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The Best Vintage Lenses for Video

Vintage lenses are lenses that were made before the 1980s. They are often characterized by their unique look and feel, which can be very appealing for videography. Vintage lenses can be a great way to add character and depth to your videos.

Here are some of the best vintage lenses for video:

Zeiss Planar T 50mm f/1.4:* This lens is known for its sharp image quality and smooth bokeh. It is a great all-around lens for videography.

Canon FD 50mm f/1.2 L: This lens is another great option for videography. It offers excellent image quality and a fast aperture.

Nikon Nikkor AI 50mm f/1.4: This lens is a good choice for videography if you are looking for a budget-friendly option. It offers good image quality and a fast aperture.

Minolta MD Rokkor 50mm f/1.4: This lens is a great choice for videography if you are looking for a lens with a unique look and feel. It offers soft focus and a dreamy bokeh.

Leica Summicron-M 50mm f/2: This lens is a great choice for videography if you are looking for the ultimate in image quality. It offers sharp image quality and a smooth bokeh.

When choosing a vintage lens for videography, it is important to consider the following factors:

Image quality: Vintage lenses can vary in image quality. Some lenses are sharper than others. It is important to do your research and choose a lens that offers the image quality you need.
Bokeh: Bokeh is the quality of the out-of-focus areas in an image. Vintage lenses can offer unique and beautiful bokeh. If you are looking for a lens with great bokeh, be sure to consider this factor when making your decision.
Price: Vintage lenses can range in price from affordable to expensive. It is important to set a budget before you start shopping.

A List of Top Best Vintage Lenses for Video

Canon FD 50mm f/1.8

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First produced in 1971 This is the original ‘nifty fifty’ from the most world-renowned camera maker. This is a lens that can just do just about anything you need it to. This lens is a great option for taking vintage videos. Made entirely from plastic, the Canon FD 50mmF/1.8 is a super lightweight and fast prime lens. The maximum aperture of the cannon is f/1.8. This lens is ideal for both low-light situations and getting that beloved shallow depth of field look.

100mm f/2, Olympus OM Zuiko Auto-T

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This is a top choice of most vintage video fanatics. The striking combination of modern and retro technology is what makes this a popular choice among the masses. The aperture ring has full stops from f/2.0 to f/22 and those have an extremely unique click. Olympus Om is the ideal old-fashioned portrait lens. Olympus is sharp from f/2 to the entire frame. This gives you the option to have your subject be anywhere in the frame. The bokeh on the Olympus Auto-T is among the top of the lenses on the market today.

35mm f/1.8 W-Nikkor C

Subject to personal opinion, the 35mm f/1.8 W Nikkor C is one of the best Nikon vintage lenses available. It was the first fast wide-angle from Nikon in the 1950s, and it uses a classic (and rare) lanthanum glass for that classic post-war high-performance look. Though The majority of the models of this lens are pushing fifty years old, it still has impressive modern focus and aperture settings and is still considered the top wide-angle vintage lenses to this day.

Nikon 24-70mm f/2.8 VR

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With a 24-70mm f/2.8 lens This Nikon model is considered a reliable lens for many professional photographers. The Nikon 24-70 mm can be used to fit an array of photographers’ needs. Since the Nikkon 24-70mmm has a constant aperture of f/2.8,it has a fast autofocus motor that has state-of-the-art optics, the Nikon 24-70mm f/2.8E VR is designed to focus quickly and accurately in low-light environments.