Kiron 28-85 mm f/ 2.8-3.8 Macro Lens

Made by Kino Optical (Japan) in the 1980's,m this lens was made to compete directly with the lens produced by the major manufacturers. In this case, I believe they did extremely well. The lens is fast, very well made, optically on a par with Canon and Nikon zooms of the period, and a very versatile zoom range, from wide angle to medium telephoto. I've used the lens at the high end for portraits, and the wide angle for landscapes and everything in between. I have a large variety of Canon lenses, both rangefinder and FD series. This lens fits seamlessly into the group. I really like using it. At the price shown of $50, I consider it a rare bargain.

Weaknesses:

Be aware, this is a heavy lens. It's all metal and glass, no plastic that's so common on lens today. If the weight isn't a consideration, the lens will serve you well, and produce fine images capable of being enlarged to 16x20" or larger. Some of my favorite pictures were taken with this lens, mounted on a Canon F-1N or T90. On these, espeially the F-1, the weight wasn't noticable, and it balanced very well on the camera. With the appropriate adapter, I've also used it on the Canon EOS cameras, and am going to try it on an Olympus Micro 4/3 camera.

Comments:

I have several other Kiron lenses, and have found all of them to be of high quality, both in materials and optically. They are very well thought of in Japan, and are pricey, or were a while ago, because of the demand.

If you try one at anywhere near this price range, I'm pretty certain that you'll agree with me.