The Helios 44 Shoots HOLLYWOOD BLOCKBUSTERS!

[@hejakma4682]

Two days ago i watched Dune II with my son and immediately recognized the vintage look of some scenes.

[@sharkpyro93]

i have one of these, a 44-2 58mm f2, got it at a flea market for 20eur in near mint condition, its my fave lens for years now, some professional photographer and videomaker were baffled when they realize that my best shots were made with this lens

[@justlikeswimming5988]

About 5 years ago I tried the helios 44 on my digital aps-c sensor camera, most the swirl was cropped out but the images were wonderful, so full of character. Soon after I went full-on film camera and never looked back. The helios 44 is a magical lens, highly recommend! Thanks for a great review about the excellence of such a common, yet wonderful, lens.

[@Tintara369]

I bought my silver Helios, 13 blade for 30 usd together with the zenit body 3 months ago. The seller didn't know what he was selling, while I was smiling with satisfaction. I will not sell this piece as long as I live, regardless of the fact that I can get 10 times the price for it. Sharpness at f2 is very sharp. The colors are just as beautiful as the Minolta colors and the bokeh is a dream.

[@arcanics1971]

Apparently the 44/2 has been used for many scenes in recent years- from The Batman to gosh knows what- but not for full films as a rule. It remains one of my fave lenses.

[@jwhs]

For Dune Pt 2 it was part of the primary lens package with the Mir-1V, the Jupiter 9, and Helios 40-2; with the two most used lenses on the film being the Jupiter 9 and Helios 44-2.

[@Davidh741]

1.) Buy thousands copies of the various base optics, and checking them to find the cleanest and best quality copies. 2.) Spend several years of R&D designing a state of the art lens housing designed to withstand the rigours of a movie set. 3.) Buy several state of the art CNC milling machines and lathes to produce all the parts needed for the lens rehousing… all metal - no 3D printing. 4.) Remove the optics from their originally housings, clean and recenter them. 5.) Pay highly trained technicians to assemble the lenses. 6.) Project and check the lenses - adjust as required until they are on spec.

[@zenography7923]

They're re-housed, sure, and the price of the Ironglass kit reflects that. But when all's said and done the lens elements are the same, and a similar look can be had by anyone who can afford £40 for an ordinary Helios 44 from ebay.

[@ブラウンクリストファー]

I have been shooting with the 44M4 for several years on my GFX 50R where it easily covers the 55mm diagonal image sensor. Holding it up to the light it looks like the image circle might be 65mm+ while the Arri 65 sensor is apparently 60mm diagonal. Seeing Dune 2 in the theater - and knowing nothing of its production - I still knew instantly that helios bokeh in the scene with the emperor! If you ever get a chance I must highly recommend the GFX (50R) platform for vintage SLR lenses. Besides fuji film simulations applied to FF one of the major benefits is the in-camera cropping options. The sensor is native 3:4 but you can shoot 5:4, 6:7, 1:1, 6x17, 16:9, 3:2, or just engage "35mm crop mode" which takes you back to 24x36mm central crop at the push of a button. Even vintage lenses that don't completely cover in 44x33 (FD 50/1.4, most 28mm or wider lenses) can at least break out of the imposed 3:2 AR while retaining their full rendering potential, ie I like to shoot my Rokkor 58/1.2 in 1:1 (46mm diagonal). On medium format the helios 44 in particular is fully unleashed, at the right distances the swirly bokeh is substantially increased. Counterintuitively the lens even gets sharp out to the corners stopped down past f11

[@zenography7923]

Would love to try the Helios on a GFX, it sounds like quite a remarkable combination! Thanks for looking in.

[@ChasWG]

Another interesting film to watch where they used a bunch of different vintage lenses and a recent Oscar winner is "Poor Things." A very, very artsy film. Probably not one you want to watch with small children, but a very interesting look all the way through the film. And there are many scenes that were obviously shot using a rehoused 44 or 44-2. I myself own a 44-2 Type 5 from BeLOMO (1983 build) and a Valdi 44M-6 (1991 build). I find both of those lenses to be very nice. The later 44M-6 doesn't seem to swirl as easily as the 44-2, but it still does and it has stronger contras, colors and maybe a wee bit sharper. But I use them both a lot. And they perform well with extension tubes or bellows as macro lenses. I have many macro shots taken with both Helios lens and they do a really great job. Not all lenses translate well to macro, these do!

[@MICHELE_et_LANCE]

For Poor Things the cinematographer used Petzval lenses for the swirls.

[@JohnDevitt]

Among the lenses used in Poor Things were peculiar exemplars such as the rare portrait Petzvals (58mm and 85mm), built for projectors more than 100 years ago. These are known for their distinct bend bokeh with a sharp focus in the center and crazy spiral shallowness on the sides.

[@tomjanowski8584]

I've been shooting with the 44-2 all weekend, sometimes with just the front element reversed, sometimes with just the rear element reversed, sometimes with both front and ear reversed and sometimes unmodified with an extension tube. It was my first vintage lens, it is my most used vintage lens.

[@zenography7923]

It's a great little lens, enjoy!

[@user-bs6rv4kc8x]

Да, время изменилось. Я помню ещё время после распада СССР... конец 90х годов или начало 2000х. Многие фотографы и фотолюбители ,по крайней мере в Москве, ругали гелиос-44 из-за того, что резкость была только в центре кадра. А по полю и краям разрешающая способность сильно падала. Часто ругали Гелиосы, да помню было такое. Многие предпочитали более темный но действительно хороший Индустар-61 лз 2,8/50.Также с многочисленными "Зенитами" был и крошечный индустар-50 3,5/50. Зенитар -м 1,7/50 ценился. Это действительно прекрасный и очень резкий объектив. Менее его МС Зенитар -м 1,9/50 . Также был весьма удачный Гелиос-77 1,8/50. Потом пошли пластмассовые Зенитары 2/50, достаточно резкие по полю и краям, с приятным рисунком , но к сожалению с неудачной механикой. Объективы 50 мм ГДР , Pancolar/Pentacon и прочие...тоже ценились гораздо выше Гелиосов-44. А сейчас Гелиос с его архаичной схемой и артефактами ценим и востребован... у него масса поклонников.

[@danm3d]

Nostalgia is a powerful drug

[@zenography7923]

Странно, как меняются времена и мода, ведь вещи воспринимаются по-другому. У этих старых линз определенно новый день! It's strange how times and fashions change as things are perceived differently. Those old lenses are certainly having a new day!

[@moykumir]

Все равно сложно себя заставить иначе посмотреть не объектив, который ты начал использовать новым. У меня отец купил Зенит с Гелиосом 44-3 в 1993-м году. Он у меня до сих пор есть, и остался в отличном состоянии. Но тогда он снимал лучше, чем китайские мыльницы, а сейчас все его дефекты исключительно хорошо видно на современых сенсорах. Даже для 4/3", когда, как кажется, берется только цент, слишком уж много аберраций.

[@E17TV]

​@zenography7923 I have a KMZ Helios 44-2 given to me attached to a Zenit E camera by a relative back in the late 1970's. Needless to say, both are in very clean condition (and the unique smell of the camera as I open the leather case is just wonderful). The lens however is getting a little stiff to use and probably needs a CLA but my concern is where to get it serviced. Can you recommend an service agent or somebody with a good reputation that I could entrust the repair to? Thanks in advance and keep up the excellent videos too, I really enjoy them.

[@NiGhtPiSH]

I need to service my Helios 44-M-4, the focus has started slipping. A nice cleaning and new grease will make it like new.

[@David_Quinn1995]

the Helios lenses are some of my favorite for nature photography, I think its the right lens to set the mood of Dune 2.

[@lanolinlight]

People call these looks "vintage" because the glass is old, but I have always considered the imagery as simply organic--not nostalgic. They can be as modern as anything else. There are several modern lens makers that offer this naturalism as well.

[@zenography7923]

I guess 'organic' is a good way to put it!

[@danm3d]

It's insane how much the price has skyrocketed for one of these since The Batman. Soon we'll be lucky to find them for under $100

[@TheSynthnut]

Really good to see some optical creativity rather than the painfully, hyper-sharp digital feel of many features. It should be remembered that when stills folk talk of 35mm format, the gate size is considerably larger than for it's motion picture brethren. Stills shoot in line with the film path, cinema shoots are right angles, resulting in a reduced frame size.

[@zenography7923]

It's roughly the size of the aps-c sensor I believe.

[@fistfulloflenses]

love your channel ,this is the lens that started my vintage lens obsession

[@scottnelle]

This was my first vintage lens, too. I think probably purchased based on an earlier review from your channel! The construction on mine feels incredible and robust. Maybe the best feeling lens I have, modern or vintage. I love it!

[@robstammers7149]

I'm desperately searching for a Helios 44 but prices are just shooting up,another brilliant and informative video Nigel, thanks mate. Regards Rob.

[@zenography7923]

Glad you enjoyed it, thanks.

[@jasonwhitehead4068]

I like to think Greg Fraser found out about this lens form your brilliant channel 😊 keep up the great work

[@zenography7923]

Thanks!

[@PanAmStyle]

I have the 44-M2 but haven’t used it in a long time. I should bring it out and use on a M42 body or with adapter on my XPro as a portrait lens.

[@GrainOnTheGo]

So glad I got a few copies of the lens at low prices. Not planning to sell, might even rehouse them for my other mounts

[@philipjewer5275]

Another great video. Blimey! I had no idea the Helios has become so popular - especially for cinematography. It was the lens I had on my first SLR (Zenit EM) back in the late 80s & I loved it. I think it was a 44M - it's still in a box upstairs somewhere so I'd better dig it out!

[@zenography7923]

It sounds like it needs an airing!

[@philipjewer5275]

Certainly does! I found the Helios over the weekend & gave it a clean - seems in decent shape so time to give it some use.

[@Aviopic]

The m39/42 line up is 44(8 in chrome and black & 13blade in chrome only), 44-2, 44-3, 44M, 44M-4 to 44M-7. The black one shown is most likely Valdai, the Belomos had the zebra design and the black KMZ has white lettering rather than green. Than there are rare versions like a 44(Start bayonet), 44M-2(Zenit-ET), 44-1 and 44-7(Zenit-7 bayonet), 44-D(Zenit-D auto) and 44K version(Zenit K bayonet) and probably some I forgot to mention. There is no difference between KMZ and Belomos versions, in fact the Belomos plant was setup in full cooperation with KMZ and many 44s were produced by Belomos for KMZ. The noted difference in performance are not related to the manufacturing plant but just down to the broader quality acceptance, test 10 KMZs and I'll bet you'll find the same difference in contrast, colour and sharpness. I'm servicing, repairing and selling these things for over 10 years and unless one is very familiar with the ex- and internals of the 44 there is no way to know what's offered/sold, a KMZ marked 44*** isn't necessarily a KMZ, I've come across many many mixed bags of items from different plants, dates and version combined in 1 KMZ or whatever. These things have been taken apart many times in their 50-65 years of existence that one can only be sure of the 13 blade which was exclusively produced by KMZ but even than the elements might have been replaced at some point in time.

[@zenography7923]

I guess there's no telling the true history of any one lens! Thanks for the info.

[@JLongTom]

Dune 2 was shot on digital, transferred to film, and then the film was scanned back to digital. Pretty amazing process which was done to filter the excessive sharpness of the digital image.

[@chrisbille]

The 44m-7 is a great one too

[@mamiyapress]

Good video @1:25 as always.

[@zenography7923]

Thanks!

[@AnthonySherritt]

I figured the magical swirled bokeh in POOR THINGS was the work of the Helios.

[@MICHELE_et_LANCE]

Petzval

[@JohnDevitt]

Among the lenses used in Poor Things were peculiar exemplars such as the rare portrait Petzvals (58mm and 85mm), built for projectors more than 100 years ago. These are known for their distinct bend bokeh with a sharp focus in the center and crazy spiral shallowness on the sides.

[@kruno7150]

There's a theory that Soviet lenses made around 1958 have much better quality control due to participating in World Expo-58 in Brussels. Most famous lens with GP Brussels 1958 gold medal is Mir -1 but Helios-44 13 blade silver was also there, just didnt won the prize. Soviet lenses who won the gold medal are: MP-2 Russar, Mir-1, Tair-11, Tair-3 , MTO-500 and MTO-1000. Lenses which were part of exhibition but did not won any prize: Helios-40, Helios-44, Industar-26, Industar-37 4.5/300, Industar-50, Industar-51 4.5/210, Mercury-1 2/50, Orion-15, TK-115 5.6/115, Jupiter-3, Jupiter-6, Jupiter-8, Jupiter-9, Jupiter-11, Jupiter-12 & YuK-80 2.5/80. very interesting theory, I must say :) I have 2 lenses from that period (helios-44 1960 and mir-1 1959) and i find results from them much more pleasant than later versions

[@rcordiner]

Scenes in 'Poor Things' were shot on the Lomography Petzval

[@silvaverborum1591]

Helios 44+macro rings+reverse front element=unique look

[@StanNoteboom]

It’s more likely than not that every shot has been post-processed with a CLUT applied, to set the mood of the scene. I would not judge color and contrast from movies, everything on screen has been worked on in post. Your stills show the real colors available from that lens. I have the 44-2, black, but prefer the last, the 44m-7. Beautiful color. Sharp.

[@zenography7923]

Movie footage is sure to have been graded, but the initial look is set by the lens I guess.

[@simonc4764]

@@zenography7923 Helios 44 I find has a very nice highlight roll off. In a recent shoot I have the brand new Sigma Art 24-70 MkII and although it was way sharper across the field it was so contrasty and it just did'nt do it for me in the the light and dark scene I was shooting and look like video. The Helios 44-2 left it in the dust for most film like and pleasant look. To get the Sigma to be any where near that look I would need a 1/2 strength Black Pro Mist filter, diffusion lightings and maybe a smoke machine.

[@zoppotromp1958]

Thank you for the exciting information! Practical fact: there also was a version with Nikon F-mount. This means if you shoot Nikon SLRs, analogue or digital, you can use those without any lens containing adapter!

[@zenography7923]

I didn't know that, thanks for the info!

[@silvaverborum1591]

I recently found a bargain and bought 13 blades KMZ Helios 44 for 40GBP, lovely lens !

[@activemessiah]

Nice! was it ebay?

[@silvaverborum1591]

@@activemessiah Nah, Im from Poland. Sometimes you can buy it really cheap at eastern european markets

[@activemessiah]

@@silvaverborum1591 Ah I see... The upside of living in a that region is that you guys have access to alot of these lenses.

[@silvaverborum1591]

@@activemessiah I was born and raised in Poland but from time to time I live in the UK. Poland have its adventages - cheap stuff from soviet era is one of them, but also food is less processed and delicious. Climate is harsher than in the UK and obviously salaries are lower.

[@simonc4764]

@@silvaverborum1591 I had a video shoot in the UK with a model from Poland last week with a Helios 44-2 made in Belomo in 1974. Some say Belomo is better than KMZ, others say they are similar but most only recommend KMZ.

[@WhiskyLock]

Great info and history. Thanks for this.

[@SloopJohnBeeRockabilly]

Yes, I’ve seen it used in TV documentaries 👍📸

[@crazygeorgelincoln]

Picked up a 3rd m7 recently, the first 2 have very different coatings, (still planning my many helioses video but I have had some serious issues to circumnavigate the past year and a bit) the progression of the coating has a pattern, despite many identical lenses having different colours. Not so easy to find a cheap fixer upper at the moment , if I have to strip defungus push out dents , lubricate and even maybe polish the glass I'm not paying over 20. (Might be showing my age LOL). Outside the frame is interesting on these ,personally cant stretch to obtaining a 6x6 sensor however my full frame +33% speed booster is one of my favourite toys.

[@zenography7923]

That sounds like a very cool toy!

[@silvaverborum1591]

1.29s trailer - scene with Emperor - Helios swirly bokeh :)

[@northstar1950]

Just as an aside and talking about lenses still used in the film industry.........the British made Cooke lenses are often used in the film industry. These are seriously expensive so I believe but we are still in there. I only have one Russian lens in my collection and that's a Helios f2 58mm Helios 44M-4 which was given to me my a pal and attached to a Zenit 12 XP. I have used it both on thee camera and attached to a digital camera and it gives rather nice results. Very interesting vlog :)

[@zenography7923]

Interesting to hear about the Cooke lenses, thanks for the info.

[@colinbluth5461]

hard to go bad with them helios, even the defective ones are fun to play with, due to their price :)

[@dgmwitz]

Do you have any experience with the Industar 69 28mm f2.8?

[@Warrior_Resisting_Colonialism]

These can be modified for Nikon F mount too! Not everyone converts them properly though! A seller on ebay from the UK modifies them 100% function though. They focus to infinity with NO risk of hitting the mirror! I just got a 44M-4 from him and it works perfect! You have to pay to have it done though, so it's like twice the cost for Nikon F users but, it's still just a hundred bucks total so. If you watch his vids, you can see how he modifies them by shaving down the F mount conversion mount and then internally adjusting to match the new thickness of the mount, so they work as if they were made for Nikon F 100% this is way you want to have it done. This way too, it doesn't matter which plant made it, cus he's going through the lens and if there was any quality control issue, he's addresses it while in there, so it's going to work as great as they were made in any of the plants, really. I ended up with a 44-M4 Valdai Type 6 (originally known for the lowest quality control plant) and I'm sure it's as good as they came now, from any of the plants. You just have to know, these lenses are ALL super soft around the center. They're fun creative vintage lenses. It's this flaw that makes them fun. They're not sharp corner to corner like normal lenses, however once you get past the 44-2 you can stop them down and take normal photos too and they look good and sharp at f8/f11 all over too. I'm not sure you can get anything out of the 44-2 other than a sharp center, all through it's range, maybe, but not from what I've heard. The 44-2 is said to be the easiest one for creating swirling background blur with. Though they all can..But best I can tell, doesn't have much other use, this is why I went for the 44m-4.

[@zenography7923]

It's a cool little lens for sure, enjoy!

[@dawnd9222]

I just got a 44M-4 KMZ from Ukraine. I already have a 44M KMZ cine mod from Ukraine that I love love and wanted a non cine. This lens makes me so happy.

[@simonc4764]

I picked up a Helios 13 blades on ebay the seller mistakenly advertised it as 8 blades with a low BIN and I made an offer of £57 and was accepted. I saw 13 blades on the picture and the serial number is correct, cant believe the mistake because the seller sells vintage camera gears and got the decription spot on for an 8 blades so maybe a mistake from the person doing the listing?

[@moykumir]

The 44-3 is only one with multicoating

[@jacquesnel8384]

Such a pity the lens has to be modified to work on Nikon bodies in order to reach infinity focus. Works great on Fujifilm bodies !

[@msturi2002]

I just can't seem to find one here in US. Ebay offers them from Russia or Ukraine but they're over 300 USD.

[@RH-adventure]

Also Shogun TV series used these lenses.

[@cwkronenberg9838]

Yo bro. what ya mean by "i have a 'copy' of this lens?? is that not the actual Helios 44 lens featured here?

[@sclogse1]

It's a language glitch. Otherwise you have to say, "I have one of them."

[@Warrior_Resisting_Colonialism]

A "copy" of a lens, simply means you have one. Example as used in a sentence; "My copy of the 44-2 Helios is in very good condition, but there are copies known to have be made in some production plants, that didn't have the best quality control, so your copy may very."

Being used in some blockbusters won't help to keep the price of those lenses low...

[@Archontasil]

i had helios 44-4. I love it but it perform really bad against the light, the contrast is gone. I can't imagine using it to shoot dune. I gues the 44-2 is better against light than 44-4? Retrofotohouse ,a ukrainian youtuber who specializes in retro lens, said the 1st helios 44 was produced when stalin was still around and you could get shot if the quality of production decrease, but later on when stalin wasn't around anymore, the quality decrease over time.

[@sclogse1]

It's called a lens hood.

[@spectralcav]

The original lenses used pretty basic single coatings. It sounds like they were 'upgraded' to modern multi-coatings in the Iron Glass rehoused lenses and that would help immensely. Hood would also help with side light but not with direct back-lighting.

[@Warrior_Resisting_Colonialism]

Actually, the latter the version, the BETTER they get. 44-2 being the worst, and as you get to 44-4, and 44-6 and 44-7, the better still, especially the MC versions. But a lens hood makes them all good.

[@Archontasil]

@@Warrior_Resisting_Colonialism what's mc version? I had the 44-4 but i trade it for pentacon 50 f1.8 for that creamy oil paint bokeh

[@spectralcav]

@@Warrior_Resisting_Colonialism Having owned almost every variant of the Helios 44 over the past decade, I personally prefer the earlier lenses. I use vintage lenses for the 'vintage look' they provide. The later lenses are more refined which, while making them 'better' in terms of resolution across the frame at wider apertures, more flare resitant etc, this refinement essentially makes them less vintage, or less characterful if you prefer. Which lens is better depends on what you're looking for from the lens. Just my opinion!

[@StitchTheOtter]

I love the Dune movies and im currently trying to get all of the (affordable) lenses used

[@AI3Dorinte]

Waiting for my copy from Ukraine, i did pay a lot for it, but those people need more money than I do. Thank you for the content, always love it and Slava Ukraini!

[@sclogse1]

I ordered a Tair 135mm lens from Ukraine and it arrived with a set of filters in a special case in what I would call new condition. I hoped to get cool stamps with it but that's not how shipping works now. It's amazing to get something with 20 aperture blades in the mail...

[@AI3Dorinte]

@@sclogse1 happy to hear that, you got yourself a gem right there! :) fingers crossed my lens arrives in the promised condition, so hyped to give it a try! :)

[@jimglenwright34]

I have seen some great deals from Ukraine, but have resisted due to assumption it’s a scam, that was even before the Russian invasion. However, that is with many of the eastern bloc countries.

[@dawnd9222]

I ordered 2 one a cine mod from Ukraine for the same reason. Very pleased with what I got. I feel like you get what you pay for and worth paying a bit more. No regrets here.

[@cre8tifff]

Slava Ukraini!

[@rossimusicinc]

Thanks again. Another great informative video.