I was looking for a lens around the 25mm range faster then f2.8 for my gh2 and Canon DSLR's.I went to KEH camera and started to look around the site and I found a Kiron 28mm f2 in excellent condition in Olympus mount for under a 100 dollars. The lens came quick and I tried it out and notice the aperture wasn't stopping down it was stuck wide open. I called KEH to see if maybe they had another Kiron in stock to exchange. They didn't but offered to charge me for a lower condition lens which was really nice of them.
I went outside with my t3i and the Kiron lens. After taking a few pics, I wasn't mad at all that the lens wasn't stopping down. The bokeh the lens produce is really dreamy and even if it did stop down, the lens would stay at f2. One of the biggest features of this lens besides the bokeh is the ability to focus down to right around just under a foot, making this lens a nice macro lens. I'll be using this lens mainly for close up shots because of its ability to focus so close and the bokeh . For the video side of things the Kiron has a nice focus throw for use with a follow focus. I tested the lens for video with my Gh2 and here is the quick test I did.
Overall I'm very impressed with this little lens. Its fast aperture and close focus makes this lens a great buy. I'll be using this lens a good bit for both pics and video.
Test video Gh2
pics using the t3i
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| blurry pic but the kitties were fighting over camera time haha |
I just purchased this lens in OM-mount as well for my Canon DSLR's. The seller noted it had a similar problem as yours. Thanks for making this post.
ReplyDeleteI dont mind the stuck fstop the bokeh is sweet
ReplyDeleteThe aperture blades sticking is a common problem with this beautiful lens.
ReplyDeleteThe fix is SUPER easy. Open up the back, manually close and open the aperture blades and apply a SLIGHT pressure downwards, then will begin to unstick and should stay that way for a good 6 months!
I had a Canon FD mount, Vivitar 28mm f2 with the "22" serial number. Aperture blades were stuck, as noted. I did not want to open up the lens myself, lest I do more harm than good :-) But my trusty technician did an excellent job for a reasonable price. Works like a charm! BTW, I gave the Vivitar lens to a friend -- I also have a Kiron branded 28mm f2 of my own, for use on Sony NEX 5n, previously used on Panasonic G3. Currently, it is the only lens I own :-)
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