Best Konica (AR) Lenses

Originally introduced in 1965, Konica (AR-mount) lenses are generally well-regarded for their color rendering, especially vibrant greens and blues, and high contrast.

Not as hyped as other mounts (e.g. Nikon F, Canon FD), these lenses offer incredible value for money.

I’ve identified the top 15 best buys below. Let’s start with a quick overview of Konica AR lens qualities:

General Characteristics

  • Wide open, many are not tack-sharp, but stop down and performance improves significantly.

  • Rendering style tends to be cooler, with a reputation for clinical sharpness rather than warmth or organic character.

  • Their overall philosophy is similar to Minolta, but rendering is different—more vivid and punchy, less soft and warm.

  • Built to last, they are typically larger and heavier than their (vintage lens) competition.

  • Go for Hexanon lenses (not the budget, lower quality Hexar line).

Now, onto the recommended lenses!

Wide Angle Primes

Lens Summary Price
21mm f/2.8 Hexanon Rare and highly regarded; sharp and contrasty with excellent distortion control. Flare-resistant. Pricey and hard to find. Made by Tokina. 1000
24mm f/2.8 Hexanon Very good edge-to-edge sharpness with beautiful color rendition and good flare control. High sample variation; opinions divided on early (f/16 max) vs. later version (f/22) – have to evaluate them on a case by case basis. Arguably Konica’s best wide-angle! 150
28mm f/3.5 Hexanon Extremely good value and underrated. Great sharpness and contrast. Important: get the later (7-element) version (max f/16 aperture, with rubber focusing ring). 40
35mm f/2 Hexanon Excellent sharpness, contrast, and color rendering. Considered one of the best fast 35mm vintage lenses from any brand. Strong performer on both film and digital. Rare. 120

Honorable mentions:

  • 15mm f/2.8 Fisheye Hexanon: Legendary among ultra-wides; sharp and fun but rare and pricey. $500.
  • 28mm F1.8 UC Hexanon: Legendary, top-performance lens with a cult following. Very contrasty images with outstanding color rendition. The only Hexanon with floating element. Corrected for close focus. Collectible, but not worth $1200!
  • 35mm f/2.8 Hexanon: Solid sharpness and decent colors, but overshadowed by the f/2 version. Less standout character or performance.

Standard Primes

Lens Summary Price
50mm f/1.4 Hexanon Sharp even wide open, great contrast, smooth bokeh. Slightly less unique character than the 57/1.2 but more practical and compact. Early (f/16) and Late (f/22) versions have identical optics. Good for portraits. 70
50mm f/1.7 Hexanon Incredibly sharp, dirt cheap, great rendering. Less magical bokeh than the 1.4, but optically excellent. Early version has the slightly shorter minimum focusing distance (just 45 cm), but both versions are excellent. Big brain move: look for Konica cameras that include this lens, then sell the camera (free lens!) 40
57mm f/1.2 Hexanon Creamy bokeh, vintage glow, still sharp; one of the most beloved “dream lenses.” Large and heavy, minor CA wide open. An iconic, ultra-fast lens with lots of character at a fraction of the price of modern f/1.2s. 500
57mm f/1.4 Hexanon Beautiful bokeh, great color rendition, and better character than the 50/1.4. Many prefer it over the faster 57/1.2 for balance and rendering. Great value pick! 100

Honorable mentions:

  • 40mm f/1.8 Hexanon: Unique rendering, very compact, great stopped down past F2.8, but very soft wide and dreamy wide open. Best seen as a compact f/2.8 with a bonus f/1.8. Epic flaring wide open. Great for B&W work (very film-like rendering).
  • 55mm f/3.5 Macro Hexanon: Very sharp and great for close-up work.

Telephoto Primes

Lens Summary Price
85mm f/1.8 Hexanon Sharp, fast, and with gorgeous bokeh — a true portrait lens. Renders skin tones beautifully and produces a most delicate and dreamy bokeh in the background areas. Sharp when stopped down. Somewhat rare. 300
100mm f/2.8 Hexanon Does not have the 85mm’s unique personality, but it has its own qualities (also smaller and lighter). Very sharp lens that produces excellent images with vivid color rendition. Good for portraits. Nice set with a 28 and 50. 100
135mm f/3.2 Hexanon Sharp, vibrant colors, low, CA, lightweight, and very affordable. Possibly the best value in the Konica telephoto range. Just 1 meter close focus! Effective built-in hood. Watch out for sticky aperture blades (prone). Value pick! 50

Honorable mentions:

  • 105mm f/4 Macro Hexanon: Rare, but excellent for close work. Note: No focusing mechanism. It is intended to be used with a bellows. Produces very sharp, contrasty flat-field images.
  • 135mm f/2.5 Hexanon: Produces very pleasant skin tones and a nice bokeh that is beyond the reach of the other, slower, 135s. Great color rendition. Crappy built-in hood doesn’t quite get the job done (needs an additional hood on top). Heavy (650g), rare, expensive.
  • 135mm F3.5 Hexanon: Does not have a personality as pronounced as the f2.5 and f3.2 versions but is nevertheless a very solid performer that produces sharp images. Bonus: it’s compact. Later (f/22 max) is a simpler design than the early version (f/16 max).

Zoom Lenses

Lens Summary Price
35–70mm f/3.5 Hexanon (early metal version) Good standard zoom; avoid the later plastic version. Unusually sharp for a zoom lens of that time, has great color rendition, and is the best-performing of Konica’s 35-70mm zooms. Manufactured by Tokina. Continuous focus from close-focusing distance to infinity (parfocal). Push pull construction. 50
45–100mm f/3.5 Hexanon UC  Superb optical quality, close to primes at many focal lengths. A very versatile zoom with prime-like sharpness. 180
65–135mm f/4 Hexanon Underrated and compact. 220
80–200mm f/4 Hexanon UC Extremely sharp for a zoom, great colors and contrast. Cons: large and heavy. 75

Note: Konica zooms are not easy to find in great condition. Sometimes you can get lucky by buying an entire camera kit with one of these zooms included.

📷 Compatibility

  • Short flange distance means Konica AR lenses are not usable on DSLRs, but great on mirrorless cameras.

  • Work particularly well on Micro Four Thirds (MFT) and APS-C sensors due to crop factor and center-focused performance.

  • On full-frame digital, they sometimes struggle—soft corners, CA, purple fringing.

Links & Resources

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