The Joy of Shooting Vintage Lenses (Part 2)

Let's continue with my experiences shooting on the street with vintage lenses. The part 1 of this post can be found here.

- Helios 44M-7 (58mm f/2) -
My second Helios 44M series that I have, and also, my favorite vintage lens so far. Like its older sibling, the 44M-4, this lens also produce a distinct swirly bokeh although not as prominent as its predecessor. However, this lens is very prone to flare, so I always use a hood and tried to shoot under the open shade. This lens also won me a 2nd place in a local photo competition in Perth. If one day I have to sold all vintage lens I have, most likely, this lens will stay with me.

I've posted this picture in my earlier post, but this was my winning shot (well, 2nd place) for a local photo competition in Perth.

 I really like the way he dress and his play also really good.

Taken from the 2nd floor of the Forest Chase Square mall, Perth. I see this man for a far but waited until he got closer to the lines before taking a shot.

The balloon man. His colorful clothes and balloon attracted quite a lot of little customers :)

One of my most awarded photo in my Viewbug gallery. This is the parliament building in Perth (I guess). Shoot on a whim because I notice that the details of the building look unusual from below.

 

- Pentax SMC Takumar 55mm f/1.8 -
Probably one among the most famous lens in the m42 world. My copy has problem of fungus growing on the rear element. I haven't been able to take it apart to clean it, but I've sterilized the lens with UV light (which probably also damage the lens coating). The lens has soft and glowing edges wide open and also flare a lot, which either the characteristic of the lens or due to the fungus.

Jaywalking with style. I love the gesture of this man while he walking across the William Street.

Duck family. The male got really aggressive and tried to attack me while I creep to close to its family. The attack made me fall on my butt on a wet grass :)

Waiting the next turn to ride away.

The expression and gesture was the one that made me shot her.

Not really shot at night, but the harsh separation between dark and bright area under the strong Australian mid-day sun make it easier to darken the background in post-processing.

- Pentax Takumar 28mm f/3.5 -
Bought this lens because I need something that could get me closer to the classic 50mm-ish focal length (I use m43rd camera, so 2X crop). Because I was too accustomed with shooting people with short-telephoto lens (85mm - 100mm-ish), I had trouble adjusting the style. Nevertheless, this lens was great and quite sharp. It handle flare much better than the 50mm Takumar.

I know I put it somewhere :)

A man with cowboy-like outfit that looks  rather ... down.

Ghosting. Taken this photo while waiting for 950 bus.

The frame was made using a metal sculpture at the side of the road. I have to wait for a while before just one person walk past.

A rally in Perth related to the death of an Aboriginal woman in the WA police custody.