Canon nFD 100mm F2
Bringing the telephoto evolution into 1980’s
Canon nFD 100mm F2 on my EOS R @ F2
The elusive 100mm focal length for many still photo lens families is something that makes sense considering the minor jump from the common 85mm focal length to 100mm on full frame sensor/film formats. Rarer still is a 100mm lens with a such a wide aperture of F2 dating back to the 1980’s. At the time exotic special glass type elements like “ED” or Extra Low Dispersion glass elements were still in their infancy and were being used more commonly on lenses of longer focal lengths where the results were more obviously seen and appreciated by the high end nature photographers and sports of the era for capturing wildlife or the Olympics for example. In the “short” telephoto range of 100-200mm the use of the elements were less common. This nFD 100mm has a quite simple construction of 6 elements in 4 groups. This is lenses uses a derivative of Planar type design. This results in high sharpness and contrast across the frame and also means it’s less susceptible to loss of contrast due to flare. The speed of this lens is achieved most obviously when looking at the size of the front element. It’s massive for such a compact lens. The large front element takes up almost the entire front of the lens edge to edge. I would say it must be considerably over 50mm in diameter as there’s hardly any metal of the lens barrel visible to hold the glass in at the front of a lens with a filter thread diameter of just 55mm.
Canon nFD 100mm F2 @ F2 on my EOS R
The lens has a close focus of just 1 meter (3ft 3”) which is far less than many of the 135mm lenses of the time and only a few inches longer than the close focus of many 85mm primes like the Canon FD 85mm F1.8. Although this lens has the same maximum magnification as the 85mm there is something to be said about the convenience of a bit of extra reach that and extra 15mm offers you for framing shots from a distance. The depth of field at F2 is considerable shallower at the same distances which makes the backgrounds melt out of focus faster and further than using an 85mm F1.8 so that’s a lovely benefit if you like to further isolate your subjects in a narrow plane of focus like I do.
Canon nFD 100mm F2 on my EOS R @ F2
At the point of focus the lens resolves a lot of detail with high resolution and contrast. When looking through the EVF you can see detail pop into focus when you nail it. Overall the lens has minor spherical aberration wide open. Wide open there is some visible Longitudinal chromatic aberration in the form of spherochromatism with magenta appearing in bight transition zones near the plane of focus and green fringing past the plane of focus. Overall this is not excessive and pretty decent for fast telephoto lenses of the time, definitely less noticeable compared to the nFD 200mm F2.8 for example. The amount of spherical aberration makes for a pleasing softness to objects out of focus in the foreground but also since you can’t have one type of correction without the other means that items past the plane of focus are a bit busier than would be desirable. I would not go as far as to call the background bokeh “nervous” but I also wouldn’t call it very smooth either. The bokeh balls of any highlights in the out of focus background exhibit the typical “halo” or “bubble” effect associated with the prioritization of contrast at the point of focus by the optical design which consequently results in the less than desirable “over corrected” bokeh of the “bubble” nature in the out of focus background rather than the out of focus foreground. This is pretty typical of most vintage lens designs, especially those of a Planar design. The good news is anything in-front of the plane of focus is generally smoother and free of too much magenta fringing thanks to some spherical aberration hiding it. Overall the lens has a nice “smooth but sharp” rendering.
Canon nFD 100mm F2 on my EOS R @ F2
Wide open at the edges of the frame there is a noticeable “cat’s eye” effect of geometric deformation which I personally find appealing. There is also some swirling effect although it’s not super pronounced. If the highlights are defused the bokeh balls can appear smoother without as much of the “halo” or “bubble” effect creating produced edges which allows them to blend together smoother on top of one another leading to a more appealing visual harmony in my opinion. Color reproduction seems quite neutral as I have found with most Canon nFD lenses. It seems to be a good color match to my nFD 135mm and nFD 200mm F2.8. Overall I enjoy shooting with this lens and this focal length. Yes some might say it’s too close to an 85mm and doesn’t offer the reach of a 135mm but I find it offer a unique perspective when it comes to framing and composition.
