Possibly the smallest full frame lens in the world, the Industar 50/50-2 is my favourite 50mm optic when it comes to achieving a truly vintage black and white look.

Due to the lack of coatings, this lens can flare quite a bit and produce a halation effect on the highlights, qualities that can be used artistically with great effect to produce a true vintage looking image. I guess these effects could also be due to aging, as a matter of fact my Industars 50-2, from 1970 and 1971 respectively, behave in a different way when hit by a direct light source, the first one producing a circular rainbow flare, not present in the second one.

The limited edition Industar 50 "Red п" model does have a coating and it is an effective one, as it eliminates the halation effect the uncoated versions produce.

Based on the Tessar design, it has, just like the Tessar, a very smooth bokeh rendering and good colors but it does not have the same minimum focusing distance, an element that makes the Tessar more versatile.

In my experience, the 50-2 model is slightly sharper than the earlier Industar 50.

Because of its sharpness at f3.5 and its impractical aperture ring, the Industar could be better used as a set and forget lens, closing the aperture only when it's absolutely necessary (landscapes, cityscapes, etc). This simplicity, its small size and its image quality make it very appealing in my opinion.

Most of the images below were captured with my 50-2 from 1970.

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Why use the Industar 50/50-2:

1) Light and compact, very inconspicuous

2) Sharpness

3) Great black and white rendering and contrast

4) The perfect vintage black and white street photography 50mm lens in my opinion

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Weaknesses:

1) Minimum focusing distance of 0.65m

2) The aperture ring is very small, impractical and difficult to grab

3) The maximum f3.5 aperture makes the lens limited in low light situations

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