The Biggest Mamiya RB67 Lens - 500mm f/8 Sekor C

A friend of mine showed me a picture of this crazy looking lens a couple of years ago, and it has sat in my mind since then. Mainly because I only ever managed to find a couple of examples of the look it could provide online.
Thus, when I managed to hunt one down locally for a very good price, I decided I had to pick it up and see what it could do.
It has turned out to be a very interesting specific use lens, with the main challenges being its weight and cumbersome nature - it takes a while to set up even with a fair amount of practice.
The weight and its intense chromatic aberration are the main downsides. I'm not particularly bothered by optical imperfections in this case though as I didn't buy this lens to be scientifically accurate, I was just looking for interesting effects which I'd say this definitely has.
My website: www.willysheep...
Instagram: / willysheepskin
0:00 - Intro
0:26 - Overview & Setup
2:27 - Using the lens
9:31 - Closing thoughts & review
11:22 - Bonus shots
11:44 - End
Outro song prod. lim0

[@garethwilliams976]

Thanks for posting this- very little online about this lens or the Apo version. A couple of points. I have had mine about five years and found that the assembling of the carrier was a real pain. I bought online a tripod adapter which clamps round the lens and this works fine. Another problem was camera shake due to an inadequate tripod and head. I found that the Manfrotto 410 geared head was sturdy enough and I now use the lens on a Ries J100 tripod but I think any tripod designed primarily for large format film would be fine. Obviously one uses mirror up and a cable release (I however prefer an air bulb release). Finally I eventually resisted using the lens on distant shots as like most long teles much of the resolving ability and contrast of the lens is lost due to atmospheric problems. I agree that my 250 (and 360) are better corrected as are the Apo lenses and although the lens does exhibit a degree of chromatic aberration as one would expect from a non apo long lens but my copy displays far less than yours. A most welcome post and hopefully you will give more feedback on your experience with the lens

[@willysheepskin]

Hi Gareth, thanks for the insight! The atmospheric impact on the distance shots really is an issue. I'm keen to see if I can find a way to mitigate it with filters, but the thread on this thing is mental so the odds of that seem slim. The camera shake issue hasn't impacted me as of yet because I don't think I've shot it at less than 1/500! I reckon you're spot on in suggesting a much sturdier tripod and cable release though. ( I do normally use one with this lens, I just managed to forget it on this particular day and things luckily still worked out) Interesting that your copy has less aberration than mine, I find the potential for variation in lenses that are meant to be identical fascinating! Thanks again for the insight, I'm pinning your comment so that anyone looking for further insights into the lens can find some suggestions through you. I'll definitely put together a more in depth look at the lens itself!

[@garethwilliams976]

Thanks for your kind words and I do hope that you persevere with this lens - Mine came with a case in much the same state as yours! I believe that the later Apo lens came in an all aluminium case - these do come up on ebay from time to time but command premium prices.@@willysheepskin

[@tophercoy8471]

It's so menthol cool. Like listening to David Attenborough narrate photography.

[@willysheepskin]

Oh wow, this is probably the best compliment I have ever received haha!

[@tophercoy8471]

@@willysheepskin we'll you are great at what you do! I much prefer your videos than some of the other more followed creators. Keep it up!

[@NicosPhotographyShow]

Nice video on a rare to see on KZbin lens. Liked the bonus shots too!

[@willysheepskin]

Thanks Nico! Might do a little more in depth look at some of the specifics of the lens sometime but at least this gives an idea of the look for now haha!

[@NicosPhotographyShow]

@@willysheepskin i want a portrait only version!!

[@ARANZO-ir3br]

I REALLY appreciate you making this video! There is so little information about the Mamiya 500mm lenses on the Internet. Your test shots and comparison between 500/8 and 250/5.6 with 2x adapter are very helpful. Again really thank you for making this video!

[@willysheepskin]

So glad that you found it useful! Need to do a proper video comparing those two again sometime haha!

[@NicosPhotographyShow]

Cool intro!

[@GaIvatr0n]

This is becoming my fav channel. Love from 🇬🇧

[@willysheepskin]

ahah Galvatron returns! Cheers mate, really appreciate that!

[@cheteu7968]

I ve found your videos recently and i like them very much. Your videos are just pleasing to watch, you know what you are doing and you know your cameras not like those type of Willem Verbeck photographers.

[@willysheepskin]

Thanks man! Very glad to hear that I come across that way and that you enjoy my ongoings haha!

[@ReimannPembroke]

I’m just now watching this video and I have to say, the world needs this mustache to return

[@willysheepskin]

That darned mustache took like 2 months to grow but it shall definitely make a comeback at some point haha!

[@mayasarembock8739]

I’ve only just found this comment and this mustache absolutely may not make a comeback 🤣

[@matthewmagdefrau]

Thanks for making such an enjoyable look at a lens that is rarely talked about. Subscribed to hear more of your lovely voice and see more of your wonderful compositions!

[@willysheepskin]

Thanks so much Matthew! More to come haha!

[@kubeldzis]

I love the fact that you zoom in at 100% every time you show your photos.

[@willysheepskin]

Gotta show off the details hey! Haha!

[@ariahamidnia]

I saw the title and felt the true weight of that whole setup

[@willysheepskin]

Haha for real it’s such a mission to work with! Gonna make some stuff with another super rare lens again soon that goes on a Contax G and is very light at least haha!

[@username_horse]

Thanks so much for posting a video about this awesome lens! I'd love to see a more in depth look/review of it. Something going over quirks and specifics.

[@willysheepskin]

I'm going to do so for sure in the not too distant future!

[@alfredoguri]

Veo buena edición y sentido del humor. Me suscribo :) Saludos de Ecuador.

[@coffeeandboatshoes]

wonderful results from a pretty unique lens! also, need to know that ending song, crazy beat there!

[@willysheepskin]

Cheers! The outro song is a typebeat by a really cool underrated producer called lim0, I can’t remember the exact name of it but you’ve just reminded me I need to credit him in the description so thanks for that!

[@lavalampsucculent2996]

How do you not have many many more subscribers. Amazing content - keep up the great work!

[@willysheepskin]

Ah thanks for the kind words! Haven’t been doing this for very long so honored with the amount of people that already stop by haha! In no rush to get too big!

[@swimkidandy]

is this negative feedback's lost cousin?

[@xvs_s]

Instantly subscribed! It seems like a superb lens. I was amazed by the bonus shots.

[@willysheepskin]

Thanks so much! I really do enjoy using it despite its gargantuan weight, super excited to try some more experimental stuff with it and see if I can work around some of the impact atmospheric haze has on the long distance shots!

[@willf.5403]

The stache is awesome

[@willysheepskin]

Haha more to come yet!

[@bencushwa8902]

What a beast of a lens. Thanks for this review, it was interesting to see how it handled and performed.

[@willysheepskin]

Such a beast! One is always well aware of its presence ahah, both visually and physically ahah! I look forward to doing some further tests with it in the future!

[@husbint]

I LOVE YOUR VIDEOS SO MUCH 🖤

[@willysheepskin]

Thank you immensely boss ❤️

[@marcopalombo5206]

Aye brudda your channel is sick! Also got a question for you. Do you get any blockage in the top of your viewfinger (and obviously film plane) when using the 250 and the 2x kenko adapter in the portrait orientation? I do, pretty sure I've just got a bad copy of the tele adapter but wanna make sure it's not a common issue and you just crop in or something.

[@willysheepskin]

Thanks dude! No haven't had any blockage with the adapter fortunately, reckon there might be something sketchy going on with yours!

[@lupindeweir]

Memphis, Tennessee USA checking in. I didn't know, thanks. :)

[@jaspercaelan4998]

Have you been reported to the police for carrying around a rocket launcher yet? 😂

[@Ardea15]

The Negative Feedback vibes here are immaculate and I am 100% here for it. I can’t wait to see more of your content!

[@bthemedia]

I came to the same conclusion testing a 500mm f8 on Hasselblad... such a large and special use lens (and somewhat soft), much prefer a 250mm! Thanks for the video!

[@willysheepskin]

There was one of those floating around the market here the other day too! Surprised to hear that it's soft, would've expected more from the Hassy glass!

[@bthemedia]

@@willysheepskin I did not get to compare side by side with a 250mm... but that was the consensus in the old forum posts I found. I tested the older 500mm model, but primarily just couldn’t find good uses for that focal length for me.

[@aristoioannidis7490]

This is a sick lens!

[@craineTV]

This is cool. Subscribed for more Big Flat Rock Town!

[@willysheepskin]

Cheers! More to come!

[@700-n5b]

what a great video! I always have curious about that lens(it's really hard to find information about that lens) and comparison with 250+tc is also impressive! can you do some deep comparison about that? because 250+tc looks like affordable substitution for 500mm.

[@willysheepskin]

Thank you very much! I will definitely put together a more in depth overview and comparison for this lens with some more TeleConverter action, I'm quite keen to see if I can safely set up the 500mm with a tc without bending the bellows rails at some point too!

[@lamman08]

Didn't know it was Lion's head. Thanks for the geography lol

[@willysheepskin]

You're welcome! That was the first video I ever filmed so wasn't sure if anyone would watch it, but now know that clarifying what things are is a good call haha!

[@jupitereye4322]

I would imagine the APO Sekor version of this lens, which is 500m f6, is noticeably better in rendition? If I read correctly, once somewhere on the internet, these lenses used to cost around 12.000$ when they came out.

[@faimeolos]

Very interesting

[@MatthewSherlock]

Nice, would you recommend it for street photography? It doesn’t look to heavy😅

[@willysheepskin]

Just chuck a metz on it and you're good to go!

[@bthemedia]

Great for photos of eyeballs from across the street! 😆

[@reinescheepers]

I know nothing about lens' or photography yet here I am taking notes

[@willysheepskin]

BIG LENS IS BIG - scribbles furiously

[@reinescheepers]

@@willysheepskin Exactly

[@1989Goodspeed]

Briliant video!

[@willysheepskin]

Thank you!

[@davidfromdownunder]

Great video mate, I have a Mamiya 645 Pro TL and considering the Sekor C 500mm / f5.6 or 300mm / f5.6 with 2 x Tele converter.... decisions, decisions

[@willysheepskin]

Ooh I reckon you'd get more use out of the 300mm with the tele hey, plus it'll be longer than 500mm technically so even more compression!

[@davidfromdownunder]

@@willysheepskin Yep true, only concern will be sacrificing a stop or two unless of course I go the 210mm / f4 as another option but lose some compression. I just love that big beefed up lens. Hmmm... I have much to ponder. Think I'll sleep on it for now. Thanks for your input.

[@willysheepskin]

@@davidfromdownunder Hmm that is true I hadn't thought of the loss of exposure. Do you have a specific use for the lens in mind if you were to pick up the 500mm? I feel like the 300mm might be slightly better in terms of being able to do multiple things with it... but if you're just wanting the setup to play around with like I did for my 500mm I reckon you should get the 500 and see what comes, at the very least it'll be a statement piece haha!

[@davidfromdownunder]

@@willysheepskin Yeah, the 300mm would be more practical, lighter to cart around and better in terms of sharp focus being ULD as opposed to ol' Beasty, so the decision should be easy. On the other hand I want the 500mm to play around with and experiment with compressed prospective and shoot some slow wildlife Being the sekor C for 645 it doesn't have the same bracket set up as with your RZ monster, it has a threaded mount with swivel ring so I would definitely shoot my subjects mounted to my hefty Manfrotto or monopod so long as shooting in bright sunny conditions with higher iso film (no worries there being located in QLD, Australia) Yep it definitely is also a statement piece although all my gear is hidden away. Perhaps if I ever get around ro starting up a YT channel that can be on display on shelving in the background. The lens are purely for shooting 120mm and maybe run some 35mm using a 135mm back that I've been considering to get. I really want to slow down my thought process to consider all critical elements when shooting film just as I had to pre Digital days. If only I could have my own Darkroom set up I'd be in heaven and most likely almost live in there when given the spare time. Think I'll invest first in old Beastie as there are two I'm Mint condition that I can pick up to $500 AUD which seems a bargain, plenty of 300mm / f5.6 ULD out there. Yep decision is made, one thing is for sure I'll get a few looks with ppl thinking Whoa! That is huge, if only I could afford the up and coming 500mm for my fujifilm X series set up.

[@WhosThatPimpinPlaya]

bruhhhh ... you didn't use the 2x on the 500 . lesssss go!!!

[@aubreyndiweni1485]

So good, man

[@willysheepskin]

You're so good man

[@RobertoM-c7r]

Hi there...hope you aré fine...Will you please tell me whats for/function of the little stick screw st 1200 o clock on the Lens holder?

[@willysheepskin]

Hiya! You're just meant to use it as a sight to point the lens in the right direction haha, it's so long that it can be tricky to make sure you're looking at what you want to be looking at so before you even go to the viewfinder you use the stick to line it up and then go from there!

[@RobertoM-c7r]

Thanks for your Time...Best regards

[@doubleexposed3830]

The real question is how long do you need to spend in the gym before you can carry this beast around?

[@willysheepskin]

I wish I knew anything about the gym so that I could make a gym joke, but I can say that you're less likely to have to go to gym after lugging this thing around for a while haha!

[@powertools.studio]

thank you

[@photorealismstr]

Lovely setup! But you should get an rz and the apo tele lenses it's miles ahead!I own the rz67 and the 350mm apo it is miles ahead!

[@willysheepskin]

Thanks for letting me know! I’d definitely pick up an RZ if I weren’t so scared of them bricking haha! I have heard that the glass is better though, maybe at some point I’ll be able to take the risk and compare one of the rz tele’s to some rb stuff!

[@EvilClapTrap]

@@willysheepskin they make the apo lines for the RB, they are crazy expensive compared to the Rz line though since it is much rarer. But no bricking, I have the 210 APO which is reasonably priced but the 350+ ones aren't cheap lol

[@photorealismstr]

@@willysheepskin bricking;;;no way man on my pro2 I have more than 50k shots mostly with a digital back and it is rock solid!!!

[@willysheepskin]

@@EvilClapTrap yeah I doubt I could justify the price of an APO unless I managed to find a ludicrous deal, I try to only buy stuff if I've found a ludicrous deal though so who knows haha!

[@willysheepskin]

@@photorealismstr Dang that's mad dude! A few of my friends use RZ's for work and have gone through at least two each, but maybe that's just bad luck haha. My RB's break fairly often as well to be fair, but they can at least be repaired locally whilst the RZ's definitely can't. I'll try rent an RZ sometime though just to get a feel for the system!

[@monodistortion]

Someone may have mentioned this but you're also losing 2 stops of light when you use the 2x teleconverter. This is true for all teleconverters-- it's just how optics works. So your 250mm f4.5 lens becomes a 500mm f9 lens and all the apertures are doubled in number. I would agree with the others that, for landscape, you could stop down the lenses to reduce the chromatic aberration, since you can use longer shutter speeds on a tripod.

[@willysheepskin]

I actually adjusted for the two lost stops in my exposures haha! Would've used longer speeds too but think I also mentioned in the video that I forgot my cable release so went with 500 to avoid shutter shake!

[@monodistortion]

@@willysheepskin Ok, that makes sense-- the photo would have been pretty underexposed otherwise. The part where you're comparing the two lenses is a little confusing without mentioning that.

[@SalmoneTattico]

This thing is sharp as fuck!

[@kevan_]

International viewer from Argentina :D

[@willysheepskin]

Oh amazing! Now you know what lions head is haha!

[@willysheepskin]

Also Argentina seems like such a sick place would love to make my way out there sometime

[@Mac__Tonight]

I SAW THIS ON REDDIT!!

[@willysheepskin]

AYY SHOUTOUT TO THA REDDIT AMIGOS

[@tamias82]

Did you try 500mm + 2x adapter? :D

[@nikstroganov3126]

What if.. 2x teleconverter on the 500mm 👀 hope no one's suggested it yet

[@willysheepskin]

It actually came with a 2x converter that I've tried a couple of times! The main issue is that it extends the lens beyond the capacity of the support bracket so is likely to lead to bent bellow rails, but I'm going to figure out a workaround since it does do crazy things with rendering haha!

[@nikstroganov3126]

@@willysheepskin That would go crazy hard!! Hope you're able to figure something out, I love the images you got that condense urban vistas into one image with almost orthographic perspective, after seeing your results I've been wanting to try that with my Kiev and a 250mm on a 2x converter!

[@aviwexaluva]

duuuuuuude you from south africa

[@willysheepskin]

Yes indeedy!

[@rotfai45mm]

I had for a few days a Mamiya Sekor 500 mm or my RB 67 Pro SD . A real bad lens . Now I use only KL and APO lenses . My APO 350 with the RZ 67 1.4 teleconverter becomes a very good 490 mm telephoto lens that is a lot better than the two non APO 500 mm lenses for the RB 67 . The APO 1:6 500 mm is not very expensive , 1000 Euro , is not that much for a top grade 500 mm lens . The 1:4.5 500 mm APO for the M 645 is very rare

[@willysheepskin]

I reckon I’ll definitely go the APO route if I ever replace this, so glad to hear from someone with experience in both of them! This sekor one does indeed have a fair amount of optical failings, for now it serves my needs though as I mainly picked it up out of curiosity and it’ll work for the specific occasions I do need the look it can provide haha!

[@rotfai45mm]

@@willysheepskin With my APO 350 mm and RZ 1.4 x teleconverter I get a 1:8 490 mm and can still use my 77 mm filters for black and white . You can use the RZ teleconverter on a RB 67 if you remove two small pins .

[@arturors30]

OMG!

[@willysheepskin]

:D

[@Voltamart]

SUB! Love from California .

[@juanmartingerardi306]

upgrade your tripod & head... not the right stand for such a BEAST!

[@jacovanlith5082]

After I had dropped my Mamiya RB 67 in the Atlantic Ocean I dryd it over a vulcano at the bacside of the moon where I made a selfie with a monster.

[@xavisabater]

OMG! (2) 😱

[@willysheepskin]

:D (2) haha!

[@crimsonnights2102]

whats with the @negative feedback vibe?.

[@willysheepskin]

Please elaborate and I'll try offer some insight :)

[@crimsonnights2102]

@@willysheepskin The looks the editing but I like the inspiration.

[@willysheepskin]

@@crimsonnights2102 Oh cool! I wasn't really going for that because I doubt I could do it as nicely as George does, but if things even have some semblance of similarity I'll take that as a win haha! The b/w bit in the beginning is just because my camera is really really bad in low light and the high iso made everything purple. Thanks for checking things out though!

[@crimsonnights2102]

Soon young lad soon. You'll be like Matt Day or Negative Feedback.

[@tadeusz11000]

You’re so ‘Z’ but that’s OK, and you may have just lit the blue touch paper of film awareness in ZA. Observation from a Gen ‘Old School.’

[@willysheepskin]

I'm glad you reckon this will help with awareness around these parts! A flourishing community will benefit all!

[@23codez]

You're kinda odd.

[@23codez]

@@sharpkidzeducation nah

[@emeryscott7124]

Bruh y u trying to be negative feedback

[@kubeldzis]

I love the fact that you zoom in at 100% every time you show your photos.