Being a nearly 70 years old lens, the construction is outstanding. Full metal and brass elements, manually put together. All the engravings are painted and the lenses are coated to reduce reflections and distortions. Although today, this coating is somewhat problematic. More on this further below.

The registered weight is 246g, feels solid but no too heavy for a lens of this minimum aperture. In terms of that, the aperture ring has full stops clicks, and depending on the overall condition of the lens, the rotation will vary from tight to somewhat loose. This, because the time and use degrades the grease of the movable elements. Lastly, there is an infinity lock on the lens barrel, that is somewhat obtrusive if not accustomed to them.

An official hood exist for this lens, the S-50 Hood. I have no information about this but I’ve read and seen auctions of lenses that have with them the S-50-2 hood. I’m assuming that this also work.

The lens itself balances pretty well in the A7C body (with adapter) and in a Canon P body. Although, certainly looks way better in the Canon P.

With such an old lens, handling will vary among copies. Mainly because the grease used to rotate the components might be deteriorated or stuck. Lenses that have been serviced will operate better than those who have been neglected over time.

• Full stop clicks from F 1.4 to F 22, although if you want it you can leave the aperture in between stops.
• It has an infinity lock that comes really handy in certain situations.
  • Although is important to check if the focus is, in fact, in infinity. Mainly for variances with the adapter or the lens itself.
• The blades are curved and you start to notice a “ninja” star patter from F2.8.
  • Check the images in the Bokeh Section.
• With my copy is possible to achieve a very precise focus using digital zoom in the A7C (and other mirrorless cameras). The groves in the focusing ring allow for a comfortable grip.

The LTM mount is easily adapted to any other mount. In this case I have an Leica M to E Mount adapter (K&F – here or here) and a LTM to M adapter as one. There are a lot of LTM to M adapters to choose, being that they cover different focal lengths. The one i Have mounted is a Fotodiox LTM to M for 50mm to 75mm (Here). Although works decently, it has some play when you move the lens to focus. A direct LTM to E mount adapter will be better suited.

Time deteriorates everything and it shows in these lenses. The common problems are with the coatings and the cement of the inner elements of the lens. Element separation is the worst offender, mainly because it is very hard to solve and degrades the image considerably. Minor scratches and peeling of the coating are somewhat less obtrusive in the final image, but it’s undeniable that changes the render characteristics. Sometimes for the better, others not. The last major problem is the grease itself, it can drip to the lower element or leave a general mess if not treated correctly.

It’s important to test the lens in film and in digital. Mainly because film is more forgiving with this defects than digital. Although, as I said, sometimes these defects gives a “character” that is difficult to emulate. But we all want the best of the best, so check carefully if you intend to buy one of these.

As there is no direct profile in Lightroom or other application that can handle automatically the distortion of the lens, I’ve used the “Canon FD 50mm F1.4” profile that’s bundled with Lightroom. The results are “ok” to my taste, any further improvement could be done manually.