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 CANON 55mm f1.2AL FD BAYONET MANUAL FOCUS LENS. 

Super Quality Canon FD bayonet mount manual focus lens. It's the original version of this lens - launched in the early 1970s - and technically it is still among the most advanced Standard type lenses ever produced. It incorporates an aspherical surface, a floating element to improve close-up performance, and employs special glass. While Canon had made fast lenses for their rangefinder cameras, there had always been issues with sharpness and contrast at full aperture. For their new SLR system, Canon wanted a state-of-the-art optic that would demonstrate their cutting-edge design and manufacturing capabilities. The original 55mm f1.2AL was a very special lens, individually-made in limited quantities. The aspheric surface had to be machined by hand, and rejection rates were high. Canon also made a non aspherical version without the floating element, at a lower price, but this wasn't as good. Some measure of the 55mm f1.2AL's performance can be appreciated by reading Leica lens guru Erwin Puts' review. He describes this lens on his website as the best fast 50mm lens ever made - better even than the legendary Leica Noctilux! It fits all Canon 35mm cameras with FD bayonet bodies, but not the EOS AF series - though it is possible to buy an FD to EOS adaptor. The glass has Canon's best SSC multi-coating, and looks bright and clean - no scratches or fungus, no clouding or hazing - just the usual odd dust spec here and there. The focus is smooth and even. The iris operates crisply - no oil on the blades. Cosmetically, the lens is in good condition - signs of light normal use and handling - some minor rub/shine marks here and there. There are no major dents, or scratches, but there are a couple of dings on the focus ring - near the 0.7m mark. Ser No 102556.

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