 2 meters. Flange distance for the PK mount is 45,46mm. The wide focusing ring is very smooth, comfortable to grip and the long throw makes fine adjustments easier. While the lens is fairly light in weight, it is also a bit on the longer side, meaning that on lighter camera bodies, can lead to a front heavy system. Sharpness is good yet n...

  When it comes to vintage soviet lenses many will tell you that you must get the Mir 1B, the Helios 44 and the Jupiter 9 to have the perfect kit; some would add the Tair 11 to the list. Yet, there are many more interesting lenses that end up being left out of the conversation and the Jupiter 21 is one of them. Not long ago I found this beast of a lens at a local flea market, and I was surprised to find out that the owner manual and warranty is still mostly intact. I asked my Russian friend Masha to help me out translating part of it and we discovered that this lens came out of the Vologda Optical and Mechanical Plant, or VOMZ, in June 1993. VOMZ was founded in the city of Vologda in 1971 and between 1977 and 1986 was part of LOMO. The factory is still active to this day, producing thermal imaging cameras. Coincidentally, my Mir 1B comes from the same factory. Jupiter 21M 200mm f4   The Jupiter is big. It weighs 980g, it is 15,5cm long when focused to infinity and 18...