Rexatar 200mm f/3.3 MC Auto (Makinon)

2017.04.13 - Published

2021.08.18 - Re-written, re-uploaded

Rexatar/Makinon

200mm f/3.3

MC Auto

Maker - Makina Optical

Focal Length - 200mm

Focusing - Manual, non-AF

Focus Throw - 270 degrees

Minimum Focusing - 3 meters

Filter Thread Ø - 67mm

Aperture - f/3.3 - f/22

Iris Blades - 6

Optical Formula - 4 elements

Built-in retractable hood

Made in Japan

Also sold under other names:

Promaster, Hanimex, Prinzflex,

Super Paragon, Porst,

Magnon, Revue, CPC Phase 2,

Chinon, Revuenon, Olympia,

Kitstar, Helios, Presenta

Photo Album:

https://photos.app.goo.gl/qKAZacExbWDX8Cxi7

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Impressions

The Rexatar 200mm f/3.3 MC Auto was made by Makina Optical (their lens brand is 'Makinon'). My copy came in M42 mount and I only had a Nikon DSLR at the time (see 'flange distance'). I'm able to use this lens but it cannot focus to infinity and up to a few meters only. A little tweak of the rear element helped me achieve this but I returned it to its original alignment later.

This Rexatar 200mm f/3.3 MC Auto (Makinon) was plagued with hazy elements like my other Makinon lenses (Makinon 28mm f/2.8, Makinon 80-200mm f/4.5 Macro). The fungus was easy to clean but the haze was only partially removed after many tries; we can only test the lens in this defective state. The haze was on the periphery of the elements, so using it on APS-C should crop out the hazy edges.

The focusing ring on this lens is smooth with a bit of resistance. The built-in retractable hood is long enough for this telephoto lens. Overall, it feels like a tough all-metal build. There's an A-M ring that changes the lens between automatic and manual diaphragm; this is particular to M42-mount lenses only.

Btw, I used an M42 to Nikon adapter with an optical glass that allows for infinity, supposedly. I can't remember now if these were shot with the element on the adapter or if I removed them and tweaked the lens rear element instead. If I ever did shoot with the extra element on the adapter, then the shots would have been cropped a bit, darker by one stop, and less bokeh than original; I probably only used it for landscape shots. Most of them especially the portraits didn't need infinity and were shot without the extra glass. The advantage is that I can shoot closer with this lens than its intended minimum focusing of 3 meters. The lens can focus farthest at around 5+ meters without the extra glass on the M42-Nikon adapter; this applies to Nikon DSLRs only (see 'flange distance').

The color rendition is neutral with no color shift compared to other vintage lenses. It also has a pleasing rendering of colors and moderate contrast. Shooting indoor produces fine output as if using a modern kit lens; shooting outdoor especially with sunlight does make the images glow, which is perfect for dreamy portraits (see below) as if shot with film not digital. I don't see the softness as a negative. If you stop down to f/5.6, it does become sharp and gain a strong contrast; the purple fringing also disappears when stopped down. The Rexatar/Makinon 200mm f/3.3 is just the perfect vintage lens for dreamy portraits; great but cheap alternative to Nikkors and Takumars.

Makina Optical was founded in 1967 and originally sold their lenses under third party names like Vivitar (serial starts with '#32xxx'), Soligor, Hanimex, Promaster etc. They began selling under their own name 'Makinon' from 1975, with a complete range of primes and zooms. Their 28mm f/2.8 was well regarded. Makinon user community suspect that the company later contracted others to make their lenses (eg. Sigma or Samyang). They disappeared around 1985 when AF lenses were introduced to the market.

The M42 thread mount was first introduced in 1949 and became known as the 'Praktica thread mount'. It was popularly used by Pentax SLRs and became more known at the 'Pentax thread mount' instead.