Canon FD 35-105mm f3.5. Out and about!

<p>Hi FD users,</p>

<p>I have to pay a little tribute to the 35-105mm f3.5 zoom lens. I bought the other day for 10$ in the junk bin at the local used camera store. It is not mint. It is in user condition for sure, but it works well. I took it out for a test run over the week-end. I got the results back and was surprised at the quality of the photos. Sure there is vignetting at the wide end and softness at the long end, but overall quality is great. The more I used the FD equipment the more I am impressed by the quality of the FD lenses. I kinda think I found my SLR kit. Maybe I can stop hunting for the perfect system. ;-) HA!</p>

<p>I took the photos at local community renowned for its temples. I have been meaning to visit since I came to Japan. Its sister temples are in Nara. One was founded by a Chinese monk in 1382 A.D to teach Buddhism. The temple still teaches Buddhism. The temple is not the original, but some of the pillars are. I was lucky enough to enter the temple. The temple deacon saw me taking photos and invited me in. I think it was quite a privilege. Anyway....</p>

<p>Here are two or three photos... others can be found by following the link. Not all the photos in the folder are with the 35-105mm. Some are with a 100mm f2.8 S.C. and 50mm f1.8 S.C.</p>

<p>http://www.photo.net/photodb/folder?folder_id=942541</p>

<p>Mike</p>

<p> </p><div></div>

<p>Photo 2</p><div></div>

<p>Photo 3</p><div></div>

<p>Photo 4</p><div></div>

<p>Michael,<br>

I have this same lens, and I think it is one of the best they ever made. Of course, I don't have any L lens to compare to. Great job and great find!</p>

<p>Joe</p>

<p>Very nice Michael. Are there two versions of this zoom? It seems like I've seen one that is a constant f/3.5 aperture with macro, and another that was variable. Is that right, and which version do you use? Does the macro work well?</p>

<p>Yikes! They are sharp! Zounds $10! Lucky bugger.</p>

<p>Michael,</p>

<p>I have two-touch zoom with the constant f3.5 and Marco. I have not seen the variable version before. Perhaps it does exist, but I do not know.</p>

<p>Mike</p>

<p>Michael S - Lovely pics. Amazing sharpness with that lens. I love the feeling of depth in the Gold Everywhere shot. For $10 that's beyond a steal - that's criminal.<br /> Michael A - yes, there are two versions, the second version is a one-touch zoom with a variable aperture. It also has a smaller front element (58mm v/s 72mm on the first version) and I believe uses an aspherical element. In general, from what I've read on this forum the older version is cosidered the sharper lens.<br /> http://www.canon.com/camera-museum/camera/lens/nfd/data/zoom/nfd_35~105_35~45.html<br /> http://www.mir.com.my/rb/photography/companies/canon/fdresources/fdlenses/fdzooms/50135.htm#35-105mmNEW<br>

Btw, I have to add - I've been browsing one or two of the other forums, and there seems to be a lot more posting of pictures on this one, which for me is awesome.</p>

<p>Yes, there is a one touch version that is f/3.5-4.5 but it doesn't seem to be as popular as the two touch f/3.5 Macro. I see them on ebay ocassionally. <a href="http://www.canon.com/camera-museum/camera/lens/nfd/data/zoom/nfd_35~105_35~45.html">http://www.canon.com/camera-museum/camera/lens/nfd/data/zoom/nfd_35~105_35~45.html</a></p>

<p>The later of the two versions (f/3.5-4.5) is described by Canon in the 1986 <em>Lens Work: </em></p>

<p>"As the world's first interchangeable lens to use a molded glass aspherical element, this breakthrough has produced high image quality and a marked reduction in the lens' dimensions and weight."</p>

<p>It has 14 elements in 11 groups, and let me tell you, the glass is packed in there. The diagram shows the elements all but touching from one end of the lens to the other.</p>

<p>Ground aspherical elements are exacting and expensive animals, so we only get them in L-series lenses. The molded element was the first relatively inexpensive aspherical one. It was certainly a cost-saving measure as well as impacting size and weight. Conventional wisdom says that the older 35-105 is the better lens, despite the molded aspherical. I have not seen any definitive comparisons.</p>

<p>Some sellers really hype the "ASPHERICAL" notion in their advertisements, but I haven't noticed that people jump up and offer big money because of it.</p>

<p>With the smaller lens zoomed out to 105mm, there's little difference in size beyond the big front element on the older lens. But the new one is pretty small at the 35mm end.</p><div></div>

<p>I bought my first 35-105 f3.5 new in 1982 and I'm still using it. I agree with Joe Nash, this is one of the best FD lenses Canon every made. For sharpness and freedom from aberration, I'd go so far as to say it's equal to or better than any of my L lenses (50, 85, 20-35 and 100-300). Softness at the long end - no way. Your lens may just need some adjustment. It's very susceptibility to misalignment from even slight knocks. The lens barrel can easily get bent after a knock, but if you're lucky you can gently snap it back into alignment. This has happened to me many times, with two different examples of this lens. At one time I was shooting countless rolls without realising that each shot was slightly out of focus at one side (due to a bent barrel that I hadn't noticed at the time). I only realised it years later when I started scanning my slides with an Imacon. I'm so aware of it now that I routinely check the lens barrel before each shot to make sure it's straight. 10 bucks for this lens? The bargain of the century! Enjoy!</p>

<p>I just bought a 35-105/3.5 from an eBay seller for $31. From the photo it looks like there is a spot behind one of the front elements. I will have that cleaned up and then I hope to have some fun with it. This will be only my second Canon zoom. The other is a 70-150/4.5 New FD. I generally use fixed focal length lenses.</p>

<p>While perusing a 35-105/3.5 I noticed its markings are simply painted on, without any engraving, a little bit unusual for a genuine Canon lens. Might this lens have come from a third party manufacturer and not actually Canon?</p>

<p>My 35-105/3.5 New FD arrived today. The spot nside is so small I will probably wait to have it taken care of. I noticed two things while looking through the lens on an F-1. The first is that you need to shield it from flare. The second is that in the non-macro mode it only focuses to 5 feet. The macro mode is on the 35mm end so you can't get any closet at 105 that way. This limits the usefulness of the lens for portraits. When I shoot my first roll I will try the lens with a 5mm FL extension tube to see how much closer I can get. Stop down metering with the F-1 is easy enough. Has anyone else tried using an extension tube with this lens to get closer at the 105 end? </p>

<p>Jeff, the FDn 35-105/3.5 is one of my two most used walkabout FD lenses (the other being the venerable 80-200/4 L). But if I'm shooting portraits, especially indoors, I use one one of my faster primes (such as the 50/1.2 L, 55/1.2 Asph, or 85/1.2 L). Slower zooms are good for outdoor portraiture when the lighting is sufficient, but I don't find them useful indoors.</p>

<p>With a lens at 105 and focusing only to 5 feet, a portrait would be difficult to shoot indoors or outdoors. If I want to stay in the medium telephoto range and use a Canon I have many choices. These include the 100/3.5 FL. 85/1.8 FL, 85/1.8 New FD, 100/2.8 chrome front, FD SSC and new FD, 100/4 New FD macro, 90/2.5 Vivitar Series 1, 100/2.8 Vivitar macro (22XXX...), 90/2.5 Tamron SP (52BB) and others. I don't expect the 35-105 to outperform any of these lenses at the 105 end but I like to at least have the ability to get closer than 5 feet at the 105 end.</p>

<p>I haven't found my 5mm Canon extension tube yet but now I remember that it's fully manual. This means not only stop down metering but the loss of auto diaphragm control. I did find an FL15 extension tube. With the lens at 105 and set at infinity I'm too close. Somewhere I must have a 12mm Vivitar extension tube from an FD set. I wonder whether some off brand company made an FD or FL extension tube in the 8-10mm range.</p>

<p>After looking through a few boxes I found an off brand 12mm FD extension tube. It's just right. If it were any longer it would be too long. The combination is for when I want to carry just the 35-105 bu have the ability to take a few portrait shots too.</p>

<p>Probably my favorite FD lens. Enjoy it! </p>