Assignment number two was a seemingly simple bicycle product shot. Bicycles are unique in that they can be placed more or less completely in the focal plane. This allows me to shoot with a large aperture, keep most of the bike in focus, (the ends of the handlebars being the exceptions) and easily loose any background distractions in out of focus bokeh. The Sears 55mm 1:1.4 was selected for its shallow depth of field potential. But after a few starts and stops I realized the lens was not delivering. Sure, the background was nicely blurred. But at F1.4 and F2.0 the bicycle was not especially sharp. I didn't expect too much at 1.4 but at 2.0, which was better than 1.4, I expected sufficient sharpness.

A quick series of sample shots were taken and analyzed. Stopping down two stops is said to bring out the best of most lenses. I found that this lens did not behave like most lenses. Each stop of aperture from 1.4 to 5.6 increased the sharpness a little more until, at 5.6, it was at about it's best. Instead of two stops from wide open to optimal sharpness, this lens wanted four stops to achieve optimal sharpness. These tests also revealed noticeable vignetting up to f2.8.

At this point I was just looking for a reason to move on to something else. Unfortunately, I found it.

A non assignment that required low light photography came up. The Sears, being the fastest lens I owned, was chosen. But the shutter speeds weren't that much faster than the Tamron 17-50mm 1:2.8 zoom I often use. A few comparisons were done against two 50mm 1:1.8 lenses. It turns out that both 50mm 1:1.8 lenses were approximately 1/3 of a stop faster than the Sears 55mm 1:1.4. I retested to verify that my results were correct. I inspected the Sears to verify the aperture blades were opening fully. And then I retested again. It is possible the yellowing was costing the lens a stop of light. Maybe the manufacturer stretched the meaning of 1:1.4. Regardless, this Sears 55mm wasn't fulfilling it's role as a low light lens.

And with that sad bit of news the love affair ended.

Which was too bad because the lens does have positive traits. It reminds me of the high quality manual focus gear produced when I first entered photography. I saw no other bad traits such as excessive flare or lack of contrast. The color rendition, which was being manipulated by Canon's auto white balance, could not be accurately commented on.

Caution should be exercised when judging other Sears 55mm 1:1.4 lenses. I may have had a poor quality copy. Maybe the yellowing affected the sharpness AND the light transmission. I cannot say for sure. Despite this lenses respectable reputation I didn't find it to be 'keeper'.