Helios 44-2 Lens: Watch This BEFORE You Buy (2024)

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SOCIAL

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[RetroFotoHouse]

Thank you Mathieu for have linked me up! During my 9 years in business, i've serviced and sold more than 2000 helios 44-2, so a huge expericence was gained. Helios 44-2 is nice, but it is true, that early 13 blades helios 44 is better, because it was in production when Stalin was in power and at that time, you could easely go to jail if you would tolerate a manufacturing defects, or in some cases got shot for spoiling socialistic property, so it was a quality product. But if you want really top sharpness and swirl, go for original german biotar 58mm F2 in m42 mount, but it is something of completely different pricing and to find a copy without scratches or other imperfections on optical elements is more difficult. Another thing-very few people know how to service it, so with quite high chances you'll get a lens with stiff focus ring because of old grease.

[SourcePhotography]

That "sneaky" retro foto house, I bought my Valdai version from there. But I'm pleased to say, that there is no oil on the blades and no play in the mount. The mount was actually modified to Canon EF by retro foto house. I find that the best aperture for this lens is f11 for increased sharpness and contrast. Anyway, I shoot almost exclusively with vintage lenses and love them for both street & landscape photography. Cheers!

[PhotoViking]

I use Helios-44 the first version on GFX100S and by doing that I get even more swirl on the edges. I have 11 different version of Helios-44 from first to 44-M7 and my absolute favourite is the first version.

[antontaranenko]

I have Helios 44 KMZ from camera START, modified to M42, it is one of the first versions, with swapped focus and stop rings, with blue coating and 13 blades. I found it the best among all Helios 44, especially for video shooting with it's blue flayers. The only negative side - the blue chemical coating is so fragile and easy to scratch, even with slight wiping, and no strong chemical allowed, even isopropyl alcohol can wash layer off. Only distilled water, or hydrogen peroxide.

[TheRoadLessPaved]

I have the the KMZ silver version purchased from Retro Foto House adapted for Nikon F. I totally love it. It's one of my top two lenses. The other is a Pentacon 29 2.8. Both are still affordable.

[iamyotka]

I gotta say Mathieu, You blew me away!
I actaully have all 3 versions of the M42, and i never noticed the difference.
Although, i have a rare version of the 44-2 that is same design as the 44-3!

[petrolpoodle]

Just found out I have the Valdai version 😂! But it still blows away anyone who tries it and is my favourite lens by miles. I got mine for £30 which makes sense now but zero regrets. I'm now excited to pick up another!

[dslrdave]

I get the bad one for years, didnt mind the milky tints since I use it only for artistic purposes... if I want a sharp one, I'll use my other lens !

[xiaodu]

Got a Valdai version. It's definitely good to see the comparison, although I've found the lens acceptable for the price I've paid for it. As long as I don't shoot with backlight (which doesn't work at all) it works fine for me. There's always room for improvement and I will certainly look out for one of the better versions when I've got the spare money for one of the rarer ones.

[mikefiction]

i've had the "bad" one for years. Just ordered an early chrome one in good shape. My current copy does look a little milky and I thought that's just the way it was :)

[Tsudkyk]

I had a 44-2 KMZ and boy was it fun to shoot. It was an extremely sharp lens at f/8-11 and I always loved how the lens rendered colors. Sometimes I regret selling it, I’d love to try it out as a cine lens

[burnieplace]

Very informative. I've just dug out my 44-2 from the back of the cupboard and it's a KMZ 1970. That makes sense because it came with the Zenit B I bought in in about 1972-3. The body was stolen in 1976 with a different lens on, so the Helios was orphaned for a few years. There's a little play on the mount but not as much as on the video, and the diaphragm blades look fine.

[snaj]

I got the first one with 13 blades and m39 mount but at m42 flank distance. I tried adapting it to Pentax K mount then to my Canon 5D but back of the lens hit my cameras mirror. So I got a M42 adapter and I will try to adapt it from there. The focusing is super stiff due to old grease, sometimes I unscrew the lens while focusing and the aperture control is quite weird but it is a neat lens.

[BLoren]

Great video, thank you! I bought the Valdai version a while back without really understanding the difference. This helps a lot.

[madmechanic]

You see.. This is why I subscribed... And I'm glad and surprised and Happy you included Retro Foto House in your vid. A lot of respect for Experience, Knowledge and patience this guy has.. (15 Blades reassembly... No thankyou) . For you Mathieu... ...Please tell me how you did that last snippet of vid??? Blew me to bits.. Im old enough to remember no mobile phones, no pc's and 3 digit housephone numbers so I think its important to pass on to the younger generation the benefit of having a bit of imperfection in some of your perfect £5000 lenses.. Thats what we called in the good old days Character.. Thanks for wicked vid.. Keep at it.. (Gotta re-build an F9Q Renault 16V head.. No problem. 15 Blade Iris I leave to Retro).. Have a look my friend in Poland with Zeiss biotar doo daahs

[BigLRestInPeace]

I have a 44M-4 and it's near perfect. Very solid build quality, oil free aperture blades, amazing image quality. It's made in 1990 in the Valdai plant.

[williamcurwen]

I hear what you say, but if we are talking about the 44-2 8 blade version, it doesn’t matter all that much what factory it came from as the build and optical quality was always variable. Also, you really do need a very deep lens hood to control flare.

[nuovofresco]

Thanks so much for this! I've had a Helios of some sort since the 1980's/ I have a Belomo made one right now and 3 KMZ. The Belomo version is noticeably sharper than my KMZ versions... and has less oil on the blades. Perhaps It was a lucky copy or perhaps it was made with more care.

[retrophotolenses]

Hello. In my opinion the best quality version of the Helios 44 is the earliest version, with the index red "P" having a 13-blade aperture of 2-22 as well as a slightly different body. It is believed that a slightly different composition of glue was used to glue the lenses. Next are the white versions of the Helios 44 red "P" with a 13-blade aperture of 2-16. They may differ in the colour of the lenses - yellow-purple, blue.

[NasserTone]

Amazing! BTW could you kindly please tell me which version of the lens captured the scene that starts at 5:52?