Chinon 55mm f/1.4: (1)

Chinon 55mm f/1.4 Lens

The Japanese Tomioka company made this lens to a Planar design by Johannes Berger of Zeiss, which Zeiss never themselves used, having something similar which they considered superior. I bought this lens still attached to a Chinon CX from an eBay seller. It is engraved ‘Auto Chinon’ but in all other respects is identical to 55mm f/1.4 lenses badged ‘Tomioka’ which Chinon were supplying before 1974…  (read more)
Chess

Chess

22 Mar 2019 1 1 207
'Soul of the Man' is the B side of 'Rescue Me' by Fontella Bass (1965). Photographed with a Chinon 55mm f/1.4 lens liberated from an old Chinon CX camera of circa 1976 and installed via an adapter on a cheap secondhand Canon EOS 30D digital SLR.
Modern English Usage

Modern English Usage

11 Apr 2019 9 7 278
Hanging a newly laundered shirt from the top of the bookcase is a handy way of getting it nicely aired in a room often warmed by sunlight. I bought Fowler's Modern English Usage in a charity shop. There was a 1970s bus ticket inside its pages doing service as a bookmark. I like things from that period. I used a Canon EOS 30D with a Chinon 55mm f/1.4 lens mounted via a cheap adapter. That lens is also from the 1970s. It has an interesting history. Johannes Berger of Zeiss invented a 55mm f/1.4 Planar lens in 1957. But the design wasn't used for Zeiss lenses, because Erhard Glatzel invented a 50mm f/1.4 Planar lens, which was better. Berger's Planar, an asymmetrical double-Gauss scheme, similar to Nikon’s Nikkor-S Auto 50mm f/1.4 lens of 1961, was licensed to other manufacturers. Amongst these was Tomioka, a Japanese glass manufacturer. Chinon, who made cameras but not lenses, went to Tomioka for a standard fast lens. They got the 55mm f/1.4 (there was also a 55mm f/1.2 supplied in smaller numbers). In appearance, the 55mm f/1.4 closely resembles the more usual offering of a 55mm f/1.7 lens which came with Chinons of that period. Notably, the barrel is all-metal with a strip of thin leather glued on for a focussing grip. The standard of construction is good without equalling Leitz or Nikon quality. Because of the similarity in appearance, some suspect that the f/1.7 version was also a Tomioka product, but that is not proven, whereas the Tomioka involvement in the 1.4 55mm lens is pretty clear. Some of them even have the Tomioka name engraved at the front. Others are identical except for the absence of that information. The versions with the Tomioka name are appreciably more expensive to buy secondhand.
Old Trowbridge

Old Trowbridge

17 Feb 2017 2 1 248
A wall at Courtfield House. Probably mid 18th century. Canon EOS 30D and Chinon 55mm f/1.4 lens.
18 Paper Clips

18 Paper Clips

12 Aug 2019 2 121
Canon EOS 30D + Chinon 55mm f/1.4 lens fitted via an EOS-M42 adapter. An extension tube was in between camera and lens.
My Sunflower

My Sunflower

29 Aug 2019 4 167
Photographed using a Chinon 55mm f/1.4 lens from the 1970s on a Canon EOS 30D camera, a model available from February 2006 to July 2007 and now probably of less value than the Chinon lens. I bought both of them on eBay during 2015 and regard them both as absolute bargains.
Made in USSR

Made in USSR

29 Aug 2019 4 4 171
This is an early Helios-44 which came attached to a Zenit-E. It is a preset with a 49mm filter ring. Photographed with a Chinon 55mm f/1.4 lens on a Canon EOS 30D.
Petunia by Tomioka

Petunia by Tomioka

29 Aug 2019 1 119
Photographed with the Tomioka-made Chinon 55mm f/1.4 lens mounted via an EOS-M42 adapter on a Canon EOS 30D camera. The field of view provided by this combination is akin to a 90mm lens on a full-frame camera.
G Clamp Towel Rail

G Clamp Towel Rail

03 Sep 2019 7 4 174
Photographed with a Chinon 55mm f/1.4 lens mounted on a Canon EOS 30D via an EOS-M42 adapter.
Lubrication

Lubrication

03 Sep 2019 127
Photographed with a Chinon 55mm f/1.4 lens mounted on a Canon EOS 30D via an EOS-M42 adapter.
Bike Spanner

Bike Spanner

03 Sep 2019 3 153
Photographed with a Chinon 55mm f/1.4 lens mounted on a Canon EOS 30D via an EOS-M42 adapter.
Workshop

Workshop

03 Sep 2019 4 2 122
Photographed with a Chinon 55mm f/1.4 lens mounted on a Canon EOS 30D via an EOS-M42 adapter.
Brick Wall in September (2)

Brick Wall in September (2)

04 Sep 2019 129
Photographed with a Chinon 55mm f/1.4 lens mounted on a Canon EOS 30D via an EOS-M42 adapter.
Brick Wall in September (1)

Brick Wall in September (1)

04 Sep 2019 3 4 194
Photographed with a Chinon 55mm f/1.4 lens mounted on a Canon EOS 30D via an EOS-M42 adapter.
Chinon 55mm f/1.4

Chinon 55mm f/1.4

14 Nov 2015 225
If the Chinon 55mm f/1.4 lens is used on a crop sensor camera, the effect is akin to using a very fast short telephoto, such as an 85mm or 90mm, on full frame. The characteristics of a standard lens are however preserved, e.g. depth of field, and focussing distance. With a supplementary lens screwed into the filter mount, a near-macro experience results. I have used this lens safely on Canon EOS 30D and 40D digital cameras. With a chipped adapter you get focus confirmation. I recommend this lens. Photographed with a Canon EOS 30D + Soligor C/D 28mm f/2.8 lens with extension tube.
Red Onion Photographed with a Chinon 55mm f/1.4 Lens

Red Onion Photographed with a Chinon 55mm f/1.4 Le…

07 May 2016 7 4 183
An extension tube between the camera and the lens enabled close focussing here. The Japanese Tomioka company made the Chinon 55m f/1.4 lens to a Planar design by Johannes Berger of Zeiss, which Zeiss never themselves used, having something similar which they considered superior. I bought the lens - still attached to a Chinon CX - from an eBay seller. It is engraved ‘Auto Chinon’ but in all other respects is identical to 55mm f/1.4 lenses badged ‘Tomioka’ which Chinon were supplying before 1974 when there was a change of ownership at Tomioka. The company was taken over by Carl Zeiss in 1974 and the name Tomioka was removed from the front of lenses being supplied to camera manufacturers. Tomioka was at one time the largest lens producer in Japan. It was more economical for Chinon, Mamiya Sekors, Ricoh, and others to buy from Tomioka than to manufacture their own lenses. In this they were not alone. Vivitar and Soligor, for example, never made lenses. They specified what they wanted, and various Japanese optical companies bid for the contracts. When sold new in the UK by Dixons the f/1.4 lens was available as an option to the normal f/1.7 for an extra £10 over the £69.95 usual price (I quote from a 1976 advertisement in ‘Amateur Photographer’). That was quite a premium and as a result the f/1.4 version is relatively scarce.
Wounds

Wounds

20 Jan 2020 2 170
I was using the Chinon 55mm f/1.4 lens on a Canon EOS 30D via an EOS - M42 adapter when I spotted these books stuffed untidily on a high shelf and noticed that the title of the lower volume provided an apt description of the book above. The photograph has been mightily cropped. I ought really have used a telephoto lens. Heigh-ho.
Handbooks (Depth of Field)

Handbooks (Depth of Field)

02 Feb 2020 2 2 126
Chinon 55mm f/1.4 on a Canon EOS 30D.
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