I preferred the 44-2. I thought the bokeh was slightly better and it had more pleasant contrast.

Thank you for this video. I'm happy with my 44m-4

Thanks for the comparison! I was just looking for this to decide wich of the 2 to buy!

Excellent review!

Excellent review thanks a lot

Thank you so much for this video comparison too, I feared I had to necessarily go for previous models to my 44-4(k) to reach that "swirly" bokeh effect

Great work! Keep going!

Very helpful review, thankyou.

Another great comparison.🙏 I have a request for your next comparison. Please compare Early silver KMZ Helios-44 2/58 RED P - 13 blades that has max 22 aperture value to non Red P version Helios 44 13 blades max aperture value 16. And if you would like to make it even more interesting throw a third lens in the mix. The silver 12 Blade Carl Zeiss Jena Biotar 58mm f/2 Red T. You would be the first in the world to compare all three. I'm dying to see which one will come out on top. Make it happen! You the man!👍🏼

great review! you gotta love the Helios 44 series!

Personally I've settled on Helios 44M as it's a bit like "the best of both worlds". I love how smooth the focusing is with 44-2 but the preset aperture is too inconvenient for my use. At least with my 44M I still have 8 aperture blades but the automatic mode is a big upgrade as I use it with old film cameras.

thanks for the really detailed review! I can't decide between the 2, maybe I get them both as part of a collection too! 😂😂😂

Thank you 🙏

Excellent review. Thank you so much for your time, knowledge and skill. Stay safe.....!

I had a good copy of a BeLOMO 44-2 with no backlash on the mount, but after a couple days of using it, it had developed a fair amount of backlash, which is super annoying. So if you have neither lens, I would recommend just going with a 44M-series unless the difference between 6 and 8 blades is a deal-breaker. And if that's the case, you can get even more blades with an original 44. They're all so cheap compared to modern lenses, I don't mind having a few different versions kicking around. A lot of forum posts and things claim that the later 44M models don't have as much swirly bokeh as the original 44 and 44-2, but I don't think there's any evidence of that (they look identical in this side-by-side, and they have the same optical formula). I have a 44M-7, which is supposedly the sharpest, and it has quite swirly bokeh.

merci

I'm using the 44M-4. Few things that drove me nuts with 44-2: 1. The aperture setting. I'd be fine even with the stepless apeture system, but when the f-stop number are reversed like that... No, no thank you. 2. Very thin and tight aperture ring, difficult to operate. I have small hands, i'd imagine even more difficult with bigger hands. 3. The thinner mount side, doesn't look / feel good for with a generic adapter. 4. The general wobbliness. Still, optically it's slightly better and the bokeh (big plus due to more blades) is better. It's also cheap, so why not? But i'll be using the 44M-4 for a good while to come. If i come across a more rarer earlier Helios 44, then that's another story.

Great review! You really took great effort to make exactly the same shots with both lenses unlike many other videos here on KZfaq. Therefore it´s much easier to compare the two 44 versions, because there are differences. Small but noticeable. Better sharpness of the 44-4 is obvious but also the higher brightness of the newer model is visable. Maybe because of less blades? Or is it a question of age, in terms of condition of the lenses? Or quality is not 100 % persistent throughout each line of 44-2/44-4. The problem with the woobly mount of your 44-2 model could be also different on other lenses of the same model .... what do you think. Thanks for the time you investet to present this great shoot out!

thanks

I have a Helios 44-7 , Last edition .

Think though it's close I have both. think helios 44m-4 has better contrast and sharper... but prob in field shots you prob won't notice....my 44-2 permanently converted to canon EF. fit... 44m is M42. fit...

to me and to my eye these are almost identical. No matter what. focus, sharpnes, details, only thing I could think of 44-2 front lens is much more deep into the body so it possibly flares a tiny bit less in some situations. that's it.

Amazing this lens, I have tje helios 44M 58mm f2

i love how you handle a 10€ lens with glove

Yea... I got my 44-4 from you years back, give me an offer, I’m planning to get one more. 😅🤭

great review thx! but how about comparing 44-2 Valdai vs 44-4m KMZ? worth to try 44-4 KMZ over 44-2?

Best bokeh of series is 44-2, sharpness is 44-m7

Great video! which lens is the best to record video?

Which Helios 44 lens is the best of all (for video and stills)?

I can't hear anything, it's too quiet mate.

Do you think the sharpness differences have anything to do with the different models or do they come down to sample variation?

Hello! I need your help please :) I got a Zenit 12 with a 44m-4 but the zoom ring acts weird When I turn it too fast, it jumps, it's like it gets lose for a short range. What can I do about it? Thanks!

Great video thank you! I’m looking to buy a 44m-7, but there seem to be a lot of fake ones. Do you know how to tell if a 44m-7 is real?

I just got a 44-3😌

Cool. I have got the 44 m, and I noticed an hard point on the focus ring between 0,55 m and 0,90 m, how can I fix that?

What do you think of the lens for street photography vs let's say cannon 59 mm 1.8

44-2 all the way

Hi! I cant get infinity focus with the Helios 44-2 in mu sony a7siii… any adapter that can or is not posiible? Thanks!!

Excellent video. Can I fit 44 m-4 on Nikon dx?

Between the KMZ Helios 44-2, 44m-4 and the 77m-4, which would be the best for film making? Thanks in advance:)

Curious. Are you still selling on your eBay store?

Why did you compare using a (type 8 44-2) always thought that was worse quality of the 44-2 models ?

I actually prefer the bokeh of 44m-4

i dont hear

this is a portrait lens , i haven t seen one portrait comparison.....maybe next time you will do it. in rest very well . don t stop.

фоткать научился, а звук при монтаже делать нормальной громкости не научился?