Tanaka Kogaku Tanar 50mm f/2 H.C.

The Tanaka Kogaku Tanar 50mm f/2 H.C. is a LTM-mount lens for Leica rangefinder cameras. Leica price index ↗

Reference maintained by Thomas Boots

Focal Length: 50mm

Aperture: 𝑓/2

Release Year (from): 1956

Minimum Focus Distance: 0.46m

Elements in Groups: 6/3

Aperture Blades: 9

Mount: LTM

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Tanaka Kogaku Tanar 50mm f/2 H.C.

Among the standard lenses Tanaka Kogaku built for its Tanack rangefinders, the Tanar 50mm f/2 H.C. stands out as the company's Sonnar-derived fast normal, a six-element design in three groups that placed it a clear step above the slower Tessar-type 50mm f/3.5 and f/2.8 Tanars [1][2]. It was offered as the faster optic for the Tanack IV-S, the Leica-screw-mount copy that formed the core of Tanaka's production through the mid-1950s [2][3]. The "H.C." marking stands for "Hard Coated," and on this lens it appears from the outset rather than as a later revision [1][3].

Optically the lens follows the Sonnar layout, with six elements arranged in three groups [1][2]. The barrel is rigid, the focus ring carries two rows of milling and is driven by a focusing tab with an infinity lock, and the front-mounted aperture ring is graduated from f/2 to f/16 [1]. The distance scale is engraved in feet, reaching down to a close 1.5 feet, with the markings closer than 3.5 feet picked out in red [1]. That short minimum focus is unusual for the type and is thought to derive from a closely related project: the same optic was supplied to Misuzu Kogaku for the Alta camera under the name Altanon, and the close-focusing feature is believed to have been devised first for that lens, which was strongly influenced by the Nikkor-H 5cm f/2 for the Nikon S [1]. The standard mount is Leica screw (M39 / LTM), which lets the lens be used on Canon and Leica screw-mount bodies as well as on the Tanacks it was made for [3]. It is not coupled to a rangefinder mechanism within the lens itself in the way later figures might suggest; collectors should confirm coupling behavior on their own bodies.

Most examples carry the front engraving "Tanaka Kogaku Japan TANAR ... 1:2 F=5cm" with the H.C. designation, and Tanaka also produced standard lenses in revised barrels for the later Tanack V3, where the H.C. marking was dropped in favor of an angle-of-view engraving and an Exposure Value scale [1]. Because Tanaka Kogaku was a small maker that ceased camera production at the end of the 1950s, surviving Tanar 50mm f/2 lenses are uncommon, and the rebadged Altanon variant is a recognized point of overlap for collectors [1][4].

Optical qualities

Rendering As a Sonnar-type six-element design with hard coating, the lens is consistent with the rendering associated with that formula and era: respectable contrast for its time and the smooth tonal character typical of Sonnar normals [1][2]. One contemporary reviewer who shot a comparable six-element sub-f/2 Tanar normal reported good sharpness across the frame without obvious corner softness or vignetting, and overall behavior in line with other six-element lenses of the period [2]. Detailed, lens-specific optical testing of the f/2 H.C. is scarce, so claims beyond this general character should be treated with caution.

History

Development and Launch Tanaka Kogaku (Tanaka Optical), based in Kawasaki, began work on a Leica copy, the Tanack 35, in 1952 and released it in 1953, then improved it through the Tanack IIIS and the successful Tanack IV-S of 1955 [3]. Alongside the cameras, the company made a series of Tanar lenses in Leica screw mount to equip them, with the standard lenses usually sold as a set on a Tanack body [1]. The 50mm f/2 was the faster normal in that lineup, introduced for the Tanack IV-S and intended to compete with the contemporary Japanese sub-f/2 normals [1][2][3].

Production Evolution Tanaka revised its standard lenses when it introduced the Tanack V3 in early 1959, giving them new barrels with an Exposure Value scale at the tip and dropping the earlier H.C. engraving in favor of an angle-of-view marking [1]. The company's later cameras, the Nikon-S2-inspired Tanack SD of 1957 and the Tanack V3 and VP, met limited success, and Tanaka Kogaku failed at the end of 1959, which limited the total output of these lenses [3].

Special editions No major factory special editions of the 50mm f/2 are widely documented. The most notable variant is the rebadged Altanon 5cm f/2 sold by Misuzu Kogaku on the Alta camera, which is the same optic under a different name [1][4]. Tanaka also produced lenses in Contax and Nikon S mounts for some models in its range, though the standard offering for this lens is Leica screw mount [2][3].

Collector Notes Genuine examples are engraved with the Tanaka Kogaku and Tanar names and the H.C. marking, and the front aperture ring, tabbed focus ring with infinity lock, and feet-only distance scale with red close-focus markings are useful identification points [1]. Buyers should be aware of the Altanon rebadge when comparing examples, and, as with any 1950s coated Japanese rangefinder lens, should check the optics for haze, cleaning marks, and coating wear, and verify that the screw mount and focus mechanism operate cleanly before purchase [1][4]. Published sources note a closest focus of about 1.5 feet for this lens [1].