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  • Welcome to the new site. Here's a thread about the update where you can post your feedback, ask questions or spot those nasty bugs!

Robert Watcher

Well-known member
Well I took a gamble on $79 CAD a couple of weeks ago, and ordered an inexpensive Chinese built lens for my Olympus micro 4/3 cameras. I knew it is a Manual Focus lens - I don’t often choose to use the 50mm focal length lenses (in 35mm format terms), and so would never invest hundreds of dollars in that type of lens —- but when I saw this on Amazon figured worse case scenario if it was junk, I would return it.

It took almost two weeks to arrive at my mailbox this morning. First surprise was that it included a lens hood, and a metal one at that. Then the real shock was when I took the lens out of the included pouch and felt the heft of this all metal lens. In fact when I removed the big and heavy 11-22mm four thirds lens with adapter from my E-M1 mkii, the weight of this little Pergear 25mm f1.8 felt at least as heavy. I was hoping to add to my small lightweight selection of lenses - and what I gained was only the small part LOL.

Anyway a few first pics while sitting at my desk (the pics of camera and lenses were with my iPhone7):



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Asher Kelman

OPF Owner/Editor-in-Chief
Seems pretty well made. Part of the issue in understanding pricing is that we a trained to believe in extraordinary pricing of inexpensively produced items.

For example, a sunglasses store in Beverly Hills California sells theirs at over $1,000.

Yet I know from my sons school-time friend that such items are made for mere $0.05 to $5.00 a piece and perhaps $10 for advertising!

The rest is governed by artificially keeping THAT design scarce!

We are used to Canon L lenses at $1,000 to over 15 times that! Again they are kept scarce to protect the price.

The Chinese company provide a window to real costs!

Asher
 

Robert Watcher

Well-known member
Seems pretty well made. Part of the issue in understanding pricing is that we a trained to believe in extraordinary pricing of inexpensively produced items.

For example, a sun glasses store in Beverly Hills California has glasses at over $1,000.

Yet I know from my sons school-time friend that such items are made for mere $0.05 a piece and perhaps $10 for advertising!

The rest is governed by artificially keeping THAT design scarce!

We are used to Canon L lenses at $1,000 to over 15 times that! Again they are kept scarce to protect the price.

The Chinese company provide a window to real costs!

Asher

I understand what you mean Asher.

I do value good lenses though and am willing to spend the money if I can justify the cost on financial return. Although when you start getting into the 2,000, $3,000 and up per lens like many currently are - that is getting a little rich for my blood.

But it’s kind of nice sometimes to go to the dollar store to benefit from the use of something that you don’t use often or don’t depend upon. And that is how I am seeing this lens. Although the build quality is quite striking. I also find that it looks very sharp on my Olympus cameras.
 

Robert Watcher

Well-known member
I was actually quite surprised at the ease in which I returned to my manual focus days and the accuracy that I got. I have been manually focusing some of my lenses like the 11-22 4/3 lens shown and the 4/3 macro lens. I use these for specialty purposes where I can take the time. But I hate manually focusing with fly by wire as all of my lenses are. So I haven’t used a true manual focus lens in 20 years. What a dream to use.

And compared to my film years with manual focus lenses, I can now benefit from technology and focus peaking. I just had to ask a friend how to make it work on an Olympus camera, because it isn’t instantly available like when I am using one of my Olympus autofocus lenses, manually.


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Asher Kelman

OPF Owner/Editor-in-Chief
For a while, I was gotten “addicted” to the pleasure of manually focusing Pentax lenses on my Sony A7R, as I could get a thrill at seeing the red margin appear when I hit focus! After a while it seemed superior to AF!

Asher
 

Jerome Marot

Well-known member
Seems pretty well made. Part of the issue in understanding pricing is that we a trained to believe in extraordinary pricing of inexpensively produced items.

For example, a sunglasses store in Beverly Hills California sells theirs at over $1,000.

Yet I know from my sons school-time friend that such items are made for mere $0.05 to $5.00 a piece and perhaps $10 for advertising!

Much more for advertising and maybe $100 per sale to run that expensive shop in Beverly Hills.

The rest is governed by artificially keeping THAT design scarce!

That is basically what fashion is about, yes.

We are used to Canon L lenses at $1,000 to over 15 times that! Again they are kept scarce to protect the price.

The Chinese company provide a window to real costs!

Yes and no. As you said, the manufacturing costs of sunglasses varies 100 fold (from $0.05 to $5.00). Such is probably the difference between that relatively simple lens and a large zoom with 10x as many mechanical elements, larger glass elements (the price rises sharply with size), better and more complex coatings and exotic glasses. With modern lenses there is also complex technology involved to mold aspherics, new patented AF motor designs, etc...

This being said, profit margin is higher for higher priced items, yes.
 

Robert Watcher

Well-known member
We were visiting our two closest friends (couples) this weekend - playing music outside - and this little guy stopped in his tracks beside my lawn chair, appearing to be taking it all in.

I had the new inexpensive Pergear 25mm lens on my camera and set it on the ground about 8 inches away from him, with the lcd screen pointing upwards. Looking down from my chair (my face about 3 feet away from the screen), I was able to turn the manual focus ring until the yellow marks of focus peaking showed on his eye and take the shot. I never had such flexibility with my manual focus film cameras.



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I used the Pergear lens with focus peaking to capture these pics too.


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