Classic Lenses Podcast

#145 Screaming Raccoon Podcast

19 Aug 2021

Contributed by Lukas

So, after a summer break, it’s time again to brush up on your 2nd Grade classical history and moderately-sized furry mammal knowledge as it will be ...

Classic Lenses Podcast Presents: Cocaine & Waffles, The End of the Line (Final Episode)

20 May 2021

Contributed by Lukas

The Final Chapter of the Cocaine & Waffles Podcast Experiment  Starring: Mike Eckman  Johnny Sisson  Theo Panagopoulos Anthony Rue  Mark Faulk...

#144 Vivitastic!

18 May 2021

Contributed by Lukas

A slew of Vivitar purchases by Simon is the inspiration for a Vivitar special show where we give something of a potted history of the once great Ameri...

Classic Lenses Podcast Presents: Cocaine & Waffles, Episode 1

13 May 2021

Contributed by Lukas

The Cocaine & Waffles Podcast Experiment  Starring: Mike Eckman  Johnny Sisson  Cheyenne Morrison  Perry Ge  Mike Novak Anthony Rue  Eric En...

#143 Isabel Curdes And Her Desert Island Lenses

22 Apr 2021

Contributed by Lukas

In July, 2019 (Episode #77), we thoroughly enjoyed having the rare talent that is Isabel Curdes on the show, so we are delighted to able to maroon her...

#142 Global GAS

26 Mar 2021

Contributed by Lukas

There's something in the air, it's almost tangible... that's right it's pent up GAS, and we've just released it! Perry finally (and properly) breaks h...

#141 Classic Lenses Land Of Confusion

06 Mar 2021

Contributed by Lukas

It appears that taking a month off has not helped with the intelligence and lens knowledge of the three hosts. Perry struggles with cleaning marks, Si...

#140 City By The Sea With Anil Mistry

31 Jan 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Anil’s back and he’s brought his Unusual Eye with him. It’s just as well that we had Anil booked as Johnny had a Red Dot course to attend and co...

#139 The Classic Digital Camera Podcast

17 Jan 2021

Contributed by Lukas

We're back and winter lockdown boredom is playing havoc with our minds. What else could explain our desire to talk about early digital point and shoot...

#138 Vlad Kern, Part 2, Approved Version

19 Dec 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Vlad Kern returns this week for another deep dive into the photographic world of the Former Soviet Union. We cover an extensive list of topics, includ...

#137 Super-tele Wallaroo

06 Dec 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Following a lengthy discussion on stray Australian marsupials, we dive into a host of more pressing questions this week. Will Perry succumb to Rodenst...

#136 Emails, Part Trois

21 Nov 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Just when you thought that we could not keep it up for two weeks on the trot, another show turns up like a bad penny. The week sees us reach the final...

#135 il Buono il Brutto il Gutterman

13 Nov 2020

Contributed by Lukas

A short catch up this week along with a superficial comparison between the Pentax 50mm f/1.2 and the Konica 57mm f/1.2. The main event being part two ...

#134 I Mentioned Indiana, But I Think I Got Away With It...

29 Oct 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Well we’ve had a three week break and it’s done us the world of good. We’re more relaxed and less opinionated than ever. A mountain of quality e...

#133 Yo Gutterman, Where's My Pizza?

06 Oct 2020

Contributed by Lukas

The much anticipated Frozen Pizza Episode is now here. SPOILER ALERT! Chicago Deep Dish Pizza is garbage (according to Simon). Trans Am Mullet Man Sex...

#132 Abstinence and Rodinal With A Twist Of Lemon

23 Sep 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Simon strikes gold with a great haul of interesting lenses, Perry gives up buying cameras and lenses for the rest of 2020, (there are caveats…) and ...

#131 BESSADACTYL

16 Sep 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Just when Simon thought that Johnny and Perry would be done talking about rangefinders after last week’s great show with Dan Tamarkin, he was proven...

#130 Dan Tamarkin and the Leica Hysterical Society

07 Sep 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Johnny and Perry's wildest dreams comes true! We are joined by none other than Dan Tamarkin of Tamarkin Camera in Chicago, America's Premiere Leica Sp...

#129 Cometh The Hour, Cometh The Eckman

31 Aug 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Mike Eckman makes an overdue reappearance and we catch up on some of the things he’s been up to recently with his classic camera review website, www...

#128 Simon's Table Of Gear

24 Aug 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Simon did not get the chance to do an update on his latest gear related activity last week, so he more than makes up for it this week. Pleanty of Mami...

#127 Retina Flare Goatsecx

17 Aug 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Version 1: After two weeks of having guests on the show, Perry is bursting at the seams to tell us what he’s acquired. Although we finally get a sho...

#126 Cheddar Man, Lens Bugs, and Camera Repair

12 Aug 2020

Contributed by Lukas

UK camera and lens repair guy, Lyndon Booth of Londinium Cameras dropped in for a chat and to answer listener emails. We had a great time with Lyndon ...

#125 The Kaleidoscopic World of Mike Epstein

03 Aug 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Regular listeners will recognis(z)e the name Mike Epstein as he's a friend of Perry's and also starred in a video we have on our YouTube channel. Mike...

#124 Xenotar or Planar? Not a Tessar, obvs

27 Jul 2020

Contributed by Lukas

On last week’s show, Perry got big Rolleiflex GAS, so big that he was forced to buy one. SPOILER ALERT! However, Perry’s path to Xenotar enlighten...

#123 So Many Things Today Are Making Sense...

20 Jul 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Having tried and failed at math(s) last week, this week you can listen us decipher cryptic numbers and pictograms from the mid-20th Century. If that s...

#122 Subjective Facts

14 Jul 2020

Contributed by Lukas

We’ve been doing it wrong all the time: Perry explains why we should be relying on math(s) to help use choose which lenses to take with us on a phot...

#121 Blooming Nick Lyle

01 Jul 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Nick Lyle, our guest from Show #61 (and the Homemade Camera Podcast), makes a triumphant return this week. Nick helps us out with a range of topics in...

#120 Simon’s Rokkor Glow

22 Jun 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Simon's newly acquired Minolta X-500 appears to melting his stone cold heart when it comes to all things Rokkor, but don't get too excited, it's more ...

#119 Perry's Knob

15 Jun 2020

Contributed by Lukas

After throwing knobs in #89, Perry returns to the subject this week with an in depth discussion of his favorite appendage as well as his lockdown GAS ...

#118 Central Camera Company Update

06 Jun 2020

Contributed by Lukas

A short episode about current events that strike close to home. Johnny provides local insights the destruction of Central Camera Company in Chicago as...

#117 Lenses from the Cupboard

26 May 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Back from the defeat by Mike Novak on last week’s Pub Quiz show, we’re handling it well, or at least two of us are. This week Simon opens his lens...

#116 Are Asian Pears Apples?

19 May 2020

Contributed by Lukas

So you think you know about lenses? Come and have a go at the Classic Lenses Podcast Pub Quiz! Quizmaster Perry Ge puts hosts Johnny & Simon against e...

#115 Cookes and Bokinas and Takoomas, Oh Myyy!

11 May 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Johnny has been allowed back into our own Facebook group and his ban seems to have done him and everybody else a world of good. The sun has been shini...

#114 Bokakkeh

04 May 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Something of a quickie this week, but we managed to unload plenty of lens talk as well as discuss Chris Holland’s lens buying guide and introduce a ...

#113 Karl's Desert Island Lenses

27 Apr 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Dr Karl Havens left us a year ago this week and we still miss him dearly. To mark his passing, we take Karl’s memory to our desert island and do our...

#112 We Asked, You Told Us

20 Apr 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Johnny could not be with us this week, he’s felling a little better but he has other pressing concerns, so Perry and Simon man up and take on the ma...

#111 Squaring The Conceptually Circular Hat Box

06 Apr 2020

Contributed by Lukas

We're back after another two week lockdown lay-off and it seems that few things have changed. None of us has gone outside to shoot, Perry is digging L...

#110 Coronavirus, Photography, Redactions and Me

23 Mar 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Oh boy... The world has changed a little in the two weeks since our last recording, but thankfully Perry wants to talk about Exakta and Topcon lenses....

#109 Negative Pixl-latr Lab Pro

10 Mar 2020

Contributed by Lukas

It’s finally here: we’ve made the long-awaited Digitization Special! In this episode we are joined by two titans of the digitization world, Hamish...

#108 Is That A Helicoid In Your Vest Pocket?

02 Mar 2020

Contributed by Lukas

It's Pulaski Day in Chicago, and we're celebrating by talking about adapting lenses. We lose Simon part way through the episode, but Perry and Johnny ...

#107 Two Lenses and a Pimp

25 Feb 2020

Contributed by Lukas

The dust has only just settled from the fallout from last week’s show, as we had a record number of comments made about it in our small but perfectl...

#106 Ride wit Mistry

18 Feb 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Anil Mistry makes a very welcome return to CLP Towers this week and there’s not a Leica or RF lens in sight, much to the relief to those aspiring st...

#105 Crononavirus Snowpacolypse Hotdog Stand

10 Feb 2020

Contributed by Lukas

This week, Perry discusses life and photography in Hong Kong on Coronavirus lockdown, Simon attempts to survive the Great Stone-on-Trent Snowpocalypse...

#104 Fringe Pinching And Funny Rainbows

04 Feb 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Johnny’s back and he’s got a new toy, Perry has moved on from shooting riots to shooting the Zombie Apocalypse that is Coronavirus Hong Kong, and ...

#103 Ethan's Briefcase Of Lenses

27 Jan 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Ethan Moses, esteemed podcast tart of Cameradactyl, Homemade Camera Podcast, and guest on every other podcast ever fame, joins us to talk about lenses...

#102 Giant Sex Bombs & Pebbledashing

21 Jan 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Not content to bring one special lens to the party, Perry brings three absolute stunners with him, while Simon’s back shooting his Sony. We also cat...

#101 Blessed Are The Eyes That See

13 Jan 2020

Contributed by Lukas

So, after our almost universally acclaimed and made for YouTube extravaganza better known as #100, we’re back on the radio/podcast. Normal service i...

#100 Jason Lane To Zemax!

07 Jan 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Our second anniversary and our 100th show. To mark the occasion professional lens designer, Jason Lane has returned and this time you get to see the s...

#99 Lenses of the Year

31 Dec 2019

Contributed by Lukas

So having done a Christmas show, the CLP has now completely sold out and done an awards show. So sit back and listen to a list of the usual winning na...

#98 Gimmie Gimmie Gimmie! CLP Wishlist for Santa

23 Dec 2019

Contributed by Lukas

The CLP breaks with tradition and actually does a Christmas show this year! So what lenses and cameras do Perry, Johnny and Simon want for Christmas? ...

#97 Anthony Rue: You've Gotta Get That!

17 Dec 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Perry is taking a tough break in Bali, so this week we go back to Karl Haven's favourite coffee, tea & chocolate shop: Volta Coffee, Tea & Chocolate! ...

#96 How Is The Water For You?

09 Dec 2019

Contributed by Lukas

All is well again at The Gilded CLP Tower as Johnny's connection problems are resolved and Perry has not been gassed (recently). Simon hands back Jere...

#95 Desert Island Lenses With Cheyenne Morrison

02 Dec 2019

Contributed by Lukas

#95 Desert Island Lenses with Cheyenne Morrison This week Cheyenne Morrison joins us as a returning guest from Down Under. We send him from the lovely...

#94 Tear Gas, Poop, and Cowboy Candy

25 Nov 2019

Contributed by Lukas

So, we tried to make a shorter show this week and ended up making our longest episode. In our defence/defense, we missed a week so we had so much to c...

Perry Ge: Hong Kong Audio Diary

19 Nov 2019

Contributed by Lukas

A special audio diary documenting Perry’s experiences photographing Hong Kong's most harrowing week since the protests began almost six months ago. ...

#93 Listeners' Emails (Eventually)

11 Nov 2019

Contributed by Lukas

We’ve not had the time to read out and discuss listener emails recently, so it’s about time we caught up with them. Well, that was the intention, ...

#92 Embedded with John R. Bruning

04 Nov 2019

Contributed by Lukas

A diverse, engaging, funny and occasionally dark conversation this week with author and former photojournalist John R. Bruning. John talks about how u...

#91 Simon Outlenses Perry

29 Oct 2019

Contributed by Lukas

We have new acquisitions, and for once, it’s not Perry bringing all the gems to the party… So we have 75mm f/1.5 Biotar talk, an almost complete C...

#90 Going To The Movies With W. S. Pivetta

22 Oct 2019

Contributed by Lukas

This week we make a departure into the world of classic lenses for cinema. We are joined by W.S (Bill) Pivetta a cinematographer and sound engineer wi...

#89 Knob Throwing And Helpful Tips

15 Oct 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Perry's back from his punishment break to Okinawa with the biggest international news story from Hong Kong. If that's not enough, he's got GAS real ba...

#88 Like, Where's Perry, Like?

07 Oct 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Banished to Okinawa for treating Graeme Jago badly last week, Perry retaliates with a list of demands about how this week’s show is conducted. The t...

#87 Jago's Bago Lenses

01 Oct 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Graeme Jago of the Sunny16 Podcast joins the guys to read some Haiku and pick a winner for the Konica lens giveaway. True to form, Mr. Jago can’t re...

#86 Cameras Don't Make Noises, People Do

23 Sep 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Deep statements such about whether a camera makes a noise or the photographer as well as, what is "whilst"? Other topics include Contax/Kiev lens adap...

#85 Kung Fu Haze, Lux Asph Ooftah, and Bokeh Pano Jags

16 Sep 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Well the title says it all, except it does not get close! So much to talk about this week as Johnny breaks a camera, Perry is exposed as an eBay noob,...

#84 Zen and the Art of a Lens Giveaway

09 Sep 2019

Contributed by Lukas

This week we catch up with listeners letters and we announce how listeners will get the chance to win Perry’s #cheaplenschallenge Konica 40mm f/1.8....

#83 A Very Novakian Podcast

02 Sep 2019

Contributed by Lukas

We mentioned that Mike Novak was in Chicago town last week, and this week we find out what he got up to on his visit with friends and our own Johnny S...

#82 Twisted And Bent Horizons

26 Aug 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Is the effectiveness of a camera's winding lever enough to justify keeping it, even though Simon can't take a decent picture with the camera for toffe...

#81 The Noble Bokeh Panorama

19 Aug 2019

Contributed by Lukas

We’ve seen much of Edward Noble’s excellent work in the Photography With Classic Lenses Facebook Group, so we asked him to join us for a chat abou...

#80 Percent Certified Simon Free

12 Aug 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Perry returns, but Simon disappears! Due to some technical difficulties at the Classic Lenses Podcast UK home office, we lose Simon part way through t...

#79 Return of the Dragonslayer

05 Aug 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Perry is still hitting the road to New Brunswick in Canada, so we've asked Eric Sluis to take time out from shooting all sorts of weird activities tha...

#78 Best Frenemies

29 Jul 2019

Contributed by Lukas

We finally get around to answering your emails this week! Seeing that Perry is gallivanting around North America, we asked frenemy of the show and the...

#77 Isabel Curdes: Epic Dicking Around With Lenses

22 Jul 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Don’t let anyone tell you that gear does not matter! Also, don’t start thinking that if you have the same gear, you can replicate the work of Isab...

#76 C/Y Contax 'N' Zeiss R GR8

15 Jul 2019

Contributed by Lukas

We went on a bit this week, or rather Simon and Perry did. Johnny went a way for a while to do some household chores, but sneaked back later hoping he...

#75 Aspherical Ooftah!

08 Jul 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Do aspherical elements improve or detract from ooftah (bokeh)? Has Johnny shot flowers with his Primoplan? Has Simon been comotosed by Tessars? These ...

#74 Simon Loves Tessars

01 Jul 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Perry loves cheap lenses, Simon digs Tessars (instead of burying or sinking them) and Johnny says nice things about bokeh with a Primoplan. An alterna...

#73 The Sonblad and Perry's "Cheap" Lenses

24 Jun 2019

Contributed by Lukas

This week, Simon watches the new promotional video for the Hasselblad CFV II digital back for Hasselblad V Series cameras and decides to make somethin...

#72 Not Medium Format Digital Per Se

17 Jun 2019

Contributed by Lukas

This week Per Edman, a full time wiseguy of the Minolta Mafia, returns with a big little camera – a Fuji GFX 50R. Is it a large format camera as som...

#71 Protests and Flower Power

10 Jun 2019

Contributed by Lukas

This week, Perry finds himself in the middle of a 1 million person strong protest demonstration, so he naturally grabs his Konica Hexar + Zeiss ZM Bio...

#70 New Beginings

03 Jun 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Perry Ge officially becomes a host of the Classic Lenses Podcast, and after an eternity, Johnny and Simon finally let him talk, and then there's no st...

#69 Desert Island Lenses with Perry Ge

27 May 2019

Contributed by Lukas

We have a full on lensgasm this week! Perry Ge is our returning guest, and we welcome him by promptly sending him away on a sinking ship to be washed ...

#68 Photographica And The Blue Bessa

20 May 2019

Contributed by Lukas

A round-up on some the things that we've been up to lately. Simon had a table at the UK's largest camera fair, Photographica 2019 in London, and went ...

#67 Remembering Karl

13 May 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Anil Mistry joins us this week to help say goodbye to our friend, Dr Karl Havens. To honor Karl's memory, his family requests donations be made to the...

#66 Karl Havens Update

06 May 2019

Contributed by Lukas

We don't have a podcast this week, but we've recorded a short update. A Classic Lenses Podcast dedicated to Karl will be out next week with Anil Mistr...

#65 Classic Karl

29 Apr 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Host of the Classic Lenses Podcast, Creator of the Photography With Classic Lenses Facebook group, Professor and Program Director at the University of...

#64 Designing Lenses With Jason Lane (Will you still love us when we’re 64?)

15 Apr 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Just when Karl, Johnny, and Simon started to think they knew about lenses, Jason Lane comes along and makes them realize how little they actually know...

#02 REAL CFNSLSP: When Podcasts Collide

08 Apr 2019

Contributed by Lukas

This week on The Real CFNSLSP: the first confirmed kill in the War to Destroy All Podcasts. Simon's PC dies, Karl's router dies, Johnny goes full idio...

#01 Classic Film Negatives Sunny Lensless Studio Podcast (CFNSLSP)

31 Mar 2019

Contributed by Lukas

This week, we present the final episode of the Classic Lenses Podcast. Our guest is The Man, The Myth, The Legend, from Fort Dodge, Iowa, USA: Mike No...

#61 Adapting and Modifying with Nick Lyle

25 Mar 2019

Contributed by Lukas

This week, Johnny and Simon are joined by Nick Lyle, one half of the Homemade Camera Podcast. Nick, when he's not being a blacksmith and an artist, li...

#60 Catching Up

18 Mar 2019

Contributed by Lukas

After last week's disaster, we take some time out to catch up with the classic lens related things we've been getting up to recently, so as usual, man...

#59 When Podcasts Go Bad And Budget Lenses Are Good

11 Mar 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Just like the song Tribute by Tenacious D, what you are about to hear is the greatest podcast ever. Tribute. Despite trying to blame Ethan Moses, Simo...

#58 The Hong Kong Scene With Perry Ge

04 Mar 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Karl is "working" again this week, but fear not, Simon & Johnny are joined by Hong Kong classic lens photographer, Perry Ge. Get the lowdown on lens d...

#57 When Fungus Attacks! with Lyndon Booth

25 Feb 2019

Contributed by Lukas

This week Lyndon of Londinium Cameras joins us to talk about classic lens repairs, none of that autofocus rubbish here! Lyndon gives out lots of advic...

#56 Coffee With Anthony Rue

18 Feb 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Never one to miss out on a free coffee, Karl makes a visit to see Volta Coffee, Tea, Chocolate and more owner, Anthony Rue. Steeped in photography his...

#55 Casually Photophiling with James Tocchio

11 Feb 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Dropping by this week is James Tocchio, founder of the excellent Casual Photophile blog and F Stop Cameras. James is a passionate user and reviewer of...

#54 How To Build Your Camera With Raffaello Palandri

04 Feb 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Like to shoot film and digital? Tired to taking two cameras into a photo shoot? You need a PONF Camera, digital and film in one! This week we are join...

#53 Wet on Wet Bokeh!

29 Jan 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Celebrating the awesomeness of the Raynox 135mm f/2.8! New acquisitions, how to price up rare lenses for eBay, Johnny's bubble problem, Vivitar buying...

#52 Matthew Duclos & The Heartbreaker

21 Jan 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Think that using flawed lenses to make interesting imaging is just a still photography thing? Think again! Matthew Duclos of Duclos Lenses explains ho...

#51 The Mike & Bob Show!

14 Jan 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Two for the price of one this week and Karl, Johnny and Simon almost get a week off as Mike Eckman and Bob Rotoloni chat Nikon history amongst themsel...

#50 We Are One

07 Jan 2019

Contributed by Lukas

In a change to our scheduled podcast with Matthew Duclos who could not join us due to a last minute problem. So instead we used the opportunity to go ...

#49 100mm With Bryan Nagar

31 Dec 2018

Contributed by Lukas

This week we talk about 100/105mm (non macro) lenses with our guest, classic lens photographer, Bryan Nagar. The various Nikon 105/2.5 lenses get a go...