Glass Bodies a variant-level encyclopedia of vintage lenses and cameras by iwillpat

Serenar 85mm f/2

Canon · LTM · 1948 · Gauss type, 6e/4g

Also known as: Serenar 85mm f/2 · Canon Serenar 85mm f/2 · Serenar 85mm f2 · Serenar 8.5cm f/2 · Canon 85/2 Serenar

Variants & identification

Variant Mount Years Serial ranges Production
Serenar 85mm f/2 (I) LTM 1948–1951 — No figure published
Serenar 85mm f/2 (II) LTM 1951 — No figure published
  1. Canon's own thread before 1951 was 39 mm at 24 threads per inch (1.058 mm pitch), against Leica's 26 tpi — close enough that the lenses interchange in practice, and the difference is why an early Serenar can feel tight on a Leica. The Serenar 50mm f/1.8 of late 1951 was the first Canon lens cut to the Leica pitch (Leica Copies Japan).
How to tell them apart (expand)

Serenar 85mm f/2 (I):

  • Marketed January 1948, ¥34,520 · 556 g · 48 mm filter · stops to f/16
  • Chrome brass; 48 mm filter; 556 g; focuses to 1.07 m in the old pitch

Serenar 85mm f/2 (II):

  • Marketed September 1951, ¥35,000 · 615 g · 48 mm filter · stops to f/16
  • 615 g; ¥35,000

Specifications

Formula
Gauss type, 6e/4g
Designed by
Kuroki Masana — optical design (camera-wiki)
Construction
6 elements / 4 groups
Aperture range
f/2–f/16
Min. focus
1.07 m
Weight
556 g
Filter
48 mm
Years manufactured
1948
Country
Japan
Original price
¥34,520 (January 1948, Canon Camera Museum) (today ¥351,000)

What reviewers say

No reviews aggregated yet — this family is still in the research queue. Written one? We'd love to index it.

History

Kuroki Masana’s first fast telephoto, marketed in January 1948 at ¥34,520 — the most expensive lens Canon then sold — with a heavier second version in September 1951. Six elements in four groups, chrome brass, occupation-era engravings on the early ones. The f/1.9 of 1951 and the f/1.5 of 1952 succeeded it within the year.

It is scarce and collected as an early Serenar; nothing of substance has been written about its pictures.

Expand Collapse

This history is AI-written, from the sources listed at the foot of the page. Where the record is silent it says so rather than filling the gap — but no human wrote these sentences.

Example photos

Sample photo wanted — shot with a Serenar 85mm f/2? We'd love to feature it (with credit).

Live listings

Asking price, USD: a median of $250 across 13 fixed-price listings on 2026-09-11 (middle half $170–$300). Tracked since 2026-09-09, 2 days: unchanged from $250.

By day
DateMedianMiddle halfListings
2026-09-11$250$170–$30013
2026-09-09$250$170–$30013

Asking prices from the listings scanned, not sales; junk-flagged rows and auction lots excluded; other currencies are not converted.

Listings updated 2026-09-11. Links go to the shop or marketplace that carries the item.

Related: Canon 85mm f/1.5 · Canon 85mm f/1.9

Sources (4)

Every page here is assembled from public sources, and the gaps are real ones. If you own this lens, know a serial number I'm missing, or can see where I have it wrong, tell me — corrections, serials and sample photos are all worth having.