The Limbo Connection's photos with the keyword: extension tube

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.

She hears it hiss
 She sees it glow 
Like a burning kiss 
It won't let her go
 She's been captured by hot neon
 And it's got her so bad
 She's a prisoner of hot neon
 And it's driving her mad

Canon EOS 40D + Chinon 55mm f/1.4 on extension tube.

Canon EOS 30D + Chinon 50mm f/1.4 lens + extension tube.

Canon EOS 30D + Chinon 55mm f/1.4 lens + small extension tube.

Photographed with a Nikon D700 and a Micro-Nikkor 55mm f/3.5 AI lens on a Nikon PK-13 extension tube.

Canon EOS 40D + Chinon 55mm f/1.4 on a long extension tube.

Fabric photographed with a Canon EOS 40D and a Chinon 55mm f/1.4 lens on a short extension tube.

Canon EOS 40D + Chinon 55mm f/1.4 lens on an extension tube.

Canon EOS 40D + Chinon 55mm f/1.4 + extension tube. f/4.8; 1/125th; 1600 ISO.

Canon EOS 40D + Chinon 55mm f/1.4 lens on extension tube.

Canon EOS 40D + Chinon 55mm f/1.4 lens.

Can of oil bought in 1999. Canon EOS 40D + Chinon 55mm f/1.4 lens.

Shortly after taking this photograph, this bun, and two of its companions, were consumed by a glutton operating a Canon EOS 40D camera with a Chinon 55mm f/1.4 lens on an extension tube. f/4; 1/90th; 1600 ISO. 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.

This is a photograph from the back cover of the paperback edition published in 1977 by Magnum Books. The photographer was Robert Golden. He originally pursued photo-journalism and documentary work before moving on to still life photography, eventually specialising in photographing food. Somewhere in between the change of direction he was producing book covers, of which this is an example of his strong style and ability to interpret a brief. The book cover does not reveal the name of the model who posed for this assignment. I photographed the book using a Canon EOS 40D with a Chinon 55mm f/1.7 lens on an extension tube. I wonder what equipment Robert Golden used in 1977?

Canon EOS 40D + Pentacon 50mm f/1.8 lens + extension tube. Tight depth-of-field: really needs a tripod, but a tripod is often a bit of a faff.

I've got a hot chilly feeling I don't understand. Canon EOS 40D, Helios-44, and an extension tube.

Helios-44 on Canon EOS 30D. Extension tube interposed.