XR Rikenon 50mm F2 is the first vintage lens I bought. The reason I wanted to buy a vintage lens is because I heard from a friend how interesting it is.
At that time, I had a PENTAX digital SLR “istDS”.
Therefore, I looked for an old lens with the same PENTAX K mount. XR Rikenon 50mm F2 is very cheap (US$20!) And I decided to buy it.
This time I will review XR Rikenon 50mm F2.
Rikenon 50mm F2 four types and Tomioka Optical
photo:KOJIYA Camera Shop
XR Rikenon 50mm F2 is a lens released by Ricoh in 1977. Four types of Rikenon 50mm F2 are manufactured depending on the production time. The name of each lens is as follows.
- XR Rikenon
- XR Rikenon L
- XR Rikenon S
- Rikenon P
The first two of these four types are made by Tomioka Optical.
Here I learned what Tomioka Optics is. An optical maker that used to be in Japan for a long time, it had a good reputation for its lens.
I first purchased XR Rikenon S, but later I bought XR Rikenon, which is said to be made by Tomioka Optical.
Only the early XR Rikenon is different from the other three types in that the minimum shooting distance is 45 mm. The minimum shooting distance for the other three types of lenses is 60 cm. In that respect, the initial type is a convenient lens.
I think that there are no inferior differences in depiction. Please note that there are examples from XR Rikenon and XR Rikenon S.
XR Rikenon 50mm F2 is called “poor man’s Summicron”
XR Rikenon 50mm F2 is said to be called “poor man’s Summicron” because of its good image quality. I didn’t know about “Summicron”, but I later learned that it was a Leica lens with a reputation for its reflection.
Also, I was surprised to see the price of Leica’s Summicron!
This “poor man’s Summicron” is only US$20!
Therefore, this “poor man’s Summicron” is a lens that is reasonably priced and highly recommended.
Select a mount adapter (to use XR Rikenon 50mm F2 with a digital camera)
A mount adapter is required to use the old lens with current digital cameras.
To use the XR Rikenon 50mm F2 with a PENTAX DSLR, a mount adapter is not required. Because it is the same PENTAX K mount, you can use it as it is.
If you are using a SONY mirrorless camera, you will need a mount adapter called PK-NEX.
Use a mount adapter suitable for your digital camera.
Photo sample (with Ricoh XR Rikenon S 50mm F2 attached to PENTAX istDS)
Until then, I was almost surprised at how well it was taken because I had only seen photos taken with my iPhone. The object was sharp and the background was blurred. It ’s very beautiful!
This is a roadside tree in a Japanese town called Sakurashinmachi. In Sakura Shinmachi, the double cherry trees of the roadside trees bloom beautifully in late April.
This is a scene from the barbecue.
A beer can was shot very sharply.
I was surprised by this reflection. You can’t take these photos with your iPhone!
Movie shooting with XR Rikenon 50mm F2
XR Rikenon 50mm F2 was attached to SONY α7II and video was shot. You can also see the sharp part of the movie.
XR Rikenon 50mm F2 Review Summary
This time, I reviewed the first vintage lens I purchased, Ricoh XR Rikenon 50mm F2.
This lens is a famous lens made by Tomioka Optical and has a good reputation in the image so that it is called “The Poor man’s Summicron”. And you can buy it very cheaply.
Thank you for reading to the end.
