You can talk to photographers with a tone and words that encapsulates the passion and artistic wonderment we all have. To me it’s what makes me want to shoot on film, with lenses older than my wife. It’s what makes us strive to get that one shot. Very few people can do this, I know fantastic, knowledgable and inspiring photographers and TH-camrs who don’t demonstrate this gift. It’s what makes your videos compulsory viewing and listening to. I’m with you in regard to the swirls, I think they are something very special. As digital photography gets more and more precise and clinical I’m drawn more and more towards these idiosyncrasies. The Helios 44-2 is also a very accessible lens, I'm not sure if I got a free lens with my Zenit E or a free camera with my Helios 44-2, with way its the best £15 I’ve spent in many a long year. As always a great video, thank you.
Many thanks for your kind words; I'm very glad you're enjoying the videos. And I know what you mean about the Helios/Zenit combination - I've asked that very question myself on more than one occasion!
The "flaw" as you state, stems from the over-correction of Spherical Aberrations in the optic / element design. Let's all be thankful to Lord God they made this "mistake." :-) I love it as well. Not for every shot of course, but rather as a tool for specific artistic effects.
I love my Legacy lenses. Some of my favorites are he Helios 44 (I have a 44-4), the 50mm f/1.8 Meyer Optik Gorlitz Oreston and the 135mm Carl Zeiss Triotar. I am also fond of the Meyer Optik Gorlitz Orestor 135mm f/2.8 which I use on my Sony A6500 adapted with a Kipon focal reducer which gives me a 135mm f/2.0 lens with virtually no crop factor involved. The Sears Auto 55mm f/1.4 lens produced by Tomioka is no slouch either... I am planning to use these lenses shooting the 2019 Dia Del Los Muertos (Day of the Dead) festivities in the San Diego, California area...
@@zenography7923 To be more specific, you should reverse the secondo rear glass, and I think the smaller minimum focus you will get don't exactly classify as macro. As Mark said, the extension tube is probably a more practical and efficient option. I just think that is cool to know that the option exists.
Another great video from someone who clearly loves photography. It's a joy to watch and listen to them. Love the hack and the beautiful results it provided and I will definitely will be trying it out :-)
I have the Leica Summitar. I did not know about the swirl when I bought it, but I learned about it using it. It is great for portraits, reasonably sharp at f/2.
Another interesting video. I'm with you, these old lenses have so much character. I have the same two lenses with various problems, the Summitar has haze that couldn't quite be removed and the early Helios is so scratched that you can barely see through it, but they both take wonderful pictures. Modern lenses are clinical and boring to me.
I wonder if you can help, or point me in the right direction... I bought a vgc used Helios 44 M 4 on Ebay after being tempted from watching and being inspired by so many of the videos on your channel. I wanted to look inside the lens with a view to declick the aperture control rimg, so I can use it for video on my Fuji bodies, however, I've hit a brick wall Upon taking the 4 screws out of the rear M42 mounting flange the aperture control pin which passes through the flange dislodged into the rear of the lens body - nowhere near the rear element, so no big deal. I simply passed it back through its locating hole in the flange. Simple enough... However, upon reassembling the rear flange - I did not remove the tiny bearing or spring which controls the aperture ring "clicks'" - the sprung aperture lever which rotates radially to open and close the iris blades, appears to not now work in conjunction with the pin that passes through the rear flange. There's obviously a correct method for reassembly and it's baffling me now! When I depress the pin it functions fine, but whilst pressing the pin, plus simultaneously rotating the aperture ring, the iris blades are not opening and closing, whereas they were functioning perfectly before I took off the rear flange. Do you have a video showing how to correctly position and set the aperture control levers before assembling the rear M42 flange back to the lens body with the 4 screws which hold this in place? If not, can you either make a video - I'm sure there will be lots of your followers interested to see how these work too - or please ease my frustrations and point me in the right direction.... Love the Zenography channel - keep up the good work! Thanks so much in advance for any assistance you are able to offer. Regards. Darren.
Innovative and lovely delivery to inspire any photography or photographer, to look at experimenting and developing, sorry! Their own individual style. I am so pleased to return to a lovely guy who I was a frequent and avid follower of, after the vlog on pin hole DIY. I slated this and was subject to a followers distain or doing so. I don’t apologise for my comments on that vlog. I think that this shows it was not out of malice, but more constructive feedback. Excellent vlog this is and long may you continue to inspire,. Q your Son in the picture or a much younger selfie? Cheers David New Forest Hampshire
Very glad to see you back - and don't worry, constructive criticism is always welcome! Like all photographers I'm still learning; the day we imagine we can learn no more is the day we should hang up our cameras! Glad you enjoyed this one!
Very interesting video, thanks. Have you tried the original Biotar, the design that the Helios is based on? By the way, my Canon FD 85mm f1.2 creates nice and swirly look given the right conditions.
Amazing Video! May i recommend another m39 lens which is the Tanaka Tanar H.C. 5cm f/2 which also gives nice swirly bokeh and has great character for a "cheap" lens.
Glad you're enjoying the videos! I've never used that particular lens I'm afraid, would love to try one one day... Vintage lenses work very well for movie making in general; entirely sharp enough for the most part, nice blur, and some wicked sun flares. I read of one guy who shot a feature using only Zeiss Jena lenses!
Two brothers from England just released a narrative feature film called 'Cosmos' shot entirely on the original Blackmagic Pocket Cinema camera, with a 28mm Takumar lens! (took them years to make)
Helios-44 doesn't help you when shooting with a rangefinder camera....at least if you don't want to rely to estimate the focus only. would be good if the std mount of each shown lens is mentioned since this is important.
"Rangefinder lenses" are an entirely different breed. They need the rangefinder mechanism in the back of the lens, to push the "cam follower" in the camera body, in order to adjust the frame lines and such for focus. Without that, you will be in for a very fun time indeed! :-) Perhaps the M39 (aka L39 or LTM) Helios has this rear mechanism? I have only messed with the the M42 variety Helios. I have an old Jupiter-3 (Zeiss Sonnar wannabe) in M39. It has the rear rangefinder apparatus, but still focuses poorly on my Leica M2. I bought an old Leica Summarit lens to use instead, which does also provide swirl.
@@barrycohen311 Rangefinder and SLR lenses are indeed very different, and aren't interchangeable. M39 and L39 lenses, while having the same thread size, are not the same thing. M39 was used on the early Zenit cameras and the lenses, being designed for Zenit SLRs, are a retrofocus design and won't focus on a rangefinder (although they will mount on one). By the same token, you can mount an L39 rangefinder lens on an M39 Zenit SLR but it won't focus and won't be useable.
I should have made clear - the Helios 44 and 44-2 are M42 mount lenses made for the Zenit SLR, and won't mount on a rangefinder. The very earliest Helios 44 had an M39 mount which, while the thread is the same as the L39 mount used on Leica and Russian rangefinders, and will mount on those cameras, will not focus and can't be used on them. Similarly, L39 rangefinder lenses will mount, but not focus, on an early Zenit SLR.
@@zenography7923 Great info, much appreciated, thanks. I was fully unaware of the earlier versions mentioned and their potential issues on rangefinder cameras
Hi! Awesome videos!! Need your opinion on this: I might have a couple of helios lenses coming my way- a Helios 44-M and a Helios 44-2. Which of these would you suggest i mod, and which should be kept as is? Btw i am using a crop camera but i plan on using a focal reducer to get full effects of the swirly effect
I discovered this channel just a few days ago, and now I'm anxiously waiting for my first vintage, Russian lens to arrive! I'm still fairly new to cinematography, so I have a question: Will adding a speed booster, like a Metabones 0.61 for EF to micro 4/3 or a Commlite 0.71 for micro 4/3, between my forthcoming Helios 44-2 or Jupiter 8 lenses and my camera's micro 4/3 sensor help reduce the crop factor? I'm shooting video with a GH5 and a BMPCC4k. My concern is that the extra adapter between the lens and sensor might hurt the image quality. Should I be concerned? I would love any advice on the matter, and thank you for this wonderful channel!
In theory any extra glass will degrade the image to some extent - but in this case it will only be to a very small extent, not enough to be of any concern. I think you'll be fine.
@@zenography7923 So after a little trial and error, it turns out that the combination of a Helios 44-2, plus a Fotodiox M42 to EOS V1 adapter, plus a Commlite 7.1 EF to Micro 4/3 speed-booster attaches very well to a Lumix GH5 and produces fabulous photos at am 82mm focal length--wonderful! But beware GH5 users: the Fotodiox *V2* adapter fits to the speed-booster, but will cause the camera to throw an "incompatible lens" error message once attached to the camera body. The Fotodiox V2 works perfectly fine, though, on a BMPCK4K, but the V1 is slightly cheaper, so I don't see any benefit to getting the V2. In any case, thank you for this fantastic channel. I look forward to your videos!
Great video, so helpful to see effects from lenses I a may want to try! I have a Helios 44-2 and love the effect of the hacked lens! I could see getting a second copy to leave converted permanently. It would be worth getting the proper tool to play around with. Do you know if the hack will also work with other inexpensive lenses I already have?
on other lenses, odd effects will be had. but they won't be the same. Each lens design is different and changing one element can radically change the outcome. PSA- when reversing other lens elements, make sure that there is enough physical clearance at all focus distances so you don't end up grinding elements together.
@@batex3 let me know if you find any hidden gems! I'm always for some funky lenses to add to my hellios 40-2 and lens-baby sweet 80. Random bit of fun: if you every have a chance to play with a leaf shutter lens, try using it at a fast shutter but with a long flash duration. (Each point light source will turn into its own little pinwheel) - I use 1/500 on my Zeiss Sonar 150mm f/4 with a ~1/125 t0.5 duration strobe when in the studio.
@@zenography7923 a lens spanner alternative- a drafting compass or just really long needle nose pliers. Long flat head screw drivers also do the trick with a small ball between then to rock against. I've always just found myself improvising when specialist tools are called for.
This is a great little channel but: Its 'Boke-uhr' not 'bouquet', it means fuzzy or fuzzy mindedness. One other thing - flashing coloured lights at the start, gotta go; Photo-sensitive epileptics could be set off by it, its just the right frequency range. I know, you'll agrue 'But they are fairy lights I got from a shop!' but none stares at fairy lights or sits in bed watching a fondle slab with just them in view. Put it through After Effects and add the 'Time' filter, that'll cure it.
I'd love to see how that reversed element looks on a portrait! Lovely video as always!
Many thanks, glad you enjoyed it!
You can talk to photographers with a tone and words that encapsulates the passion and artistic wonderment we all have. To me it’s what makes me want to shoot on film, with lenses older than my wife. It’s what makes us strive to get that one shot. Very few people can do this, I know fantastic, knowledgable and inspiring photographers and TH-camrs who don’t demonstrate this gift. It’s what makes your videos compulsory viewing and listening to.
I’m with you in regard to the swirls, I think they are something very special. As digital photography gets more and more precise and clinical I’m drawn more and more towards these idiosyncrasies. The Helios 44-2 is also a very accessible lens, I'm not sure if I got a free lens with my Zenit E or a free camera with my Helios 44-2, with way its the best £15 I’ve spent in many a long year.
As always a great video, thank you.
Many thanks for your kind words; I'm very glad you're enjoying the videos. And I know what you mean about the Helios/Zenit combination - I've asked that very question myself on more than one occasion!
I always look forward to your latest videos--calm, informative, and useful.
Many thanks, very glad you're enjoying them!
I bought Helios only for the swurls :) I didn't know even how to focus manually. I love this effect :) Great video. Thanks 😊
The "flaw" as you state, stems from the over-correction of Spherical Aberrations in the optic / element design. Let's all be thankful to Lord God they made this "mistake." :-) I love it as well. Not for every shot of course, but rather as a tool for specific artistic effects.
I love my Legacy lenses. Some of my favorites are he Helios 44 (I have a 44-4), the 50mm f/1.8 Meyer Optik Gorlitz Oreston and the 135mm Carl Zeiss Triotar. I am also fond of the Meyer Optik Gorlitz Orestor 135mm f/2.8 which I use on my Sony A6500 adapted with a Kipon focal reducer which gives me a 135mm f/2.0 lens with virtually no crop factor involved. The Sears Auto 55mm f/1.4 lens produced by Tomioka is no slouch either...
I am planning to use these lenses shooting the 2019 Dia Del Los Muertos (Day of the Dead) festivities in the San Diego, California area...
Glad those vintage lenses are being used as intended! And the day of the dead should be a great shoot...
Muchas Gracias! Tengo ambos lentes pero no sabia que podía usar el Helios de esa forma. Gracias!!!
My Nikon 35mm does the same thing. I have really liked this swirling in my photos. I am glad to see I am not the only one who likes the swirl.
Really? What 35mm? Is is the f2 pre ai?
@@Dudeitsbrian No. It's the 1.8. Usually at close range you can get a swirl. I also have a helios, wich I do love.
Reverse the rear glass of the Helios and you get a macro lens
SatanSupimpa I actually use mine as my analogue macro lens, but I did it through extension tubes.
Wow, really? I must try that mod!
@@zenography7923 To be more specific, you should reverse the secondo rear glass, and I think the smaller minimum focus you will get don't exactly classify as macro. As Mark said, the extension tube is probably a more practical and efficient option. I just think that is cool to know that the option exists.
I bought a second Helios 44 by mistake and was going to return it. Not anymore!. Thanks for this wonderful hack
Glad you like it!
I recently found ARSAT 81 n 55mm 1:2 which swirls as helios44.
Another great video from someone who clearly loves photography. It's a joy to watch and listen to them. Love the hack and the beautiful results it provided and I will definitely will be trying it out :-)
Many thanks, glad you're enjoying the videos! I think you'll like the Helios hack if you try it!
these videos are now my meditation. thank you.
And thank you!
I have the Leica Summitar. I did not know about the swirl when I bought it, but I learned about it using it. It is great for portraits, reasonably sharp at f/2.
Love it, one of my favourite lenses!
Another interesting video. I'm with you, these old lenses have so much character. I have the same two lenses with various problems, the Summitar has haze that couldn't quite be removed and the early Helios is so scratched that you can barely see through it, but they both take wonderful pictures. Modern lenses are clinical and boring to me.
Great video ! Thanks alot for sharing your knowledge & secrets with us all ! Greetings, Roger.
No problem, glad you're enjoying the videos!
I wonder if you can help, or point me in the right direction...
I bought a vgc used Helios 44 M 4 on Ebay after being tempted from watching and being inspired by so many of the videos on your channel.
I wanted to look inside the lens with a view to declick the aperture control rimg, so I can use it for video on my Fuji bodies, however, I've hit a brick wall
Upon taking the 4 screws out of the rear M42 mounting flange the aperture control pin which passes through the flange dislodged into the rear of the lens body - nowhere near the rear element, so no big deal. I simply passed it back through its locating hole in the flange. Simple enough...
However, upon reassembling the rear flange - I did not remove the tiny bearing or spring which controls the aperture ring "clicks'" - the sprung aperture lever which rotates radially to open and close the iris blades, appears to not now work in conjunction with the pin that passes through the rear flange.
There's obviously a correct method for reassembly and it's baffling me now!
When I depress the pin it functions fine, but whilst pressing the pin, plus simultaneously rotating the aperture ring, the iris blades are not opening and closing, whereas they were functioning perfectly before I took off the rear flange.
Do you have a video showing how to correctly position and set the aperture control levers before assembling the rear M42 flange back to the lens body with the 4 screws which hold this in place?
If not, can you either make a video - I'm sure there will be lots of your followers interested to see how these work too - or please ease my frustrations and point me in the right direction....
Love the Zenography channel - keep up the good work!
Thanks so much in advance for any assistance you are able to offer.
Regards.
Darren.
This hack is original and beautiful! Thanks 4 sharing! i shall partake! (2022)
An easy and fun hack - a bit unpredictable, but that's even more fun! Enjoy!
Great review. You have a wonderful voice that draws you in.
Have you ever thought of using your voice for audiobook's ?
That's an avenue I'd very much like to explore!
also you can reverse back lens element . 44m works like a charm
Thanks for the tip, I'll try it!
Very very nice. I have myself 2 lenses. One reverse and one in the orginal way.
Glad to see they're being put to good use!
Innovative and lovely delivery to inspire any photography or photographer, to look at experimenting and developing, sorry! Their own individual style. I am so pleased to return to a lovely guy who I was a frequent and avid follower of, after the vlog on pin hole DIY. I slated this and was subject to a followers distain or doing so.
I don’t apologise for my comments on that vlog. I think that this shows it was not out of malice, but more constructive feedback.
Excellent vlog this is and long may you continue to inspire,. Q your Son in the picture or a much younger selfie? Cheers David New Forest Hampshire
Very glad to see you back - and don't worry, constructive criticism is always welcome! Like all photographers I'm still learning; the day we imagine we can learn no more is the day we should hang up our cameras! Glad you enjoyed this one!
Very interesting video, thanks. Have you tried the original Biotar, the design that the Helios is based on? By the way, my Canon FD 85mm f1.2 creates nice and swirly look given the right conditions.
Amazing Video! May i recommend another m39 lens which is the Tanaka Tanar H.C. 5cm f/2 which also gives nice swirly bokeh and has great character for a "cheap" lens.
I'll look out for one, thanks for the tip!
Top stuff in this channel.
Thank you Sir! ♤♡◇♧
Absolutely great content man!
I enjoy your show very much.
Any experience with the old 70's Angenieux parfocal lenses for video?
Glad you're enjoying the videos! I've never used that particular lens I'm afraid, would love to try one one day... Vintage lenses work very well for movie making in general; entirely sharp enough for the most part, nice blur, and some wicked sun flares. I read of one guy who shot a feature using only Zeiss Jena lenses!
Two brothers from England just released a narrative feature film called 'Cosmos' shot entirely on the original Blackmagic Pocket Cinema camera, with a 28mm Takumar lens! (took them years to make)
The hack is a new one on me, I think I will have to buy a second Helios to try it out! Trouble is your flipping videos make the prices go up..! 😁
I think they're still pretty cheap, and absolute bargains for what they can do!
Helios-44 doesn't help you when shooting with a rangefinder camera....at least if you don't want to rely to estimate the focus only. would be good if the std mount of each shown lens is mentioned since this is important.
It depends on the camera I believe. A helios 44 m39 mount will work great on a russian camera. Not so much on a canon rangefinder or a leica
"Rangefinder lenses" are an entirely different breed. They need the rangefinder mechanism in the back of the lens, to push the "cam follower" in the camera body, in order to adjust the frame lines and such for focus. Without that, you will be in for a very fun time indeed! :-) Perhaps the M39 (aka L39 or LTM) Helios has this rear mechanism? I have only messed with the the M42 variety Helios. I have an old Jupiter-3 (Zeiss Sonnar wannabe) in M39. It has the rear rangefinder apparatus, but still focuses poorly on my Leica M2. I bought an old Leica Summarit lens to use instead, which does also provide swirl.
@@barrycohen311 Rangefinder and SLR lenses are indeed very different, and aren't interchangeable. M39 and L39 lenses, while having the same thread size, are not the same thing. M39 was used on the early Zenit cameras and the lenses, being designed for Zenit SLRs, are a retrofocus design and won't focus on a rangefinder (although they will mount on one). By the same token, you can mount an L39 rangefinder lens on an M39 Zenit SLR but it won't focus and won't be useable.
I should have made clear - the Helios 44 and 44-2 are M42 mount lenses made for the Zenit SLR, and won't mount on a rangefinder. The very earliest Helios 44 had an M39 mount which, while the thread is the same as the L39 mount used on Leica and Russian rangefinders, and will mount on those cameras, will not focus and can't be used on them. Similarly, L39 rangefinder lenses will mount, but not focus, on an early Zenit SLR.
@@zenography7923 Great info, much appreciated, thanks. I was fully unaware of the earlier versions mentioned and their potential issues on rangefinder cameras
Hi! Awesome videos!! Need your opinion on this: I might have a couple of helios lenses coming my way- a Helios 44-M and a Helios 44-2. Which of these would you suggest i mod, and which should be kept as is? Btw i am using a crop camera but i plan on using a focal reducer to get full effects of the swirly effect
Personally I'd mod the 44M. In my experience it's not quite as nice a lens as the 44-2 and in unmodded form doesn't swirl quite as much.
@@zenography7923 thanks!
I discovered this channel just a few days ago, and now I'm anxiously waiting for my first vintage, Russian lens to arrive! I'm still fairly new to cinematography, so I have a question: Will adding a speed booster, like a Metabones 0.61 for EF to micro 4/3 or a Commlite 0.71 for micro 4/3, between my forthcoming Helios 44-2 or Jupiter 8 lenses and my camera's micro 4/3 sensor help reduce the crop factor? I'm shooting video with a GH5 and a BMPCC4k. My concern is that the extra adapter between the lens and sensor might hurt the image quality. Should I be concerned? I would love any advice on the matter, and thank you for this wonderful channel!
In theory any extra glass will degrade the image to some extent - but in this case it will only be to a very small extent, not enough to be of any concern. I think you'll be fine.
@@zenography7923 So after a little trial and error, it turns out that the combination of a Helios 44-2, plus a Fotodiox M42 to EOS V1 adapter, plus a Commlite 7.1 EF to Micro 4/3 speed-booster attaches very well to a Lumix GH5 and produces fabulous photos at am 82mm focal length--wonderful! But beware GH5 users: the Fotodiox *V2* adapter fits to the speed-booster, but will cause the camera to throw an "incompatible lens" error message once attached to the camera body. The Fotodiox V2 works perfectly fine, though, on a BMPCK4K, but the V1 is slightly cheaper, so I don't see any benefit to getting the V2. In any case, thank you for this fantastic channel. I look forward to your videos!
Great video, so helpful to see effects from lenses I a may want to try! I have a Helios 44-2 and love the effect of the hacked lens! I could see getting a second copy to leave converted permanently. It would be worth getting the proper tool to play around with. Do you know if the hack will also work with other inexpensive lenses I already have?
on other lenses, odd effects will be had. but they won't be the same. Each lens design is different and changing one element can radically change the outcome.
PSA- when reversing other lens elements, make sure that there is enough physical clearance at all focus distances so you don't end up grinding elements together.
@@Ava-wu4qp Makes sense, I'll try it and see what happens!
@@batex3 let me know if you find any hidden gems! I'm always for some funky lenses to add to my hellios 40-2 and lens-baby sweet 80.
Random bit of fun: if you every have a chance to play with a leaf shutter lens, try using it at a fast shutter but with a long flash duration. (Each point light source will turn into its own little pinwheel) - I use 1/500 on my Zeiss Sonar 150mm f/4 with a ~1/125 t0.5 duration strobe when in the studio.
What Ava said! And you'll definitely need a lens spanner if you want to try a bit of hacking, makes the whole thing so much easier.
@@zenography7923 a lens spanner alternative- a drafting compass or just really long needle nose pliers. Long flat head screw drivers also do the trick with a small ball between then to rock against.
I've always just found myself improvising when specialist tools are called for.
Woah!
amazing effect with the reversed lens. Is that something that has been tried before or you just happened to try it?
Blas Payri it’s a known hack that people have been doing for a while. It’s pretty rad
I certainly didn't invent it - just enjoy using it!
I watched the reversed video and couldn't notice any change... :)
:)
This is a great little channel but:
Its 'Boke-uhr' not 'bouquet', it means fuzzy or fuzzy mindedness.
One other thing - flashing coloured lights at the start, gotta go; Photo-sensitive epileptics could be set off by it, its just the right frequency range. I know, you'll agrue 'But they are fairy lights I got from a shop!' but none stares at fairy lights or sits in bed watching a fondle slab with just them in view. Put it through After Effects and add the 'Time' filter, that'll cure it.
That didn't occur to me at all; I'll try to do something about it.
careless mistakes after cleaning a lens - made to a hack! lol